IND vs AUS, T20I series: Former Indian skipper Virat Kohli had once said that any Australian team shouldn't be taken lightly, doesn't matter if they are touring or not. This certainly isn't Steve Waugh's team or certainly isn't Ricky Ponting's team, but one can't discount the fact that the Aussies never back down. They just keep on getting tougher with the situation. This is something that has been ingrained in their DNA system and belief system.
On the contrary to other touring teams, Australia looks very confident every time they visit India. This might raise a few eyebrows, but the dominant Indian team who look even scarier on their home turf haven't been able to get the better of the Aussies in their last two visits. Aaron Finch and his men are the defending champions of the World T20 title and by looking at the composition of the squad, it certainly looks like this trend can continue. Australia is touring India without their big guns such as David Warner, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Marsh, and Marcus Stoinis, but they still have plenty of firepower at their disposal to give India a run for their money.
The Australian team still has five specialist batsmen, five all-rounders, and five specialist bowlers in their ranks and has all the elements that guarantee victory for any cricketing side. Many members of the touring Australian side have been an ensemble part of different IPL franchises for quite some time now and are familiar with how the conditions play out. On the other hand, there is team India who crashed out of the recently concluded Asia Cup owing to their consecutive losses against Sri Lanka and Pakistan in the Super 4s stage.
The Indian top order looks in a bit of turmoil as of now with Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul being far from their best. To India's relief, Virat Kohli has returned to form and this will give the Indian team, a huge boost ahead of the Australia series and also ahead of the all-important T20 World Cup. Adding to the endless conundrum around the opening slot, Rohit Sharma in a pre-series press conference has said that India has now started looking at Virat Kohli as their third opener. As of now, one can only hope that the Indian team plays to its full potential and breaks the Australian jinx, which certainly will do loads of good for their confidence.
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Fixtures:
- September 20, 2022: First T20, Mohali (7.30 pm IST)
- September 23, 2022: Second T20, Nagpur (7.30pm IST)
- September 25, 2022: Third T20, Hyderabad (7.30 pm IST)
Full squads
Australia squad: Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Finch (c), Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Daniel Sams, Steve Smith, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa.
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul (vc), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Ravichandaran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav
