England vs India 2018: 3rd T20I Preview and Probable Playing XI

England ended a three-match T20 international losing streak against India when Alex Hales led them to victory at Cardiff. Now, both teams head back across the Anglo-Welsh border to Bristol for the decisive third T20I at the County Ground on Sunday, July 8.

India: Defeat in the second match of this series was India’s first in eight T20I matches. They had previously won seven in a row, including a victory in the Nidahas Trophy, a 2-0 series win against Ireland and then the eight-wicket defeat of England at Old Trafford.

With the bat, Lokesh Rahul fell for six at Cardiff, having hit a 36-ball 70 at Malahide against Ireland and a 54-ball unbeaten century against England in his two previous matches. Rohit Sharma too was also unable to follow up his score from the first match.

With the ball, Umesh Yadav has picked up two wickets apiece in each of his last three matches. While Kuldeep Yadav went wicketless in the second T20, he took match-winning 5-24, 4-21 and 3-16 spells in his three previous matches. In the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, Indians will mostly rely on these two to deliver.

Expected Playing XI: Virat Kohli (C), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Lokesh Rahul, Umesh Yadav, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav.

England Cricket Team

England: England's win at Cardiff was their third in their last seven T20 matches, having been in poor form in the shortest format before that. The Trans-Tasman T20 Tri-Series against Australian and New Zealand saw them suffer three defeats before winning their final game against the Black Caps.

With the bat, Skipper Eoin Morgan and Jonny Bairstow are key components and have the ability to change the game at any point. Their batting mainly depends on Buttler, who suffered a rare failure in the previous T20I - scoring 14 from 12 balls. Prior to that, he had hit 69 in the first game of this series and 61 against Australia. Alex Hales returned to form in the second T20I, hitting a match-winning 58 not out from 41 balls, including three sixes - one of which came from the first ball of the final over followed by a four to swing the game England's way. He also hit 49 in the win against Australia.

With the ball, England's swing bowlers impressed at Sofia Garden. David Willey (1-18) and Liam Plunkett (1-17) bowled 26 dot balls between them in the Indian innings, with Willey not conceding a single boundary, which is a good sign for England. Adil Rashid has been consistent with figures of 3-27, 1-25 and 1-29 in his last three T20 outings.

Expected Playing XI: Eoin Morgan (C), Adil Rashid, David Willey, Jason Roy, Jos Buttler, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Jonny Bairstow, Liam Plunkett, Joe Root and Moeen Ali.