India vs England Match Prediction: Who will win the 3rd T20I match?

The media center at the Niranjan Shah Stadium wears an uncanny resemblance to the famous one at Lord's. And England will hope they feel a lot more at home when they take on India in a must-win third T20I in Rajkot on Tuesday, January 28.

The hosts are currently up 2-0 in the rubber, with both wins coming via contrasting fashions. The first, at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, was a comfortable seven-wicket victory while chasing. The second seemed to be heading towards something similar before the visitors threw a few spanners in the works, only for Tilak Varma to come up with a sensational rearguard effort that thwarted them.

The five-match series is on the line for England, who have been shackled by India's spinners so far. The Men in Blue bowled 14 overs of spin in the second T20I in Chennai, with Varun Chakaravarthy in particular impressing with his control and variations.

Answers will be hard to find for the visitors, whose problems aren't solved easily. Despite having immense firepower in their ranks, England have come a cropper in the powerplay and the middle overs. More concerningly, their bowling combination seems to lack a bit of bite despite the fact that they did well in the previous game.

India’s updated squad for the T20I series against England: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Axar Patel (vc), Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Shami, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Shivam Dube, Ramandeep Singh.

England's squad for the T20I series against India: Jos Buttler (c), Harry Brook (vc), Phil Salt (wk), Jacob Bethell, Liam Livingstone, Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Jamie Smith, Adil Rashid, Saqib Mahmood, Mark Wood.

Can India continue on their merry way and seal the series? Or will England fight back?

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IND vs ENG 2025: Visitors under pressure with the series on the line

India v England - 1st T20I - Source: Getty

India will ponder bringing in an additional fast bowler. If the coin doesn't land in their favor, they could be in serious trouble in the second innings, especially if dew sets in. England, meanwhile, have named an unchanged playing XI for the third T20I.

The visitors' pathway to victory is fairly simple. They will need to play out Varun Chakaravarthy without losing too many wickets to him and find a way to attack the rest of the spinners. Surviving Arshdeep Singh's opening burst will be high on their list of checkpoints as well.

The toss will have a big role to play once again, with the chasing team expected to have a significant advantage in Rajkot. All in all, this might be England's best chance at securing a win in the series, with the hosts going through some personnel changes and selection questions.

That said, however, India are still the clear favorites for this game.

Prediction: India to win the 3rd T20I vs England.