ENG vs IND | 2nd T20I | Preview, Prediction, Probable XI, CREX XI

The caravan of the Indian tour of England moves to the iconic Edgbaston Cricket Ground with the second game of the three-match series set to take place in Birmingham on Saturday, July 09.

Despite missing four of their first-choice players, Team India got off to a perfect start to their T20I campaign as they swatted aside Jos Buttler's England with ruthless disdain at the Rose Bowl in Southampton.

The victory was set up by an intent-laden batting approach by the Indians, with the likes of Hardik Pandya, Deepak Hooda and Suryakumar Yadav leading the pack. 

They did lose their way at the death, but the target of 199 proved to be more than enough as Hardik Pandya's four-for and a masterclass in swing bowling from Bhuvneshwar Kumar and debutant Arshdeep Singh meant England did not get anywhere near the total.

That said, it wasn't a perfect game for the visitors as they kept dropping catches throughout England's innings, with Dinesh Karthik being the biggest culprit.

With Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja available for the next two games, it will be a tricky call for Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid as far as deciding the playing XI is concerned.

With Hooda being in such a great form, will India bench him for Kohli, or will Ishan Kishan make way for the former skipper? Ravindra Jadeja will likely replace Axar Patel, while Jasprit will come in for Arshdeep. 

Will Pant slot his way back? If yes, then at the expense of whom? This is the question that the management will have to answer, and a few tough calls could well be on the way.

As for England, the home side had a game to forget with the bat, and they will look to bounce back strongly at Edgbaston.

Apart from Tymal Mills, England bowlers had a decent outing on Thursday, and the only plausible change one can think of is David Willey replacing the former.

Match Details:

Match: England vs India, 2nd T20I

Venue: Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Birmingham

Date & Time: July 9 at 07:00 PM IST

Live Streaming: Sony Liv App

Pitch Report: The surface at Edgbaston is normally a batting paradise but it tends to get trickier chasing. The average 1st innings score in 5 T20Is here is 169 and the team batting first has won on each of the five occasions.

Head-To-Head:

Matches Played: 20

England Won: 9

India Won: 11

No Result: 0

Playing XI:

England: Jos Buttler (c & wk), Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Liam Livingstone, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, David Willey, Reece Topley, Matt Parkinson

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik/Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuvzendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah

CREX XI Suggestion:

Wicket-keeper: Jos Buttler

Batters: Rohit Sharma, Liam Livingstone, Virat Kohli, Harry Brook

All-rounders: Hardik Pandya, Moeen Ali, Ravindra Jadeja

Bowlers: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Matt Parkinson

Captain: Jos Buttler

Vice-captain: Virat Kohli