India vs England, India vs England 2021, Today Match Prediction 18 Mar 2021

ind vs eng Match Prediction & Analysis

The results of the India-England T20I series are turning out to be quite a lottery, based almost completely on the toss. The side that has won the toss and batted second in all the three games so far has managed comfortable victories. After India came back strongly in the 2nd T20I to square the series, England produced another clinical performance in the third match to take a 2-1 lead. After restricting India to 156-6 on a sticky wicket, England chased the target down with 10 balls to spare. However, a clear pattern has emerged in this series that the side chasing gets a definite advantage and it will be interesting to see if the home side manages to make a comeback if the fate of the coin doesn’t favor them again. 

TEAMS PREVIEW

India Preview

After the high of the 2nd T20I, Team India had an ordinary outing in the 3rd T20I. Their batsmen failed to make an impression and were rocked with the pace of Mark Wood who had reduced the team to 86-5 by the 15th over. Had it not been for a sublime unbeaten 77 by captain Virat Kohli, India would have had posted a much lower target for England to chase. India would be particularly worried over the form of opener KL Rahul whose scores in this series have been 1, 0, and 0. Rohit Sharma, who played his first match of the series, didn’t look at his best but is expected to fire in the next two matches.

India’s bowling wasn’t bad but could have been better. Barring Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Washington Sundar, the others couldn’t sustain the pressure on the English batsmen. Yuzvendra Chahal was expensive again which is becoming a problem and Shardul Thakur didn’t bowl the right lengths. Perhaps it’s time to give Deepak Chahar a go in the remaining two matches. 

India Predicted Playing XI:

Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur/ Deepak Chahar,, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal

India Actual Playing XI:

Virat Kohli, Washington Sundar, Lokesh Rahul, Rahul Chahar, Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shreyas Iyer, SA Yadav, Rishabh Pant, SN Thakur

England Preview

England produced another near-perfect game as they thumped India convincingly in the 3rd T20I. Led by a rampaging Mark Wood (3-31), they blew India’s top-order away on a slow track and never allowed them to dominate the game. Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Chris Jordan, and Ben Stokes, were excellent too and utilized the slowness of the pitch to great effect. Wood, who had missed out on the 2nd T20I due to injury, showed how valuable he is to this England bowling lineup and gives them that extra punch with his raw pace.

Chasing a target of 156 on this wicket wasn’t going to be a cakewalk, but England made light work of it courtesy of a special unbeaten 83 off 52 balls by Jos Butler and a solid 40* off 28 balls by Jonny Bairstow. Butler was at his punishing best and attacked India’s best bowlers in style. This English batting unit has some serious firepower and continues to impress. It will take a special effort by the Indian bowlers to stop the likes of Butler, Morgan, Bairstow, Malan, and Stokes in the next couple of matches.

England Predicted Playing XI:

Jason Roy, Jos Buttler (wk), Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan (c), Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood

England Actual Playing XI:

Chris Jordan, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler, Jason Roy, Mark Wood, AU Rashid, Eoin Morgan, Sam Curran, Jofra Archer, Ben Stokes, Dawid Malan

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

The pitch at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will be in focus again. The track used for the 3rd match was pretty two-paced. Batting wasn’t easy in the first half as the ball gripped the surface a little and didn’t come on that easily to the bat. However, things became better in the second half as the ball began skidding off the surface.

The weather at Ahmedabad is expected to be warm with the night temperature to be around 24°C.
 

Venue Details

Don’t expect any big totals in the 4th T20I at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The track is likely to behave the same way as it has done so far and the chasing side will have an advantage. The team batting first would have to put up a total of around 170-plus to have the best chance of winning.

Toss: To Bowl

The toss has almost become the deciding factor in this series given how the chasing side has won all the matches so far. It is no surprise hence that the captain winning the toss will be looking to bowl first.