IND vs ENG: Big crowds likely for 1st T20I

The newly refurbished Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium witnessed very few spectators in attendance for the final two Tests.  However, the five-match T20I series between India and England is likely to see more fans throng the stadium.

Speaking to Times of India, an official of Gujarat Cricket Association confirmed that the first T20I fixture might see a lot more fans with over 40,000 tickets already sold. “We are expecting a lot more crowd than what we saw in the Test matches. As of now, we have been able to sell over 40,000 tickets. We are expecting that the seats will be filled up for the first T20 International," - a Gujarat Cricket Association official said. 

The final two Tests between India and England were the first international fixtures to be staged after its renovation. With a capacity of 1,10,000, it is the largest cricket stadium in the world in terms of seating capacity. The tickets are being sold in both online and offline mode at two designated venues, Motera and Sardar Patel Stadium in Navrangpura.

The first T20 international gets underway on 12 March. All the matches are scheduled to be held at 7:00 PM.  After the T20I series, the action shits to Pune, which will be hosting a three-match ODI series. While the T20Is will witness more fans in attendance, the ODI series will be played under closed doors, considering the recent surge of COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra. 

T20I series schedule: 

1st T20I - 12 March

2nd T20I - 14 March

3rd T20I - 16 March

4th T20I - 18 March

5th T20I - 20 March 

Squads

India: Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma (vice-capt), KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini and Shardul Thakur. 

England: Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Sam Billings, Jos Buttler (wk), Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, Mark Wood.

[Times of India inputs]