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England
India
England and India will meet in the second T20I of the India tour of England at Old Trafford, Manchester. The 5-match T20I series will continue with both teams looking to take control. The opening match ended without a result after rain interrupted play despite India completing their full 20 overs.
Harry Brook will lead England, while Shreyas Iyer will continue his first full-time T20I captaincy assignment. Recent numbers show England have won 3 of their last 5 completed white-ball matches, while India have won 2 of their last 5 games.
India hold a slight edge in recent meetings, with 3 wins in the last 5 T20Is against England. One match ended in a no result, while England won once. India have defended successfully in all 3 of those victories, showing their strength while batting second. Old Trafford is expected to produce another competitive contest.
England's opening pair has been more consistent in recent meetings and home conditions should help them build a stronger first-wicket partnership than India.
The betting tip is...
Highest Opening Partnership - England
75 %
25 %
EnglandIndiaEngland had a flexible squad with four wicketkeeping options in Jos Buttler, Phil Salt, Tom Banton and Jordan Cox. The batting unit did not get a chance to bat after rain affected the first T20I, but the side had plenty of depth. Jacob Bethell, James Coles, Sam Curran, Liam Dawson and Will Jacks were available as all-rounders.
Jofra Archer, Saqib Mahmood and Luke Wood formed the pace attack, while Adil Rashid, Rehan Ahmed and Josh Tongue were the spin options. Saqib Mahmood was England's standout bowler in the first T20I, finishing with figures of 4/33 in four overs and taking three wickets.
Adil Rashid and Sam Curran picked up one wicket each as England used six bowlers. Jofra Archer was rested and was on the bench for the opening T20I.
Salt, Buttler and Brook are the key batters in the team.
Predicted Lineup: Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (c), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Adil Rashid, Luke Wood and Saqib Mahmood.
India's top order performed well in the first T20I. Abhishek Sharma scored 59 runs from just 24 balls, while captain Shreyas Iyer made 68 off 47 deliveries.
Shivam Dube added an unbeaten 42 from 21 balls to help India post a competitive total. Young batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was part of the squad but did not make his debut. If selected later in the series, he could have opened alongside Abhishek Sharma.
Ishan Kishan will keep the wickets and bat at number three. Shivam Dube and Axar Patel were picked as the all-rounders. Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna led the pace attack, while Varun Chakravarthy, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi and Axar Patel handled the spin duties.
Abhishek, Iyer and Kishan are the key batters in the team.
Predicted Lineup: Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Harshit Rana, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh and Varun Chakravarthy.
England will start as favourites in Manchester because of their home conditions and a settled squad. Their opening pair has a good chance to make the best use of the new ball and put together a strong stand. For India, Abhishek is in form, but Samsonβs form at the top is a worry, while England openers will use home advantage.
India also have enough batting quality to post or chase a competitive total, with their middle order capable of making an impact. At least one batter from each team should play a big innings.
However, England's top order looks more likely to bat deeper and give the team a stronger start. That early platform could prove to be the difference in a closely contested match.
