New Delhi: India keeper-batter KL Rahul has been dropped from the second ODI against England at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff. Captain Shubman Gill explained that the middle order batter is currently dealing with an illness, as Ishan Kishan replaced him in the playing XI. As per the team structure, the Jharkhand batter can slot in at number four, with Shreyas Iyer going down to number five. Washington Sundar has been listed at six.
“We’ve got one change, KL is sick, so he misses out, and Ishan Kishan comes back in,” Gill said after the toss.
England win toss, elect to field
England have won the toss and elected to field first in the second ODI. Explaining the reason behind the move, captain Harry Brook stated that there’s a nice spread of grass on the surface and they want to capitalise early on, using the seam movement of the pacers.
“Nice even spread of grass. So hopefully we can get a little bit of seam movement and swing up front. (Anything you want to do differently here?) Just execute slightly better, I think. I’ve always said we’re never out of games and I thought we put up a really good fight last game,” Brook said after the toss.
England, in the meantime, have made two changes to the playing XI. Josh Tongue and Liam Dawson have replaced Saqib Mahmood and Gus Atkinson.
India, on the other hand, will expect a better show from their senior pros in Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Both star batters failed to get going in the opening match of the series and another flop will only invite more pressure on the duo. Given the fact that they are batting first, both these cricketers will have the opportunity to set the tone of the match.
