India return to action in five-match T20I series as England pose powerful challenge
Pushing aside a denting outcome in Australia, India will now hope to redeem themselves against a touring England side as a bilateral series that will feature five T20Is and three ODIs will witness the two power-hitting stalwarts going up against each other, beginning with the first game in Kolkata.
India, spearheaded by Suryakumar Yadav, will be taking the yard for the first T20I, hoping to keep their domination in the shortest format of the game alive. Ever since the T20 World Cup triumph, India have pocketed four T20I series at the expense of Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and South Africa. Suryakumar Yadav’s captaincy has hogged all the limelight and he will be hopeful that the Men in Blue can maintain their momentum.
England will also be brimming with confidence as they drubbed West Indies by 3-1 in the last T20I series. Following their triumph against the Windies, they also went on to win a remarkable Test series against New Zealand. With the kind of form that the Three Lions have savoured off late, they will be eyeing a full-blown blockbuster against the hosts.
Pitch conditions:
The surface in Kolkata has always offered a balance between bat and ball. Even though spinners might have a bit of an edge in the first innings, predominance of dew in the second innings can lead to batters making merry. However, history suggests that Eden Gardens has always been a batting paradise and one may expect a run-fest.
Head to Head:
Matches played: 24
India: 13
England: 11
Match Details:
India vs England, 1st T20I, 2025
Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Date: 22nd January 2024
Time: 7:00 PM
Squads:
India: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel (vc), Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Shami, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (wk)
England: Jos Buttler (C), Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Phil Salt (wk), Jamie Smith (wk), Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Liam Livingstone, Jamie Overton, Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood
