How the Men In Blue could line up at Manchester

Having whitewashed Ireland in a glorious fashion, India will now tour England to play 3 T20s, 3 ODIs, and 5 Tests from the 3rd of July to the 11th of September. The series is guaranteed to be a humdinger with both the teams enjoying the form of their lives.

England has recently completed a sensational clean sweep against Australia while India will enter the clash on the back of a 2-0 win versus Ireland. The Men in Blue have got a full-strength squad at their disposal to field in the difficult English conditions.

The first encounter between the two sides will take place on 3rd July in the form of a T20 international at Old Trafford, Manchester.

India squad for T20I series: Virat Kohli (Captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey, MS Dhoni (WK), Dinesh Karthik, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Siddarth Kaul, Umesh Yadav

Here is how India is expected to line up in the opening fixture.

Openers

#1 Rohit Sharma

Over the course of the past few years, Rohit Sharma has established himself as perhaps the most successful opening batsman in the limited-overs format. It is true that he had an underwhelming IPL campaign but the Hitman once again put all the brickbats to bed with his remarkable knock against Ireland in the first T20I. The Mumbai Indians skipper unfortunately just fell short of what would have been his third T20I century.

Rohit boasts the potential to single-handedly lead his side to victory when on song and he has shown that time and again. At the moment, he has 132 runs at an average of 26.4 in England in T20Is, which he will be raring to improve.

#2 Shikhar Dhawan

Accompanying Rohit Sharma will be his long-term partner, Shikhar Dhawan. The southpaw enjoyed an impressive IPL season and also displayed an amazing performance against Ireland in the first T20I, registering the fourth-biggest opening partnership in T20I history in tandem with Rohit Sharma.

Needless to say, the 32-year-old loves batting in English conditions and his knowledge will come in handy for the Indian team.

Top Order

#3 Virat Kohli

Kohli's recent performances against Ireland might have been substandard but there's no denying that the Indian captain will be a tough nut to crack for the English bowlers. After all, he is by far the best limited-overs batsman in the modern game of cricket.

In England, Kohli has only played 2 T20Is in which he has scored 70 runs. However, his record in ODIs is far more magnificent having racked up 682 runs in 19 innings at a stunning average of 52.46.

#4 K. L. Rahul

KL Rahul has shot to fame of late courtesy of his back-to-back commendable performances. The Karnataka batsman proved to be of immense help for Kings XI Punjab in the 2018 Indian Premier League which earned him a ticket to England.

It would be criminal if the team management decides against fielding the 26-year-old starlet particularly after his 70-run knock in the second T20I against Ireland.

Middle Order

#5 Dinesh Karthik

This will be, in all likelihood, the last chance for Dinesh Karthik to cement his position in the Indian national side.

His heroics in Indian Premier League and Nidahas Trophy final have given him a new lease of life and the wicketkeeper-batsman will spare no effort to exploit this opportunity to the full. As things stand, he is the favorite to acquire the No.5 spot.

#6 MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni has still got plenty of gas left in the tank as he shows no signs of bidding adieu to the beautiful game. Of course he won't be wearing the captain armband in the forthcoming series but his experience will be of much use to the team.

On top of that, he can also mould India's fortunes with the bat if his recent successful IPL campaign is anything to go by.

#7 Hardik Pandya

The way Hardik Pandya has made a name for himself in the international cricket is one for the books.

The Baroda all-rounder is in an excellent form at the minute and is an ideal player for the T20Is against England. He is not only productive owing to his hard-hitting nature but has also fine-tuned his bowling in the years gone by and was the highest wicket-taker for Mumbai Indians in the last IPL to boot.

Spinners

#8 Yuzvendra Chahal

Yuzvendra Chahal has emerged as Virat Kohli's go-to man when playing for both Team India and Royal Challengers Bangalore. Ranked 3rd in the list of best T20 bowlers, Chahal was phenomenal in the recent T20 series with Ireland as he claimed 3 wickets in each match.

The leggie will be playing his first series against England.

#9 Kuldeep Yadav

In the last year or so, Kuldeep Yadav has formed a menacing duo in tandem with Chahal. The two wrist-spinners possess the ability to create a significant impact regardless of the conditions.

Latterly, the two T20I matches versus Ireland saw the 23-year-old dismiss a total of seven batsmen. He is expected to unfold himself as an X-factor in the series against The Poms.

Pacers

#10 Bhuvneshwar Kumar

It goes without saying that India are quite lucky to have a versatile bowler in the shape of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, a player who can excel at all three formats.

The 28-year-old will be seen running rings around the English batsmen with his swinging deliveries on the seaming pitches of England. His essential breakthroughs in the middle overs could tip the scales in favor of India.

#11 Jasprit Bumrah

The No.1 ODI bowler will make life majorly difficult for the Englishmen with his deceptive variations in the death overs, choking the run flow like no other.

In the pacer-friendly English conditions, Bumrah is anticipated to work his magic and procure wickets courtesy of his searing yorkers and slow knuckle-balls. The extra pace and bounce generally on offer in English conditions mean he will be Kohli's primary bowling weapon.

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Edited by Porush Jain