Combined T20 XI for India-Australia 2016

After a disappointing ODI leg of their tour, team India picked themselves right up for the T20I series. They created history as they became the first ever side to whitewash Aussies in any format in their own backyard. While India fielded a stable unchanged side for all the three encounters, Australia, on the other hand, experimented a lot with their squad. The home side tried out as many as 19 players and thus most of them couldn’t perform significantly enough to feature in our Combined XI for the T20I series. 1. Rohit Sharma (India) SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 31: Rohit Sharma of India celebrates his half century during the International Twenty20 match between Australia and India at Sydney Cricket Ground on January 31, 2016 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) After being adjudged the Man of the Series for the One Dayers, Rohit Sharma carried his good form into the T20 series as well. He was instrumental in providing quick starts for the Indian side in all the three games. The ‘Hitman’ as he is known, got to his fifty on two occasions with 60 being his top score. He accumulated a total of 143 runs at an amazing average of 47.66. 2. Shikhar Dhawan (India) SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 31: Shikhar Dhawan of India bats during the International Twenty20 match between Australia and India at Sydney Cricket Ground on January 31, 2016 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) Another Indian batsman who continued his good run from the ODI part of the tour, Shikhar Dhawan too dazzled at the top of the order. After a failure in the first game he got his act together and played two racy knocks at a combined strike rate of 148.97. His run tally at the end of the series was 73 with 42 being his highest score. 3. Virat Kohli (India) Virat Kohli celebrates after he reached his half-century. (Photo by Mark Nolan – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) No wonder he’s the face of Indian cricket at the moment given his consistency at the top level for so long. Virat Kohli certainly loves to play against the Aussies and more so at their home. He sizzled in ODIs as well and he left nothing behind in the T20s either as he notched up three successive fifties in as many games. He totaled a mammoth 199 runs in the series, easily the highest by any batsman. His innings of 90* in the first game was his best in the series. Interestingly he got dismissed just once by the Aussies. 4. Aaron Finch (Australia) MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 29: Aaron Finch of Australia raises his bat after scoring 50 runs during the International Twenty20 match between Australia and India at Melbourne Cricket Ground on January 29, 2016 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Darrian Traynor – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) Australia’s captain in the shortest format of the game, Aaron Finch was probably the most consistent among all his teammates. The belligerent opener could play only the first two games as he had to miss the last match due to injury. He bludgeoned his way to a total of 118 runs in two matches at an average of 59. His best knock was of 74 in the second game. 5. Shane Watson (Australia) Shane Watson of Australia celebrates his century. (Photo by Mark Nolan – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) Watto is most probably in the twilight of his career and a lot of questions were hovering around his selection in the team. Despite having two mediocre outings, he stood up as the stand-in captain in the third game and silenced all his critics in dramatic fashion. He smashed an unbeaten 124 as he broke the record for the highest score by a captain in T20Is. As a result he tallied a total of 151 runs with the bat at an impressive strike rate of 164.13. With the ball in hand too, he did quite a good job for his team. He picked up 3 wickets in as many games at a miserly economy of 6.45. 6. Suresh Raina (India) Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina of India. (Photo by Mark Nolan – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) Making a comeback to the squad after not being a part of the ODI team, Suresh Raina did remarkably well to make a case for himself. Coming to bat late into the innings, he handled a tough job of getting move on right from the word go with ease. In the two opportunities he got to bat, he made scores of 41 and 49*. The second one helped India chase down a huge total of 197. He scored a total of 90 runs in two innings. 7. Mahendra Singh Dhoni (India) – Captain MS Dhoni of India. (Photo by Darrian Traynor – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) As a captain, MS Dhoni did a really commendable job lifting his team up from a deficit of 0-4 in the ODI series to ending the tour with a virtual 4-4 series tie. He became the first ever captain to whitewash Australia in Australia in any format. With the bat in hand Dhoni played two useful cameos coming at a lightning strike rate of 208.33 in the two outings he had at the crease. He was effective behind the stumps as well, as he was involved in 4 dismissals, 2 catches and 2 stumpings. 8. Ravindra Jadeja (India) Ravindra Jadeja. (Photo by Morne DeKlerk – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) Since Ravindra Jadeja made a comeback into the scheme of things, he has consistently given stellar performances with the ball in hand. He was the second highest wicket-taker in a series which saw three flat tracks. He combined well with Ashwin to tie up the Aussie batsmen. He picked up a total of 5 wickets at an average of 18.80, conceding at just 7.83 runs per over. 9. Ravichandran Ashwin (India) Ravichandran Ashwin. (Photo by Darrian Traynor – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) The better half of India’s spin twins, Ravichandran Ashwin is India’s best bowler across all formats for a reason. After sitting out for most of the ODIs which led to many eyebrows being raised, he made a great comeback in the T20 format. He was able to halt the run scoring along with Jadeja as he maintained a splendid economy of 7.58. He managed to pick 4 wickets in the 3 games at an average of 2.75. 10. Jasprit Bumrah (India) (Photo Source: Twitter) The latest sensation in Indian cricket, Jasprit Bumrah was rightly termed as the find of the tour by Indian captain MS Dhoni. After impressing in the ODI leg of the tour he displayed great maturity in handling the T20 format at the international level. His ability to bowl Yorkers at pace proved fruitful for him as he finished the series as the highest wicket-taker with 6 wickets. Though his economy of 8.95 was a bit on the higher side, his average of 17.16 is worth flaunting. His spell of 3 for 23 were his best bowling figure over the three games. 11. Ashish Nehra (India) SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 31: Ashish Nehra of India celebrates the wicket of Usman Khawaja during the International Twenty20 match between Australia and India at Sydney Cricket Ground on January 31, 2016 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) The lanky veteran pacer who was making a comeback to the Indian side after a very long time, used his experience to his advantage as he showcased some good skills up front and at the death as well. Despite being a quick bowler, Ashish Nehra maintained a decent economy of just 8. He picked only 2 wickets in total but then most bowlers didn’t even manage that. (Also read: India in Australia T20I series 2016 – India player ratings)