At the storied Eden Gardens on Wednesday, India skipper Suryakumar Yadav chose to bowl after winning the toss in the opening Twenty20 International of the five-match series against England.
India has an impressive record versus England in the T20I format, having won four straight series. The Men in Blue, led by Suryakumar Yadav, will be eager to establish the groundwork for improving their record in Kolkata.
After the 2023 ODI World Cup, it was anticipated that Mohammed Shami will rejoin the Indian squad, however he would miss the opening match.
After winning the toss, India skipper Suryakumar Yadav said, “We will look to bowl first. The wicket looks sticky, there will be dew later on. It will be heavier later on. The boys have been amazing. The preparations have been good, looking forward to this series. It’s going to be a great competition between both sides. A good headache, we want to stick to our strengths.”
England captain Jos Buttler said during the time of the toss, “Looks a good wicket, I’m sure it’s going to be a good match. There will be some dew around. It’s a great ground, it’s an honour to play against India in these conditions. Everyone is in a good spot. It’s nice to be together, a lot to look forward to. McCullum taking charge, he has a lot of experience. It’s going to be a challenge, we are right up for it. There is some incredible talent in both sides. Saqib Mahmood, Brydon Carse, Jamie Smith and Rehan Ahmed will miss out.”
India (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson(w), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy
England (Playing XI): Ben Duckett, Philip Salt(w), Jos Buttler(c), Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Overton, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood.