Aus v Ind 1st T20I Preview: Teams begin preparation for the WorldT20

With Sri Lanka’s T20I tour to India, Asia Cup T20 looming and a World T20 to follow, the Indian side will look keen to identify a settled combination. Australia will look to continue their form against the visitors and will also look to build for the mega event that will be hosted by India. Neither team has an impressive record in T20Is on account of inconsistent performances. India had lost their T20I series at home against South Africa while the Aussies lost their only T20I match on the England tour last year.

Australia:

Australia’s selectors have included the ‘Wild Thing’ Shaun Tait and uncapped paceman Andrew Tye in a 17-man squad for the three T20Is, while Australia’s Test off-spinner Nathan Lyon also gets the chance for his first T20 international cap in an enlarged squad picked to allow coaching staff and selectors to take a closer look at the stars of the KFC Big Bash League with an eye to picking a squad for the World T20 tournament. The form of Chris Lynn and Travis Head will be critical to the home side’s chances against a powerful Indian lineup.

Glenn Maxwell has been ruled out of the first match due to a hamstring injury but is expected to return for Friday’s second match. The return of Shane Watson gives the home side an all-round balance while skipper Aaron Finch and David Warner will be eyeing explosive starts. The Aussies have might try new combinations, however, having never lifted the WorldT20, will take this series as seriously as any.

India:

India has been forced to make two changes for the T20 leg of their tour of Australia, with Ajinkya Rahane and Bhuvneshwar Kumar both suffering hand injuries. Gurkeerat Singh Mann and all- Rishi Dhawan have been named in the squad, however, all eyes will be on the Baroda all-rounder Hardik Pandya who has managed to be in the limelight recently due to his stellar performances in the domestic circuit. Australia and India have met nine times in T20I, with India winning five to Australia’s four. The last time they met was in Dhaka during the 2014 World T20, a match India won by 73 runs. This fact will please MS Dhoni and he will look to bounce back from the ODI series defeat.

The return of experienced players like Ashish Nehra, Yuvraj Sing, Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh will strengthen the team and they will want to stamp their class and keep themselves in the reckoning for all formats. There is a good balance between youth and experience in the squad. With the WorldT20 in India just a few months away, a solid performance in Australia can be a huge morale booster for the team.

Form guide (last five completed matches, most recent first):

Australia: LWWLW

India:  LLLWL

Playing XI (Probable):

Australia (possible): 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Steven Smith, 4 Chris Lynn/Travis Head, 5 Shane Watson, 6 James Faulkner, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 John Hastings, 9 Nathan Lyon, 10 Cameron Boyce, 11 Shaun Tait

India (possible): 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Rohit Sharma, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Suresh Raina, 5 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 6 Yuvraj Singh, 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Ravindra Jadeja, 9 R Ashwin/Harbhajan Singh, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Ashish Nehra

Stats:

1.Virat Kohli is the only Indian to score more than 1000 T20I runs. His tally of 1016 runs is followed by Raina (983) and Yuvraj (968) and the two batsmen will have a chance to register their 1K mark.

2.Shane Watson tops the bowling charts for Australia in the shortest format with 39 T20I wickets.

3.Both Australia and India could finish this series as high as first or as low as eighth depending on the outcome of the series.