da fazobetai： The two teams are in transition, but there’s plenty of firepower in both sides for what should be a high-scoring series
da realsbet： Sreshth Shah21-Jan-20251:20
‘Gambhir will be judged on CT and England tour’
Big picture: Teams in transitionGautam Gambhir and Brendon McCullum have many things in common. They were both stellar openers, they were both captain and coach of Kolkata Knight Riders at different times, they’re both known for their “aggressive” mindsets when it comes to approaching the game from the dugout, and, now, they both find themselves trying to shepherd teams in transition.India’s has been easier, at least in this format, with three superstars calling time on their careers with T20 World Cup medals around their neck, and others fitting in smoothly over the course of wins against Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and South Africa. England’s has been trickier, with one of the most exciting white-ball teams in world cricket struggling in ICC tournaments since their T20 World Cup win in 2022.This has meant McCullum enters the India T20I series as England’s white-ball coach for the first time, with ambitions of maximising the team’s unfulfilled potential. And for Gambhir, the aim is to show that the T20I team remains unaffected by the poor Test results that have shaken the establishment.Related
Powerhouse line-ups clash in a series that could test T20's limits
It’s against this backdrop that India and England meet in a five-match series that could test the limits of the shortest format. And as the lines between T20Is and ODIs keep blurring, there will be opportunities for some T20I specialists to stake their claim for future ODI positions – especially after the Champions Trophy concludes.Five potentially delectable T20 batting surfaces await the two sides across the next fortnight, and the first salvo in Kolkata will give a glimpse of what to expect.Form guideIndia WWLWW
England LWWWWArshdeep Singh and Mohammed Shami work together at the nets•PTI
In the spotlight: Bethell and ShamiVery few youngsters right now have the aura of Jacob Bethell. He made blistering international debuts in all three formats at the back end of 2024. He has had a stint with Melbourne Renegades in the BBL, and has an IPL contract with Royal Challengers Bengaluru without playing a single game in India. The left-hand batter has developed a reputation of smacking spinners for fun, is a handy left-arm spinner himself, and is considered an electric fielder in the ring and on the boundary line. Could there be a more perfect T20 cricketer in this era? Slotted in at No. 6 for the first T20I against India, Bethell’s stocks have never been higher. England see him as one of their future superstars. Now all he has to do is ace the India challenge.On the other hand, Mohammed Shami, at age 34, is making an international comeback after an ankle surgery and a knee niggle. He hasn’t played international cricket since India’s loss in the 2023 ODI World Cup final, and despite India trying other fast bowlers in the interim, there’s a feeling that Shami remains India’s second-best seamer behind Jasprit Bumrah. India have gambled by selecting him for next month’s Champions Trophy, and the focus in the T20Is and ODIs against England will be on how his body holds up. It’s also the perfect way for him to come back, at his domestic-cricket home ground.Team news: Archer, Wood combine, but what of Bishnoi?England captain Jos Buttler said he was especially pleased at having every first-choice T20I player available for this series. They have named their XI already, with Phil Salt taking the gloves and Ben Duckett opening alongside him. Buttler himself will be at No. 3, with England also having the searing pace and fit bodies of Jofra Archer and Mark Wood to attack India. England’s deep line-up makes them one of the most dangerous batting outfits at the moment.England: 1 Phil Salt (wk), 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Jos Buttler (capt), 4 Harry Brook, 5 Liam Livingstone, 6 Jacob Bethell, 7 Jamie Overton, 8 Gus Atkinson, 9 Jofra Archer, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Mark WoodIndia have two major decisions to make: how many spinners to play, and how deep their batting should look. Arshdeep Singh, Shami and Hardik Pandya should be be the seamers, while Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel could be the two spin options. That probably leaves India deciding between seam-bowling allrounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, spin-bowling allrounder Washington Sundar, and an outright wristspinner in Ravi Bishnoi. England are right-hander-heavy, and struggle against fingerspinners, two factors that could decide India’s eventual choice.India (probable): 1 Sanju Samson (wk), 2 Abhishek Sharma, 3 Tilak Varma, 4 Suryakumar Yadav (capt), 5 Hardik Pandya, 6 Rinku Singh, 7 Axar Patel, 8 Nitish Kumar Reddy/Washington Sundar/Ravi Bishnoi, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Arshdeep Singh, 11 Varun Chakravarthy.Brendon McCullum and Jos Buttler oversee England’s training session•Getty Images
Pitch and conditions: Dew and runs aplentyKolkata is going to offer a hard deck with true bounce. The boundaries are small, and the ball in January will get wet very quickly. That means Eden Gardens should be a paradise for batting. Suryakumar and Buttler both felt conditions would be the same irrespective of the toss result, so expect a belter with dew around.Stats and trivia: Arshdeep closes in on Chahal Among Full Members, England have the second-worst batting average against fingerspin since the start of 2024: 26.8. Against top sides like Australia, South Africa and India, it drops to 13.88 at a run rate of only 6.74. With 95 wickets in 60 T20Is, Arshdeep is only one wicket behind Yuzvendra Chahal, who leads the pack for India in the format. If Arshdeep gets to the landmark of 100 wickets in this five-match series, he’ll become the quickest fast bowler to get there. Currently, Haris Rauf holds that record, having achieved it in 71 games. Also, since Arshdeep’s T20I debut, no bowler has taken more wickets in the powerplay (40) or in the last five overs (46). India have not lost a bilateral T20I series at home in the last six years. Their last defeat was against Australia in February 2019. In the 16 series since, India have won 14 and drawn two. Since the T20 World Cup 2024, India have scored at 9.2 runs per over in the powerplay, an astonishing 10.3 from overs 7-15 and 10.9 in the last five overs. In this period, no team has had a better run rate between overs 7-15 or a better ball-per-boundary ratio (4.7). Archer has the wood over both Suryakumar and Hardik, with both batters striking at only 116 against him while averaging 14.5 and 19 runs, respectively.Quotes”It’s a really exciting tour coming to India with what I’d say is a full line-up for us. Sometimes there’s so much cricket that certain players have to be rested or managed. But that’s certainly not the case for us at all in in this series.”
“Eden Gardens is a special feeling, because this is where I played when I started playing regularly.”
