India will take on England in the first T20I of the five-match series at the Riverside Ground in Chester-le-Street on July 1. Both teams will be eager to make a strong start to what promises to be a fiercely contested series between two of the strongest sides in world cricket.

India enter the contest under pressure after enduring a disappointing 2-0 series defeat to Ireland, marking their first-ever bilateral T20I series loss against the Irish side. Under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer, India struggled with the bat throughout the series and will be hoping for improved performances from their explosive batting lineup against a stronger English attack.

England, meanwhile, return to T20I cricket after their semi-final exit at the 2026 T20 World Cup, where they were knocked out by India. Harry Brook’s side will be eager to make full use of home conditions and begin the series on a winning note. Having also suffered a 4-1 defeat in India during their last bilateral T20I series, the hosts will be motivated to turn the tables in front of their home crowd.

ENG vs IND, 1st T20I: Match Details

• Date and Time: July 1, 10:00 PM IST / 4:30 PM GMT / 5:30 PM Local
• Venue: Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street

ENG vs IND, Head-to-Head Record in T20Is

Matches played: 30 | England won: 12 | India won: 18

Riverside Ground Pitch Report

The Riverside Ground has generally offered balanced conditions in T20 cricket. Fast bowlers are expected to enjoy some movement with the new ball, particularly if the forecasted overcast conditions and light drizzle persist during the evening. Batters who negotiate the early overs should find stroke-making considerably easier as the innings progresses.

Spinners are also likely to come into play during the middle overs by extracting some grip from the surface. Recent domestic T20 matches at the venue have produced varied results, with both high-scoring encounters and successfully defended modest totals. Captains winning the toss may prefer to bowl first, considering the possibility of moisture early in the game and better batting conditions under lights.

Squads

England: Harry Brook (c), Jofra Archer, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton (wk), Jacob Bethell, Jos Buttler (wk), James Coles, Jordan Cox (wk), Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid, Rehan Ahmed, Phil Salt (wk), Josh Tongue, Luke Wood

India: Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Abhishek Sharma, Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dube, Harshit Rana, Ishan Kishan (wk), Axar Patel, Prasidh Krishna, Prince Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Sanju Samson, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Suryansh Shedge, Varun Chakravarthy, Washington Sundar

Also READ: Top 5 batters with most runs in ENG vs IND T20Is ft. Jos Buttler

ENG vs IND, 1st T20I: Today’s Match Prediction

Case 1:

• England wins the toss and bowls first
• India’s powerplay score: 50-60
• India’s total score: 180-195

Case 2:

• India wins the toss and bowls first
• England’s powerplay score: 55-65
• England’s total score: 185-200

Match result: Team bowling first to win the contest.

Also READ: India coach reveals reason behind delaying Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s T20I debut