England showed their vulnerability against spin in the warm-up games, and you feel that will be the biggest hurdle this strong batting lineup will need to overcome if they are to threaten the Virat Kohli led India side in the ODI series.
India vs England series to go ahead as scheduled
While the batsmen did exceedingly well to chase down a score of over 300 in the first practice match against a decent India 'A' bowling attack, there were signs of problems facing the slower bowlers.
That came to the fore again:
In the second practice match England struggled against the spin of Parvez Rasool and Shahbaz Nadeem, and if the wickets end up being slower than the one at the Brabourne Stadium, the nightmare from the Test matches could be extended to the ODIs as well.
India might have a different captain at the helm now:
But expect the tactics to be the same – trial by spin. Dhoni loves to use his spinners in limited-overs matches to curtail the run rate and pick up wickets and Kohli will be expected to stick to pretty much the same plan.
To top it all off, India have their two premier spinners – R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja – in this series, which will only make things a lot more difficult for England.
As good as this England side have been in white ball cricket of late, there are still several chinks in their armour, something the India players will look to take full advantage of.
What they do have going for them, though, is a batting lineup, which, when in form, can tear apart any bowling lineup. Alex Hales and Jason Roy will be the key batsmen for England, because if the openers can continue giving their side strong starts, it will take the pressure off the middle order.
If a good platform is laid, it will allow the England middle order to just milk Ashwin and Jadeja for singles, rather than being pressured into going for the big shot. It is the other 30 overs that they will target, and India's pacers, in the past, have shown their susceptibility to leak runs, be that with the new ball or in the death overs.
Jasprit Bumrah will be the key fast bowler for the home team, owing to his prowess in producing those unerring yorkers in the last ten overs.
The India batting lineup looks pretty strong on paper:
While Rohit Sharma is missing through injury, India have three solid opening options, and of course, then there is that man, the run-machine that goes by the name of Virat Kohli.
With MS Dhoni freed of captaincy worries and Yuvraj Singh desperate to make an impression in order to lock his place up for the ICC Champions Trophy, expect some fireworks from the home team's batting lineup.
India vs England: ODI series schedule.
1st ODI:
Date: Sunday, January 15.
Time: 1.30pm IST, 8pm GMT, 3am ET.
Venue: MCA International Stadium in Pune.
2nd ODI:
Date: Thursday, January 19.
Time: 1.30pm IST, 8am GMT, 3am ET.
Venue: Barabati Stadium in Cuttack.
3rd ODI:
Date: Sunday, January 22.
Time: 1.30pm IST, 8am GMT, 3am ET.
Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
TV guide:
India: Star Sports HD1, Star Sports HD3, Star Sports 1, Star Sports 3. UK: Sky Sports 2. Middle East: OSN Sports Cricket. USA and Canada: Willow TV. Australia: Fox Sports. New Zealand: Sky Sport. South Africa: SuperSport.
