Thursday, January 26, 2017

India look to tame England on Republic Day

India vs England, T20I at Kanpur; 26 January 2017 - Match Preview

So after the three match ODI series that saw bowlers from both camps getting murdered; the India England cricket caravan moves on to the most destructive format of the game with Kanpur set to host the first T20 of the three match series. With scores of week over 300 a norm in the recently concluded ODI series, this promises to be a run fest as well with both India and England boasting of some massive strikers of the cricket ball.

England will hope that Jason Roy can continue to provide blistering starts while also silently praying that Jos Buttler gets into his groove as he is their most dynamic player who had the ability to improvise by playing highly unorthodox shots. They will also welcome Joe Root back to the side who missed the last ODI due to a niggle. With players like Stokes, Jordan, Plunkett and Ali in the side they have the personnel who can bat right down till the very end.

India's batting flourished in the ODI series and though it still seems to revolve a lot around Kohli the trend seems to be changing with the recent form of Yuvraj and Dhoni welcoming for team India. With home boy Raina back in the fold and young KL Rahul looking to get runs under his belt after a failed ODI series the Indian batting looks strong on paper.

Amit Mishra gets a look in as both Ashwin and Jadeja have been rested for this series with the Aussie tests looming on the horizon and he must be keen to show that he is good enough to play for India on a regular basis. Pandya is a bowler to look out for as he seems to have gained a yard or two in pace but still lacks in control a wee bit. Bumrah, with his slingy action and accurate yorkers, will be the man for Kohli in the death overs.

England have loads of bits and pieces players who are good enough to destroy the opposition with either bat or ball in hand. Tymal Mills is a quick bowler coming off a decent showing in the BBL and he might get a look in. Adil Rashid might miss out as he has the tendency to leak runs.

With an early start to the T20 match, dew is not likely to be a factor and spectators can sit back and enjoy all the action unfold between two teams that will go toe to toe in a breathless format.

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