The Indians were the favourites to win against England after an impressive victory against Australia. However, England showed in the first test match why writing them off can be a fatal error. They were exceptional with the bat and equally spectacular with the ball.
As a result, they are going into this game with a critical 1-0 lead in the series. Some Indians would be used to comebacks, but it will be a challenging task considering how England played in the first Test. With the ICC World Championship’s final position still hanging in mystery, they are in the purest form of the game for another mouth-watering clash.
Weather
All five days of the test match will be hot in Chennai, with the temperature touching 30°C over the last three days. Rain is not expected for all five days.
Pitch
For the spinners, there will be a sufficient amount of rotation on offer. Although the pitch supported the pacers in the previous Test with lateral motion off the field, the spinners could come into play as early as Day 2 of the second Test. The reverse swing will play a role once more, and before playing their shots, the batsmen need to bide their time at the crease.
As neither side would want to chase in the fourth innings, the toss would play a crucial role in deciding the match’s outcome. Ideally, both teams would like to bat first and make good use of the conditions, with the pitch likely to worsen as the game progresses.
Playing XIs:
India
Virat Kohli (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar/Kuldeep Yadav
England:
Joe Root (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Rory Burns, Dom Sibley, Daniel Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Stuart Broad, Jack Leach, Chris Woakes
India vs England, 2nd Test Dream 11:
Virat Kohli (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Joe Root, Shubman Gill, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Ishant Sharma, Stuart Broad, Jack Leach
Even though India lost the first match, we think they will come back harder in the next game. They have a powerful team. They’ll probably get Axar or Kuldeep in this match, which will make them more secure. England batsmen will collapse under pressure if they can get Root early.