India vs England, 1st T20I Probable Playing XI: Rahul-Rohit To Open

India will be facing England in the five-match T20I series starting from 12th March at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. 

For the T20s, the Indian team has strengthened its middle order with the addition of attacking batsmen like Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, and Suryakumar Yadav. Given his form currently, Pant is very likely to play as a wicket-keeper batsman while KL Rahul will play as a pure batsman. Hardik Pandya will be given the finisher's role. 

Virat Kohli confirmed that KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma will be the opening pair suggesting that there is a number 4 spot that is up for grabs. Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav will be fighting for the spot in which the latter could be picked. 

Bhuvneshwar Kumar is back in the T20 squad but will face a tough competition to get a place in the playing XI. He along with Shardul Thakur look like the likely starters. There are reports regarding the fitness of left-arm pacer T Natarajan. If he is not fit, Deepak Chahar will be the third seamer for the first T20I. 

Yuzvendra Chahal will be the specialist spinner along with all-rounder Washington Sundar, however, an impressive test debut makes Axar Patel a strong candidate for the spin all-rounder. 

 

For England, Jos Buttler will join the T20 squad fresh after a two-week rest from cricket. He along with his opening partner Jason Roy and Dawid Malan coming in at number three makes a dangerous top-order. Eoin Morgan will be the key player for England who can play both anchor as well as the finisher's role. 

Chris Jordan could be seen leading the pace attack if fitness issues rule out Jofra Archer in the first T20I. England is likely to play three all-rounders - Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, and Moeen Ali. Adil Rashid will be the lone specialist spinner. 

Both India and England have a tremendous head-to-head record against each other. The five-match T20I series will likely go down to the wire. 

India Playing XI - Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer/Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan/Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal

England Playing XI - Jason Roy, Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan, Liam Livingstone, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan, Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid 

Check out the Fantasy XI team for India vs England 1st T20I here