Sparks are expected to fly when tournament favourites India take on the hosts, England, at Edgbaston on Sunday. England are in a dire situation as they need to win both of their remaining encounters, including the match against India, to guarantee a semifinal berth for themselves.
India, on the other hand, are placed at second on the points table being unbeaten in the tournament so far. They have three matches remaining and just one victory will ensure a semifinal berth for themselves. India hardly have anything to worry about. Apart from the performance against Afghanistan, their campaign has been almost perfect.
England have a few issues to sort out, though. The batting has struggled to deal with slow and tacky pitches in the last couple of matches and that is something they need to improve before going into this encounter. Jason Roy has been recovering well and there's a chance that he will return to the side for this match.
On paper, both the teams look evenly matched in terms of batting ability. However, India seem to be a better bowling unit considering their form and variety of options. This is the area which will ultimately go on to decide the fate of the encounter.
Weather and Pitch conditions: No forecast for rain. However, conditions are expected to remain cloudy. The pitch is expected to be a bit dry and that will keep the spinners interested. Otherwise, it is a decent batting track.
Player Recommendations:
Wicket-Keeper: Jos Buttler (9
Sparks are expected to fly when tournament favourites India take on the hosts, England, at Edgbaston on Sunday. England are in a dire situation as they need to win both of their remaining encounters, including the match against India, to guarantee a semifinal berth for themselves.
India, on the other hand, are placed at second on the points table being unbeaten in the tournament so far. They have three matches remaining and just one victory will ensure a semifinal berth for themselves. India hardly have anything to worry about. Apart from the performance against Afghanistan, their campaign has been almost perfect.
England have a few issues to sort out, though. The batting has struggled to deal with slow and tacky pitches in the last couple of matches and that is something they need to improve before going into this encounter. Jason Roy has been recovering well and there's a chance that he will return to the side for this match.
On paper, both the teams look evenly matched in terms of batting ability. However, India seem to be a better bowling unit considering their form and variety of options. This is the area which will ultimately go on to decide the fate of the encounter.
Weather and Pitch conditions: No forecast for rain. However, conditions are expected to remain cloudy. The pitch is expected to be a bit dry and that will keep the spinners interested. Otherwise, it is a decent batting track.
Player Recommendations:
Wicket-Keeper: Jos Buttler (9 Cr)
Buttler is the best wicketkeeper-batsman available in this match. He had played a knock of 67 runs back in World Cup 2015 against India and hence, would be eager to perform this time as well. Moreover, he has been in good form in this tournament too and had scored a century earlier in the tournament as well.
Batsman: Joe Root (10.5 Cr)
Root averages 57 against India and already has two hundreds in this tournament. He plays both the pacers and spinners well and hence, he will have a crucial role to play for England.
All-Rounder: Hardik Pandya (9 Cr)
Pandya has been scoring vital points almost every match with both bat and ball. He scored 46 runs and then took one wicket in the last match against the Windies. So, that sums up his fantasy potential.
Bowler: Mohammed Shami (8.5 Cr)
He has registered back-to-back four-wicket hauls and looks all set to dominate this match as well. He has been lethal both with the new ball and in death overs as well.
Captain: Joe Root
Vice-Captain: Hardik Pandya
Predicted Playing XI:
India: Lokesh Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah
England: James Vince / Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood
