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India win toss, decide to bat
By Faisal Shariff in Durban
February 26, 2003 17:49 IST

England made one change for their World Cup Group A match against India on Wednesday, bringing in one-day all-rounder Ronnie Irani for left-arm spinner Ashley Giles.

India, meanwhile, were unchanged, left-arm fast bowler Ashish Nehra recovering from a sprained ankle to gain selection ahead of spinner Anil Kumble.

Nehra passed a crucial fitness test earlier in the day.

"Nehra is fit," India coach John Wright told rediff.com as the team readied for its crucial Pool A fixture.

The Delhi paceman passed a 20-minute fitness test which was held around 12 noon at the Kingsmead by team physio Andrew Leipus.

Nehra had injured his ankle after bowling just one ball in his spell in India's previous match against Namibia.

There was speculation that Nehra might sit out after he skipped the "optional nets" in Durban on Monday evening and skipper Sourav Ganguly had hinted at the inclusion of all-rounder Ajit Agarkar if Nehra failed to prove his fitness.

Teams:

England: Marcus Trescothick, Nick Knight, Michael Vaughan, Nasser Hussain (captain), Paul Collingwood, Alec Stewart, Andrew Flintoff, Craig White, Ronnie Irani, Andrew Caddick, James Anderson.

India: Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly (captain), Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Dinesh Mongia, Harbhajan Singh, Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra.

Faisal Shariff in Durban
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