Sanju Samson returns to the playing XI (Photo: BCCI)
India captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and elected to bowl first against England in the fifth and final T20I in Southampton on Sunday, making two changes to the playing XI.Suryansh Shidge replaced Washington Sundar, while Sanju Samson returned to the team in place of Vaibhav Suryavanshi.Explaining the decision taken during the draw, Iyer said the team chose to chase after evaluating the circumstances.“We will bowl first. Based on our bowling over the last two matches, we have gone through almost everything. It is a bit windy and we were told that the wicket will not change much, so we decided to bowl first,” Shreyas Iyer said during the toss. “I just want the boys to give 100% effort no matter the result.
“Stay in the moment, relax and try to get the best out of yourself,” Iyer added.
England captain Harry Brook, whose side leads the five-match series 3-1, said the win would take his team to the top of the ICC T20I rankings.Said Brooke: “If we win today, we’ll go world number one, so that’s definitely a prize we’re looking forward to. We’ve been coping well throughout the series and we want to finish the season strong.” Brook also praised veteran pacer Adil Rashid, who is making his 150th T20I appearance for England. They have one change in the squad, with Liam Dawson returning in place of Rehan Ahmed.
”It’s been around for a long time now. He is a very valuable player for us. His skill, cunning, and ability to outsmart players is exceptional. And it’s great to have him in there. Brooke said to Adil Rashid.
Playing XI
India: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dubey, Suryansh Chedge, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Prasidh Krishna.England: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (c), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Josh Tonge.