CWC 2023: England’s Jos Buttler chooses to bowl first against India

India enters the match with a five-game winning streak and a strong position in the race for the semi-finals.

Lucknow: England captain Jos Buttler has won the toss and elected to bowl first against hosts India in league match number 29 of 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup at the BRSABV Ekana Cricket Stadium here on Sunday.

India come into the clash on the back of winning five matches on the trot and are firmly in the frame to reach the semi-finals. England, the defending champions, come into the match after suffering three consecutive losses in the competition, leaving their semi-final hopes hanging by a thread. Both teams are fielding unchanged teams from their respective previous clashes.

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Buttler said the decision to bowl first was based on his gut call. “Not anything in particular, it’s a gut decision. It’s a great occasion and hopefully, today we bring our best. Today, we want to put up a good show. We haven’t done ourselves justice, today we want to put up a show and play for pride. Playing in front of a full crowd and against India, it’s a great occasion.”

It also means that India will be batting first for the very first time in the competition after acing five consecutive chases. Skipper Rohit Sharma said he wanted to bat first and that the team doesn’t mind it at all, in what will be the test of the Indian team in posting a total first.

“We had a good time batting second. It’s a new surface relaid here, and it plays well all through. So we don’t mind batting second. It’s important to get those two points and whatever it takes to do that, it takes. It’s always nice to have a break, you get the time to reflect where you stand,” he said.

Playing XIs

India: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wicket-keeper), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj

England: Jonny Bairstow, Dawid Malan, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler (captain & wicketkeeper), Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, David Willey, Adil Rashid and Mark Wood