England captain Jos Buttler has won the toss and elected to field against India in the 2nd semi-final of the T20 World Cup in Providence, Guyana, on Thursday.
Both teams go unchanged on a surface that is good for batting as the weather has cleared up.
Playing XIs:
India: Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah
England: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler(w/c), Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley
India vs Eng semis to start at 9.15 PM.
The drizzle has stopped and the covers are off.
There will be a pitch inspection at 11:15 AM Local Time (2045 IST), the BCCI has tweeted.
The toss of the 2nd semi-final of the T20 World Cup between India and England in Providence, Georgetown, Guyana, has been delayed due to wet outfield due to rain.
There is forecast of rain during Thursday's semi-final as Georgetown gets its maximum rainfall in the month of June.
The minimum overs to constitute a semi-final will be 10 overs per side and there is no reserve day.
According to ICC playing conditions there is no reserve day in case of rain but will have a buffer time of 250 minutes and there could be a possibility of a 10-over game starting as late as 0150 IST.
If there is no result, then India with a better Net Run Rate (NRR) will be in the final and meet South Africa on Sunday.
With a refreshingly aggressive batting approach, India would look to avoid the knockout stage jitters plaguing them for over a decade when they take on defending champions England in the 2nd semi-final of the T20 World Cup, in Georgetown, Guyana on Thursday.
The last time these two teams met at this stage, it turned out to be a no contest as England outplayed an outdated India in the 2022 edition's semifinal.
However, India have finally been able to shed their conservative approach at the top of the order since that 10-wicket hammering in Adelaide and have become the team to beat in this competition.
Rain could play a part in this 2nd semi-final.
According to ICC playing conditions rules there is no reserve day in case of rain but will have a buffer time of 250 minutes and there could be a possibility of a 10-over game starting as late as 0150 IST.
If match washed out, India will go through to the final.
Interestingly, no match has been staged at the Providence Stadium in Guyana since June 8 when the West Indies breezed past Uganda in a day game, giving the curators extra time to prepare a suitable pitch for the high-profile game.
India were clinical in the Super 8 stage but the extreme pressure of a semi-final tends to produce unforced errors.
At the top of the order, India will be hoping for runs from the bat of Virat Kohli, who has had an underwhelming tournament by his high standards.
On the contrary, his opening partner and skipper Rohit has set the benchmark for other batters when it comes to fearless cricket.
His blazing 41-ball 92 against Australia is the sort of knock that won't be easily forgotten for some time to come.
For both Rohit and Kohli, it is probably their last shot at winning the T20 world title in India colours and the two would be desperate to leave a mark.
Rohit has already made it clear that he intends to go ballistic in the powerplays without a care for personal milestones, which was evident in the game against Australia.
Shivam Dube has not batted as per expectations in the middle-order and it will be interesting to see how he fares against wily leg-spinner Rashid.
India are likely to go unchanged into the game even though they have Yuzvendra Chahal in the squad who can come in handy against England's right-handers including Phil Salt, Jos Buttler, Harry Brook and Jonny Bairstow.
England, on the other hand, have not had the smoothest of campaigns. They stuttered into Super 8s where they lost to South Africa before turning things around.
Skipper Buttler was back among the runs against USA in England's final Super 8 game and considering the familiarity with the Indian attack, he is well-placed to come up with a game-changing knock.
His opening partner Phil Salt can take the game away from opposition very quickly and India will need to dismiss him in the powerplay.
More runs are expected from Bairstow and Moeen Ali, whose off-spin could be useful against India's left-handers.
Liam Livingstone, who bowls both leg and off spin, too can bowl his full quota of overs like he did against USA the other night.
Rashid's four overs can also prove decisive in the all-important fixture.
