T20 Cricket World Cup Semi-final Tips India v England: England's hopes end here

• India hot favourites to book final spot
• England have Buttler concerns
• Wankhede pitch one for batters
• Buttler performance a sell
• For Betfair's latest cricket betting odds click here

India v England
Thursday 5 March, 13.30
TV: Live on Sky Sports

India v England T20WC team news

India have been playing knockout cricket for two games already. And they have coped well. Zimbabwe were despatched and India, as is their strength, were nerveless in the chase against West Indies. They look to have kicked into gear at exactly the right time.

But they will consider team changes. Kuldeep Yadav is in the squad for exactly this sort of game. It's must win against an opponent which has shown signs of weakness against spin. Pairing him with Varun Chakravarthy as a twin spin force will be extremely tempting for India. Arshdeep Singh would miss out.

Sanju Samson's comeback has meant problem solved for India. They have been able to split their left-handers up top denying an obvious strategy for rivals. 

Possible India XI:  Samson, Abhishek, Ishan, Tilak, Sky, Hardik, Dube, Axar, Kuldeep, Bumrah, Varun

England are in the mix without firing. But to claim they are in their best place would be exaggeration. The form of Jos Buttler is a major problem. The form of Jacob Bethell is almost equally as worrying. 

Buttler sets the tone for England up top and it is no surprise the batting has not fired with his record of 62 runs in seven innings. This has been compounded by Bethell returning striking at just 125 in the crucial No 3 slot. When Buttler fails, Bethell slows them down putting pressure on the middle order. 

There's almost no chance England panic now so they go with what they've got. The only possible change to the XI is Jamie Overton back in for Rehan Ahmed. 

Probable England XI: Salt, Buttler, Bethell, Brook, Banton, S Curran, Jacks, Overton, Dawson, Archer, Rashid

India v England T20WC pitch report

Runs are usually the way to go at the Wankhede. The runs per over average in the 11 night matches played at the venue is 9.35. And in all conditions in the last ten the average score batting first is more than 190. The average sixes taly per match is 18.7.

Sportsbook offer total England runs at 182.5, which is some way ahead of their average runs scored in the last ten at 160. That does come with a caveat, though, of playing on some tough batting wickets in Colombo. India's total runs line is at 195.5. Total match sixes is also bang on the average at over 18.5.

India v England T20WC match prediction

This looks like it will be the end of the road for England. They have fought hard and shown glimpses of form but nowhere near enough consistency of power with the bat to take down the Indian juggernaut.

It was always going to be a difficult task for England to knock out the hosts and to do so it is perfectly reasonable to reckon that they had to have shown they were bang at it to do so. Sure, displays against Nepal and Scotland were worrying but the big pointer, on this very wicket, was their surrender against West Indies when they faltered chasing 196.

The gulf appears to be too great. On batting and bowling economy India are rated at Nos 4 and 3 this tournament. England are down at Nos 7 and 9.

The 5/61.84 that India win the match and both teams score 160 could be a bit of a gift from Sportsbook among an array of markets recognising that this could be a mismatch. India's spinners should put on a squeeze to an under-pressure middle-order and there's likely to be no let up from the likes of Jasprit Bumrah.

India v England T20WC player tips

Buttler's game looks shot and a starting point for player bets is a short of his performance at 35.5. On a more batting-friendly surface than Colombo, the threat of a stumping is reduced. Unders have won in seven of the last ten at that quote. Buttler has shown previously that once he gets in a rut he can find it hard to get out and it may be that he needs an extended break to rediscover his mojo. It doesn't inspire confidence that even in a social media video of him playing street cricket with kids in Mumbai, he edged one second ball to slip. 

Now read Ed's Ultimate Guide to the T20 World Cup