India won by 10 wickets
England (Playing XI): Jason Roy, Jos Buttler(w), Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan(c), Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, Jofra Archer, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood
India (Playing XI): KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli(c), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant(w), Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal
India aren't too far behind themselves, potentially as well as in the rankings, placed just a spot behind England. However, the hosts are missing some key players for this series, and missing two of their strongest T20 pacers will be a setback. But it also gives them a chance to test out their bench strength. Bhuvaneshwar Kumar's return is a boost, and he is expected to shoulder the responsibility of the weakened bowling attack. The intent in batting has been another matter of discussion and if Virat Kohli's words in the pressers are any indication, India are certainly keen on playing the most updated brand of T20 cricket. The batting will be their stronger suite in this series, and there is also a matter of some selection puzzles to be sorted out. Fair to say that they start on a level footing in this series, unlike the Tests. Let's hope for a blistering start to the T20Is, given the two power-packed sides on display. On that note, this is Hari Sadanandan welcoming you all to our coverage of this high-voltage encounter. Toss and teams in a while.
The ICC has also named Menon as one of the on-field umpires for the three ODIs in Pune. Chaudhary will be doing the TV duties for the first two games on March 23 and 26 and Sharma will replace him for the third and final ODI on March 28. The second on-field umpire for the ODI and the officials for the five T20Is, that will precede the ODIs, have not yet been announced.
Match Officials for the last two Tests:
Third Test (from February 24) in Ahmedabad: Nitin Menon, Anil Chaudhary (on-field umpires), C Shamshuddin (3rd umpire) and KN Ananthapadmanabhan (4th umpire); Match referee: Javagal Srinath
Fourth Test (from March 4) in Ahmedabad: Nitin Menon, Virender Sharma (on-field umpires), Anil Chaudhary (3rd umpire) and C Shamshuddin (4th umpire); Match referee: Javagal Srinath, published by - The Beyond News (Sports)