Former Indian batting and cricket analyst Sanjay Manjrekar has revealed his ideal playing XI for India's first T20I of the five-match T20I series against England. This much awaited T20I clash will be held at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Wednesday, January 22.
Sanjay Manjrekar boldly said that it is a simple selection which will not cause too much trouble to the Indian cricket team management or the selectors. Well, the cricket pundit has picked Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma as the openers with Tilak Varma at No.3.
Sanjay Manjrekar reveals his India XI for the first T20I against England
Indian national cricket team captain Suryakumar Yadav is slotted at No.4 followed by Hardik Pandya and Rinku Singh to bolster Manjrekar's middle order for the five-match T20I series opener against England at the Eden Gardens. He then selected three all-rounders for the Kolkata T20I.
Sanjay Manjrekar said on ESPNCricinfo: “I think it looks like the playing XI is not giving too much trouble to the team management and the selectors. So, Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma will be your openers until Yashasvi Jaiswal comes back into the fold.”
Manjrekar said that there will be a showdown between Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar and the decision may depend on the pitch conditions and opposition line-up. But the cricket expert went with Nitish Kumar Reddy in his playing XI against England.
Sanjay Manjrekar selects Nitish Kumar Reddy and Varun Chakravarthy in his playing XI
The cricket expert further explained, “Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar could just depend on the kind of pitch you get. And besides, left-handers, you know, an off-spinner comes in handy when there are a lot of left-handers. But from what I can see, they might have two lefties in the top six or seven. So, maybe Nitish Kumar Reddy might get that nod over Sundar.”
Axar Patel, India's vice-captain, found a place at No.8 in Manjrekar's match for the first T20I against England. The former Indian batsman also tagged the mysterious spinner Varun Chakravarthy as the game changer as he went with only one spin specialist.
Comeback man Mohammed Shami will lead Manjrekar's attack in the first T20I against England, while he will have the support of young gun Arshdeep Singh at the Eden Gardens.
Manjrekar concluded by saying, “I would love to have Varun Chakravarthy on this side. I think, you know, he's a game-changer in T20 cricket. Arshdeep Singh and Mohammad Shami. So it looks a pretty good side, that.”
Sanjay Manjrekar's India XI for 1st T20I vs England:
Sanju Samson (WK), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (C), Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel (VC), Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami.
On the other hand, England have already named their playing XI for the first T20I match against India. Mark Wood and Jofra Archer return to England's T20I squad, while Ben Duckett returns for the T20I in Kolkata.