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India & England shift focus towards the ODI series

By Mumbai Indians

After facing each other in four Tests and five T20Is, India and England will now play three ODIs before the conclusion of the tour. Just before this, India won the T20Is 3-2 in what was a seesaw of a series.

Both teams will be looking to end the tour on a high. For India, winning the ODIs would mean a clean sweep across formats, for England, it would be a morale-boosting victory after having lost the other two formats of the game.

Ahead of the first ODI, here are a few talking points:

Focus on Dhawan to perform

Having struggled in the first T20I and warming the benches in the rest, experienced opener Shikhar Dhawan will want to make his innings count in the ODIs. Given that the team management is spoilt for choice, with Shubman Gill in the squad, and one slot being taken by Rohit, Dhawan will want to make the best of this opportunity.

Surya’s chance to make an ODI debut

After Suryakumar Yadav’s key contribution in the T20Is, India will be eager to give the Mumbaikar a chance in the ODIs too. His numbers in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy show us that he can generate consistent numbers in ODIs as well.

Kohli, Rohit back among the runs

Indian captain Virat Kohli won the Man of the Series award in the T20Is for scoring 231 runs, and Rohit Sharma played a seemingly effortless knock of 64 (34) in the last T20I game to announce that they were definitely back among the runs.

Both these big hitters’ good form will be crucial for India's clean sweep dreams.

Onus on Wood, Jordan in the absence of Archer

The responsibility of replacing Jofra Archer, who will be missing out on the ODI series owing to injuries, will be on the shoulders of Mark Wood and Chris Jordan. Having troubled the Indian batsmen with his pace, Wood will be expected to spearhead the attack, ably supported by Jordan and Sam Curran.

English top-order in fine form

All the English top-order batsmen performed exceptionally well in the T20I series. Jason Roy had scored thrice in the 40s. Jos Buttler had two half-centuries, one of which was involved in a 130-run stand with Dawid Malan, who finally found himself among the runs after a fine 68 (46) in the last game.

The performance of the top three will be of utmost importance to dismantle a confident Team India.

Big-scoring pitch at Pune

The Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune, is touted to have a high-scoring track. In fact, the highest score registered on this pitch was an India-England game, with India chasing down England’s 350 with 11 balls to spare.

However, the pitch is also said to offer spinners ample grip off the surface as the game progresses.

The first ODI between India and England is scheduled for 1:30 PM IST on 23rd March, 2021, at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune.