Key events
The eagle eyed amongst you will have spotted that Shivam Dube is playing today, less than 48 hours after failing that concussion test. Chicanery afoot! No doubt that is what prompted Buttler to list his subs bench. Bit of neeeeedle today at the Wankhede I reckon.
“I caught you listing out your impact subs…”
There’s a pointed and quite funny moment at the toss as Jos Buttler insists on listing his four impact subs with a bit of a twinkle in his eye and the beginnings of a smirk on his face.
Is this a sign of the new mischievous/larky Buttler? He did say before the series that he’d been practicing smiling in the mirror. Seriously. Give him a a few more matches and he’ll be doing witty little monologues like ‘Cinch’ slathered Tony Hancock.
Teams:
India: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakravarthy.
England: Phil Salt (wk), Ben Duckett, Jos Buttler (c), Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Overton, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood.
Mark Wood comes back in for Saqib Mahmood for England despite the latter impressing in the last match and Mohammed Shami replaces Arshdeep Singh for India.
Joss Buttler calls the coin correctly at the toss as Ravi Shastri’s voice echoes around the stadium like a sonic boom. Buttler says he’s excited for the match, the crowd should be large and loud and they hope there’s a bit of dew around early doors to get the ball zipping.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav says he wanted to bat first so everybody is happy. Nice little mental flex from Sky there. Teams news incoming!
James Wallace
Hello and welcome to the fifth and final T20 of this series between India and England. Actually, excuse me whilst I take the afternoon off, I’m not feeling it. Here’s Rob Smyth to OBO in my place. He’s vastly more experienced at this stuff, has more stats and facts at his disposal than almost anyone, is a really quick typer and isn’t hungover/sleep deprived/racked with a perennial nag of existential ennui… you don’t mind do you? Over to you Rob!
I’m being facetious (but truthful about Rob) of course, in case you missed it there was some controversy in the last match as Shivam Dube was conked on the helmet whilst batting, prompting a concussion replacement for India, Harshit Rana came in for his Twenty20 international debut during the England innings. Now, Rana is a far better bowler than Dube, this was no ‘like-for-like change’, as the rules state.
Jos Buttler didn’t go full sour grapes after the match, England should have won the match regardless and squandered an opportunity to tie the series and set up a shootout at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai today, but he made his feelings clear:
It’s not a like-for-like replacement, we don’t agree with that…either Shivam Dube has put on about 25mph with the ball or Harshit has really improved his batting. It’s part of the game. I still think we should have gone on to win the match. But we disagree with the decision. We’ll ask Javagal [Srinath, the match referee] some questions just to get some clarity around it.”
So the series might be gone but there’ll be a bit of frisson and an England side looking to prove a point coming up against and Indian side wanting to put any questions about the validity of their series win to bed with a 4-1 victory overall.
I’m afraid you are stuck with me, Jim here in a sunny south London (i’m not hungover… promise). Play begins at 1.30pm GMT – a little over half an hour’s time. I’ll be back imminently with news of the teams and toss.
India and England are set to face off in the fifth men’s T20 cricket international match, and the excitement is palpable. Both teams have shown remarkable skills and determination throughout the series, making this final match a showdown not to be missed.
The series has been closely contested so far, with both teams showcasing their strengths and weaknesses. India will be looking to make a statement with a strong performance in the final match, while England will be aiming to finish the series on a high note.
The match promises to be a thrilling encounter, with both teams fielding their best players and giving it their all to secure a victory. Fans can expect to see some intense competition, brilliant batting, and exceptional bowling as the two teams battle it out on the field.
Stay tuned for live updates and commentary as India takes on England in the fifth men’s T20 cricket international match. It’s bound to be a nail-biting finish to what has been an exciting series so far. Don’t miss out on the action!
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#India #England #mens #T20 #cricket #international #live #Cricket
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