Last Updated on 5 years by Charbel Coorey

ENG vs AUS 1st T20I Preview Dream11 Possible Playing 11 Pitch Report | ENG vs AUS 1st T20 Dream11 Prediction Today | England vs Australia 1st T20 Key Players | Southampton Pitch Report

One of the cricket’s greatest rivalries restarts in one of cricket’s most unusual circumstances. In contrast to the packed crowds of the World Cup and Ashes battles of 2019, England and Australia lock horns in a T20I series that has been carefully planned, remains carefully planned and will be played in front of empty seats.

Ashley Giles, director of England’s men’s team, was “quietly confident” of this series going ahead, even without crowds. Indeed, what the just-concluded Pakistan series tought us is that we can still be treated to thrilling cricket even in these unusual circumstances. England failed to win the series after falling short in the third T20I, but with plenty of cricket under their belts in the past eight weeks, they will be looking to make a good start against their old enemy.

Australia, on the other hand, will be playing their first international match since March. So, the big question is how quickly Aaron Finch’s men can hit the ground running against a side with cricket under its belt. However, if you can recall, Australia began to find some consistency in T20I cricket, with strong series wins against Sri Lanka, Pakistan and South Africa in the past year to now sit pretty in top spot in the T20I rankings.

So, with some continuity in their squad, can the Aussies make a positive start against England at Southampton?

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Key Players to Watch/Key Stats

• In nine T20Is since returning from his ban, David Warner has been unstoppable. He has scored 415 runs at an average of 138.33 and SR of 142.12. So, can Warner improve his poor record vs England? He averages just 17.66 against them in nine T20Is.
• Aaron Finch returns to the ground where he struck an unbelievable 156 off 63 balls in 2013. Also, Finch has the most runs of any player in England-Australia T20Is, with 425 runs at an average of 70.83 and SR of 189.73.
• Eoin Morgan, who looked in strong touch in the recent series vs Pakistan, has the most T20I runs for England vs Australia (247 runs, avg. 24.70, SR 146.15).
• Tom Banton was England’s top-scorer in the just-concluded T20I series vs Pakistan. He looked dangerous throughout the series, with 137 runs at 45.66, with a SR of 153.93.
• Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan round out an important top four for England. Malan is enjoying an excellent T20I career so far, with seven 50+ scores in 13 matches.
• Steve Smith has taken his white-ball batting to another level in the past year, actually striking better than David Warner in this period – 147.92 (avg. 83.33).
• Jos Buttler returns to England’s white-ball setup. Can he make an impact in this series as he did in the Tests vs Pakistan? Watch out also for Glenn Maxwell, who recently scored a century in an intra-squad match.
• Chris Jordan is coming off 2/29 vs Pakistan, and has six wickets in four T20Is vs Australia. His yorkers will be key.
• Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc will be a key duo for Australia this series. Starc has taken 12 wickets in eight T20Is since October last year. Cummins has been strong, too, with 11 wickets in eight T20Is.
• Ashton Agar was superb in South Africa earlier in 2020 (eight wickets in three T20Is, including a five-for). He could play a key role on the slower England tracks.
• Jofra Archer returns to the England setup. He has a strong record of 121 wickets in 95 T20 matches.

Stats and Facts

• Australia have won five of their last seven T20Is against England, dating back to 2014.
• Australia won their only T20I at Southampton to date, beating England by 39 runs in a very high-scoring match in 2013 (248 vs 209). Aaron Finch starred with 156 off 63 balls.
• If Marcus Stoinis plays, he will come into the match in great form. He has scored 87, 17 and 68 in three intra-squad matches to date, as well as taking 4/31 in the 50-over warmup.
• Moeen Ali was enduring a poor run of form since the restart. Can he now build on his strong performance of 61 (33) and 1/10 in the last game vs Pakistan?

Possible Playing 11

Jos Buttler, Jofra Archer and Mark Wood are all back in England’s white-ball setup. Buttler is set to open with Jonny Bairstow, which is a dangerous opening partnership.

England: 1. Jonny Bairstow, 2. Jos Buttler (wk), 3. Dawid Malan, 4. Eoin Morgan (c), 5. Tom Banton, 6. Moeen Ali, 7. Tom Curran, 8. Jofra Archer, 9. Chris Jordan, 10. Adil Rashid, 11. Mark Wood

Australia have some decisions to make. Do they go with Mitchell Marsh or Marcus Stoinis as their seam all-rounder? Stoinis historically struggles to get going in the middle order, but is in good touch. Also, it remains to be seen if BBL stars Josh Philippe and Riley Meredith get an opportunity.

Aaron Finch ruled out the possibility of Marnus Labuschagne making his T20I debut, despite a century in an intra-squad T20 match.

Australia: 1. Aaron Finch (c), 2. David Warner, 3. Steve Smith, 4. Glenn Maxwell, 5. Mitchell Marsh/Marcus Stoinis, 6. Alex Carey (wk), 7. Ashton Agar, 8. Pat Cummins, 9. Mitchell Starc, 10. Adam Zampa, 11. Kane Richardson/Riley Meredith

Southampton Pitch and Weather Report

Southampton frustrated us all during the Test series against Pakistan. Constant rain ruined the last two Tests. However, the forecast for this first T20I is promising, with not much rain expected at all.

In terms of the pitch, batting-friendly strips have been the norm in white-ball internationals in England in the past few years. This should remain the case this time around, with two strong sides on show. The average first innings score in the past three Southampton T20Is is 176.67, with the chasing team winning the past two T20Is.

Dream11 Prediction

Option 1:

Option 2:

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Match Prediction

A blockbuster awaits. A very difficult match to choose.

England’s run of matches compared to Australia, who are playing their first international since March, could be a crucial factor. However, Australia won’t use that as an excuse in a game which has the makings for a high-scoring clash.

Thanks for reading!

Also read: Do you write cricket blogs? Here are 6 tips to writing great cricket blogs!