England to bowl first against Scotland in Group C T20 World Cup 2026 clash

England won the toss and opted to bowl against Scotland in the Group C T20 World Cup 2026 match at Eden Gardens. Both teams announced unchanged playing XIs, with captains expecting a competitive encounter on a fast, batting-friendly track.

Kolkata: England won the toss and elected to bowl against Scotland in the Group C game of the T20 World Cup 2026 here at the Eden Gardens on Saturday.

Both the teams have named an unchanged playing eleven for the match.

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England captain Harry Brook said, “We are going to have a bowl. We fancy chasing over here, as it’s a quick outfield and it’s also a pretty good wicket. I am not a curator, but it looks like a decent wicket. So, hopefully we can restrict them to as few as possible and then chase it down.

On announcing the playing XI early, Brook said, “We just want to give the team a bit more clarity. I want them to come prepared for the game, knowing the team a day before. I think we were a little bit too careful with the bat. We should have been a bit more aggressive. Hopefully we do that today.

Praising the Scottish side, he said, “They are a really good side. They have played here before and we will certainly not take them lightly.”

Scotland captain Richie Berrington said, ” We were probably going to have a bat first. But I think the toss here shouldn’t make too much difference. Looks pretty similar (to the last game), to be honest. It’s obviously been really good for us to get a feel of conditions here, playing the last couple of games. So I think, in general, it has been quite a good batting track. I think the key is probably going to be how we play spinning that middle period.

“Look, we’re obviously up against a very good team. I think they’re used to travelling and having to adapt to different conditions. But it’s going to be key for us too. It’s a new day, a new wicket. But yeah, it’s been a good experience for us to get used to conditions here and hopefully we can take some of the positives from the last couple of performances into today’s game.”

Playing XIs:

Scotland: Richard Berrington (c), Tom Bruce, Matthew Henry Cross (wk), Oliver Davidson, Michael Alexander Jones, Michael Alexander Leask, George Munsey, Mark Watt, Bradley Wheal, Brandon McMullen, Bradley James Currie

England: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Harry Brook (c), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Jamie Overton, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid