India vs England, 2nd T20I: Pitch report and weather forecast
What's the story
The second T20I between India and England will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The pitch for this match is a new, black-soil surface which has witnessed the team batting first winning 12 out of 23 night T20 games in the last four years. Although traditionally slow and spin-friendly, recent IPL matches have shown it can be batting-friendly too.
Batting prospects
High-scoring encounter expected on fresh pitch
The Chepauk pitch has been compared to a road at times, with scores above 200 being scored thrice in the 2024 IPL season. This indicates if a new surface is laid, a high-scoring affair could be on the cards. The England side, led by Jos Buttler, will be looking to cash in on this batting-friendly track after falling short of a big total in the first T20I at Eden Gardens.
Weather update
Weather forecast for 2nd T20I in Chennai
The weather on match day is expected to be mostly cloudy with a high of around 25°C. There is no rain forecast, so the game won't be interrupted. Humidity will be high, with temperatures between 23°C and 29°C. This relatively cooler weather should give the players some respite from Chennai's usual sweltering heat. Meanwhile, it must be noted that India are 1-0 up in the five-match series.
Team lineup
Predicted playing XIs for India and England
India's probable XI: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi/Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh and Varun Chakravarthy. England's probable XI: Ben Duckett, Philip Salt (wk), Jos Buttler (c), Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Overton, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood.