England v India Second T20 Tips: India the right favourites

Ed Hawkins
08 July 2022
2:30 min read

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Ed Hawkins expects batters to dominate at Edgbaston on Saturday with India likely to welcome back Virat Kohli

"Sportsbook go 10/11 that both teams score 160 and that look like a value wager. We would be surprised if England's batting flopped again" (2pts) Back both teams to score 160 @ 1.9110/11

England v India
Saturday 9 July, 14:30
TV: live on Sky Sports

England's problem

Pre-game fears about England's moderate bowling attack were realised in Southampton as India took a liking and posted 197. It's an early test for Jos Buttler's leadership. The wise move, long term, may be to retain faith.

Richard Gleeson and David Willey stand by in case there is a shuffle with the pace attack as Sam Curran and Tymal Mills proved pricey.

Buttler endured a torrid game. A golden duck was not how he envisaged his new era beginning.

His England side never recovered from that in the chase and the contest fizzled out once Moeen Ali was sixth out.

Whether England find room for Jonny Bairstow remains to be seen, with Dawid Malan looking most vulnerable to losing his spot.

Possible XI: Roy, Buttler, Bairstow, Livingstone, Brook, Moeen, S Curran, Jordan, Mills, Topley, Parkinson

India boost

India are in a luxurious position. They have the win in the bag and are bolstered by the addition of the Test squad players to their ranks: Virat Kohli, Jaspirt Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer.

They should, however, resist wholesale changes. Only Bumrah offers them something that they didn't possess in Southampton, and he could come in for Arshdeep Singh or for spinner Axar Patel who was pricey.

Take Deepak Hooda at No 3, for example. Would India really benefit by dropping him for Kohli? Hooda struck at 194, the sort of rate Kohli can only dream of.

If Kohli does play it could be as an opener instead of Ishan Kishan or Hooda could open.

The return of Hardik Pandya to proper all-rounder duties gives India a significant edge. Only Moeen Ali can match him for true all-rounder ability.

Possible XI: Rohit, Ishan, Hooda, Yadav, Hardik, Karthik, Axar, Harshal, Kumar, Bumrah, Chahal

Pitch report

Edgbaston has been a curious surface this term in the Blast. It's been feast or famine with the bat.

The Bears got rolled for 101 versus Yorkshire while Leicestershire, Durham and the hosts again managed under 160 in first-innings. But there were two total of more than 200 and in the last match, the knockout, Hampshire won with 186 up front.

Given that pitch data meant little for India down in Southampton, we're inclined to reckon that the step up in batting ability could produce something big, particularly as we remain unconvinced about England's bowling.

Sportsbook go 10/11 that both teams score 160 and that looks like a value wager. We would be surprised if England's batting flopped again.

The firm go 15/8 for both getting 170 or more and 11/4 & 9/2 for 180 & 190 respectively. All are very tempting. Bet the market here.

Chaser to the fore

It's not often a 2.226/5 outsider gets chopped to odds-on favourite status after one win. But the market is spooked by England's bowling line-up. It should not be forgotten that this is a second string.

But perhaps it is also spooked by form, or England's lack of it. For all the talk of their white-ball prowess, they now have lost six of their last eight matches.

Worst of all for England, India haven't chased yet. It's ten wins in 11. We have a strategy ready to go for another 2.226/5 India bet if they bat second, who could get after a high 190.

England are 2.1011/10. We would be happy to bet them if they batted first to go big. At the break, though, we would trade out, expecting around 1.804/5. Bet the match odds here.

Top value

Buttler has been boosted to 12/5 for top England bat with Sportsbook. The returning Kohli gets a 10/3 quote. Hooda is worth mentioning at 9/2 in case we have called that shift to opener correctly.

Bumrah is 5/2 joint favourite for top India bowler with the excellent Yuz Chahal. Buttler is 6/1 for man of the match and Hardik 14s for a repeat. Bet the Sportsbook markets here.