4th T20I: Washington, Prasidh return as India elect to bat in must-win clash with England
Bristol, July 9
Off-spin bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar and pacer Prasidh Krishna returned to India's playing eleven as captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and elected to bat first in their must-win fourth T20I against England here at the County Ground in Bristol on Thursday.
India are 2-0 behind in the five-game series and need a win to keep themselves alive. After the toss, Iyer said Washington and Prasidh would come in for Harshit Rana and Varun Chakaravarthy being ruled out due to hamstring injuries. The match also marks left-arm spin bowling all-rounder Axar Patel's 100th T20I appearance.
"It is a must-win game, and we are going to play like that. We have had fearlessness, but have not been able to execute the plans as much as possible. Today is a fresh day, a fresh start, and the boys are in high spirits.
"We want to be positive, but you have to read the environment and see how the game is going - adapt to the wicket and the way the wind is blowing. If we sort these, we will definitely get the results," he said.
England skipper Harry Brook said leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed replaces left-arm spin bowling all-rounder Liam Dawson in the playing eleven. "We would have batted. There's a nice, even spread of grass.
"We played awesome in the last game, adapted to conditions, and communicated really well. It was a very good team performance. It would be lovely to win the series, and it is more of the same from the other night. Adapt, communicate, and back ourselves. Everyone can contribute on our side."
Playing XIs:
India: Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Prince Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, and Prasidh Krishna
England: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (captain), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, and Josh Tongue
— IANS
Reader Comments
Must-win situation and Iyer says "fresh start" but we've been saying that since the second T20I. Execution is key, not just intent. England's bowling attack with Archer and Rashid is world-class. Hope Prasidh makes an impact with his pace.
Why did we drop Varun? He took wickets in the last game! Hamstring injuries are unfortunate but Washington brings more batting depth, so okay. But Prince Yadav in the XI—hope the youngster handles pressure. Go India! 💙
"Adapt to the wicket and wind" – Iyer's comments show he's thinking about conditions, which is good. But England's batting depth is scary: Salt, Buttler, Brook, Bethell. We need early wickets from Arshdeep and Prasidh. Abhishek Sharma opening—hoping he fires!
Respect to Axar for 100 T20I caps! 🎉 But the team selection feels reactive. Harshit and Varun out due to injuries—why no backup spinner like Kuldeep? Washington is good but not a like-for-like replacement. Anyway, hope we bat with more intent.
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