England wearing black armbands: The English players have donned black armbands over their jerseys in Abu Dhabi tonight.
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During the first semi-final of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2021 between England and New Zealand in Abu Dhabi, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has won the toss and invited England to bat first in the first knockout match of the tournament.
Williamson, who refrained from making any change to their Playing XI, didn’t surprise anyone by electing to field first. In what has been a successful trend in this World Cup, captains aren’t afraid to chase a total even in crucial matches.
Unlike New Zealand, England have had to make a forced change to their Playing XI as batter Sam Billings has come in for injured batter Jason Roy. Having torn his calf while batting in their last Super 12 match against South Africa, Roy has been ruled out of the tournament.
Readers must note that wicket-keeper batter Jonny Bairstow has partnered vice-captain Jos Buttler at the top of the order. A regular opener in the ODIs, Bairstow has opened the batting in the shortest format for the 16th time.
England wearing black armbands
As fans must have noted by now, the English players are donning black armbands at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium tonight. While there hasn’t been any official confirmation as of now, it appears that the same has been done as a mark of tribute for Mohan Singh.
A minute’s silence for Abu Dhabi curator Mohan Singh…good job ICC 🙌🏻#NZvENG #ENGvsNZ #T20WorldCup
— Baidurjo Bhose (@bbhose) November 10, 2021
Mohan Singh Pitch curator
Readers must note that Mohan Singh, chief pitch curator at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, had passed away a few hours before the start of New Zealand-Afghanistan Super 12 match on Sunday.
“Mohan has been with Abu Dhabi Cricket for 15 years and has played a pivotal role in all of the venue’s success during that time. Tributes to Mohan and his incredible achievements will be honoured in the coming days,” Abu Dhabi Cricket had said in a statement with respect to Singh’s unfortunate demise.
