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India will probably start with their strongest-possible playing 11 for the series opener against England.
Harshit Rana (Picture Credit: PTI)
After a ton of Test cricket-related drama, India are returning to a format that has recently been their favorite — the T20Is. Suryakumar Yadav’s men will take on England in five T20Is, starting on January 22 at the Eden Gardens.
Since the 2024 T20 World Cup, India has just lost two in 15 T20Is. This consistent run of form has allowed them the luxury of a mostly settled squad, giving head coach Gautam Gambhir some relief amid the controversies elsewhere.
The squad announced for this series didn’t have any major changes. Only all-rounder Ramandeep Singh would have felt unlucky to be left out of the team which defeated South Africa 3-1 in the last away series. In his absence, expect Nitish Kumar Reddy, who impressed in Tests in Australia, to get a chance.
But, in other areas, a long season of Tests has allowed most of the T20I players a good few weeks of rest. The team has been further boosted by the return of Mohammed Shami, whose white-ball resurgence was cut short for over a year after the 2023 World Cup due to an ankle injury and then a knee issue.
India would want Shami to build his fitness towards the 2025 Champions Trophy so he should play at least the first three T20Is of the series. Arshdeep Singh has been in stunning white-ball form, being the highest wicket-taker in the 2025 Vijay Hazare Trophy, and should get the nod over Harshit Rana to start this series.
The batting lineup fired as a collective against South Africa and would likely have the same look. Axar Patel is the team vice-captain and will beat competition from Washington Sundar to be the team’s second all-rounder.
Varun Chakaravarthy’s steller numbers in the last six months would almost certainly let him retain his place in the team ahead of Ravi Bishnoi.
We might see Dhruv Jurel, Rana, Bishnoi and Sundar further into the series but for the first T20I, expect India to start with their strongest possible 11.
India’s likely playing 11 for the 1st 2025 T20I against England: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel (vc), Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakaravarthy and Arshdeep Singh
