India Vs England Preview, Cricket World Cup 2023, Match 29: Teams on Opposite Ends of the Spectrum meet in Lucknow
On Sunday, two teams with contrasting fortunes will meet at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. India is flying high, having won all five of their matches so far with consummate ease. Rohit Sharma’s men have been clinical in their execution and will start tomorrow’s game as overwhelming favourites, hoping to extend their dominance at the top of the table. England, on the other hand, finds themselves languishing at the bottom of the table with their prospects of advancing to the semi-finals dwindling rapidly. They have managed to secure just a solitary victory thus far, and their elimination seems inevitable. A faint glimmer of hope remains, but their lacklustre performances suggest that confirmation of their exit is more likely.
India enters this contest with most of their bases covered, but there are still a few rough edges that Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid will hope to smooth out. Shubman Gill, for example, has yet to fire, and what better opportunity to do so than against a deflated and dispirited side that has been humbled. India will also be hoping for a significant innings from the immensely gifted Shreyas Iyer, who has made a few promising starts but failed to capitalize on them. In the absence of Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav will have another opportunity to shine on the biggest stage, and he will be eager to make his mark, especially given Iyer’s recent struggles. Among the bowlers, Mohammed Siraj’s form has tailed off since his sensational performance in the Asia Cup Final, and with Mohammed Shami breathing down his neck, he will be under pressure to perform.
England fails to make a mark in ODI World Cup 2023
Notably, the England team has collectively underperformed, with no individual player standing out. They entered the tournament as one of the favourites, but their performances have fallen short of expectations. All the batters have struggled, and someone needs to step up and inspire confidence in the rest of the team if they have any chance of defeating India. While it is true that the batters have not given the bowlers much to work with, England’s bowling has also been largely disappointing. This England side though, has achieved a lot in the last few years and with their pride on the line, a comeback cannot be ruled out.
As far as the weather in Lucknow is concerned, the temperature is expected to hover around 32°C. There is no precipitation forecast, and humidity levels will remain at approximately 40%. The surface is expected to play well at the outset but bowlers will gradually earn some purchase from it.
Squads:
England: Jos Buttler (c), Moeen Ali, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes, Brydon Carse, David Willey, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes.
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya.
