Current India-England Combined T20I XI

On Tuesday, India and England will lock horns in the first of the three T20Is to be played at Old Trafford in Manchester. The series marks the beginning of a long tour of the Old Blighty for the Men In Blue that will also see them play three ODIs and five Test matches, going all the way into September.

Both teams comprise of some of the finest T20 players in the game worthy of fitting into any playing XI and the likes of Jason Roy, Virat Kohli and others will look to make a match-winning impact in this series.

Here's the current combined T20 XI comprising of players from both sides:

NOTE: Only players who are fit and are in the squad for the T20I series between England and India have been considered.

Openers

Rohit Sharma will look to amends for past disappointments

Jason Roy

The hard-hitting English opener made his debut the last time India and England played a T20I on home turf and ever since then he has evolved into one of the most sought-after players in the format.

With a T20I strike-rate of 136, the right-hander can be banked upon to provide the starts which teams look for in the powerplay overs. England will hope for him to give them that in the upcoming series against India.

Rohit Sharma

Partnering Roy at the top will be the only Indian batsman with two T20I hundreds to his name. Rohit Sharma may be susceptible to the moving ball but on pitches with little or no lateral movement, few come close to being as destructive as him in white-ball cricket.

Rohit and Roy, in fact, have almost identical strike-rates(136.58 to 136.07 to that of Roy) and with the Englishman at the top of the order, the duo could form a lethal opening partnership that could lay the platform for the middle-order.

Rohit's experiences in limited-overs cricket in England have been forgettable as both in the 2011 tour as well as the 2014 tour he was forced to go home early after hurting his finger on both occasions.

The upcoming series could well be his chance to make amends for those missed opportunities.

Middle-order

Morgan's form will be vital for England if they are to do well

Virat Kohli (C)

The undisputable Number 3 of this side. Virat Kohli has been on several overseas trips in the past, but in terms of wanting to prove a point to the outside world about his ability to play the moving ball and excel at it, this series will hold a bit more significance for him as he looks to rectify his poor run of form from 2014 and conquer what many feel is a 'final frontier' for him as a batsman.

Kohli's overall strike-rate in T20Is is 137 and with 18 fifties to his credit, he will be among the more sought-after wickets for England across all formats.

Eoin Morgan

Giving Kohli company in the middle-order is his English counterpart Eoin Morgan, someone who has been very critical for his country's revolution from an ordinary limited-overs side to becoming a gun unit, especially in the batting department.

With a strike-rate of 132, the left-hander will be crucial for the hosts in the middle-order along with the likes of Jonny Bairstow and others if they are to dominate yet another series at home.

All-rounders

Can Dhoni replicate his IPL form in England?

MS Dhoni (WK)

The 36-year-old, on his fourth and possibly final tour of England to play a bilateral series, will hold the key in the middle-order with the likes of Suresh Raina, Kohli and others around him in the line-up.

He will come into this tour on the back of a terrific IPL, where he amassed 455 runs in 16 matches at a strike-rate of 150, the bulk of those runs coming when he batted at the Number 5 position. His wicket-keeping abilities remain unmatched and if indeed this turns out to be his last bilateral tour, he will hope he can finish on a high.

Jos Buttler

The second wicket-keeper in this XI and one who is fighting toe-to-toe with Dhoni for being the best keeper in the white-ball format at the moment. Buttler has been quite remarkable in the shortest format of the game in recent times with his exploits in the IPL for the Rajasthan Royals and also for his country in the recent T20I against Australia, where he smashed a 30-ball 61.

That innings came when Buttler was pushed to open the batting and it won't come as a surprise if he comes out to face the new ball again on Tuesday.

Ben Stokes*

The all-rounder has not been selected in the squad for the T20I series, but if he proves his fitness, there is a possibility he might feature in the third game on the 7th of July at Bristol. Stokes will represent Durham in a Vitality Blast T20 game against Yorkshire on the 5th of July and his participation in the series will depend on how he fares in that game.

If he does return to the game, then it could be a big boost for England ahead of the ODI series which begins from the 12th of July for which he is in the squad.

Pacers

Willey will be banked upon by Morgan to strike early with the ball

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Arguably, India's most improved cricketer across all formats of the game. Bhuvneshwar's emergence from a non-certainty to one of the key players in the last 12-18 months has meant that India have a player in their ranks on whom they can depend to pick up wickets both early on and late in the innings. He is also someone who could be relied upon with the bat as well.

In a mixed tour for his team in 2014, he stood out with his performance in the Tests and the ODIs and his contributions will be vital if India are to do well this time around.

David Willey

The left-arm seamer will add variety to an attack comprising right-arm pacers and the start he gives with the ball will be vital if his side are to restrict India to a low total with the bat.

He will also provide the batting element and could play the useful cameos which could give England the extra runs if needed late in the innings.

Spinners

Can Kulcha spin a web around the English batsman?

Kuldeep Yadav

One half of India's emerging wrist spin duo in limited-overs cricket. The left arm chinaman bowler, who made his international debut for India just over a year ago against Australia at Dharamshala has been a revelation with the ball, getting India the important scalps which they expect from him in the middle-overs.

This trip will be important for Yadav since he could be an important cog in the Indian wheel if picked for the World Cup next year. If he can have a good series here, he could go there with some confidence under his belt next year.

Yuzvendra Chahal

The other half of India's wrist spin pairing. Chahal has complimented Yadav very well in the middle overs claiming key wickets to derail the opposition innings. His variation in pace combined with the ability to deceive players by bowling wide outside the off-stump have been key for India and like Yadav, he, too, will hope for a good series with the ball in England ahead of the World Cup next year.