India v Australia, T20I Series 2017 - Best XI

It was a rather tame end to what had been an exciting contest between two very competent sides. Team India had to settle for a drawn 1-1 T20I series against Australia after the final game of the three-match series was abandoned without a ball being bowled. Action had moved to Hyderabad for the series decider with everything at stake for both sides.

But much to the disliking of the players and the fans, the rain gods poured down heavily which saw the match being called off. Earlier in the series, Australia showed great spirit by bundling down the mighty hosts for a paltry 118 in the Guwahati T20I. It was Jason Behrendorff who ran through the Indian top order on the night.

With the bat, Moises Henriques and Travis Head did the task for the visitors to draw the series level 1-1. Earlier in the first game, it was another rain-affected game on the cards. In a short 6 over chase, team India managed to ease past the target with 9 wickets in hand to draw the first blood. In the end, as it stands, the series ended up in a tie. There were some spectacular individual performances in the series though.

Here we pick the Series Best XI:

1. Aaron Finch (C)

The series was an unusual one in its own sense. This was largely due to the fact that the two games that went underway saw the top order crashing for both sides. However, Australian opener Aaron Finch managed to be amongst the runs in the first game that was played at Ranchi.

Finch provided a brilliant start to his team by scoring some quick runs in the powerplay. He ended up with a handy score of 42 that came off just 30 deliveries on the day. Finch hit four boundaries and a six en route his knock in the match. He had a quiet outing in Guwahati that summed up the series for him.

2. Moises Henriques

Moises Henriques was the star of the match for Australia in the second game with the bat. He was promoted up the order in the game and he made full use out of the opportunity that beckoned his way. Seeing a modest target at their disposal, the management sent Henriques in at number 3 ahead of the likes of Glenn Maxwell.

Henriques did struggle a bit in the initial overs but soon got into his groove. He took special liking to Indian bowler Kuldeep Yadav and did not allow him to settle at the crease. Henriques finished with an unbeaten 62 off 46 deliveries with four boundaries and as many sixes to see Australia home in the match.

3. Kedar Jadhav

After seeing the Indian top order collapse in both the fixtures, the onus was on the middle order of team India. While there were no big scores across both the matches with completed results, there were a few spirited knocks that caught the attention of many.

In the second T20I, when Behrendorff ran through the Indian top order, it was Kedar Jadhav and Hardik Pandya who took India to safety in the match. A steady partnership between the two saw the hosts manage to edge past the 100-run mark. Jadhav scored a crucial run-a-ball 27 with 3 fours and six.

4. Hardik Pandya

All eyes were on the new found sensation of team India, Hardik Pandya, as the T20 action kick started. As had been the case in the ODIs, Pandya found himself in a tricky situation in the first game where he had to play out an uncharacteristic knock.

With the top order back in the hut and not many runs to show, Pandya had to ensure that he stayed at the crease for long. He managed to do so and hit 25 off 23 deliveries with a solitary six. His stay at the crease, accompanied by Kedar Jadhav’s knock set the tone for India’s decent total on the board.

5. Travis Head

Travis Head has been one of the most underrated stars of the current Australian set up. Head had a very quiet time in the ODI series and had to make his presence felt in the shortest format of the game. After a very low profile outing in the first T20I, he made his presence count in the second game.

Head came in to bat at number four after the dismissal of Aaron Finch in the match. He put on an unbeaten third wicket stand with Moises Henriques to ensure that the Australian team were safely on the winning side. He scored an unbeaten 48 off 34 balls with 5 fours and a six in the match.

6. Tim Paine

Australian wicket-keeper Tim Paine edged out team India wicket-keeper MS Dhoni in the series. While Dhoni had very little say in the two completed fixtures, Paine did not have a lot to offer either. However, what sees Paine make it to this list is that he has given hopes to the Aussie team in the keeping department.

Matthew Wade had struggled big time in the ODI series. And now, with the way Paine fared up decently in the two matches, he looks set to replace Wade in the ODI setup as well. One big moment of glory for Paine in the series was when he stumped MS Dhoni in the second match.

7. Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav has been a big revelation for the Indian team in the recent past. The young chinaman had a forgettable outing in the second game at Guwahati. The Australian batsmen targeted him in the match and he was taken away for 46 runs.

However, it was his spirited show in the first game that sees him make it to the list. In the Ranchi T20I, Kuldeep returned with figures of 2/16 in the four overs that he bowled. He bagged two key wickets of Aaron Finch and Moises Henriques in the match. 

8. Adam Zampa

If there was a bowler in the Australian side who was under tremendous pressure to bowl well, then it was Adam Zampa. He had a very quiet time in the ODI series and many questioned his ability to bowl under pressure. His wicket taking ability was under the scanner as he came in to the T20 series.

He had only one over to bowl in the first T20I where he gave away only 6 runs. In the second game, he managed to outwit the former Indian skipper MS Dhoni to have him stumped with a classical leg spinner. He also bowled a brilliant googly to castle up Kedar Jadhav in the match. He returned with figures of 2/19 in the game.

9. Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar has made it a habit to dismiss his Sunrisers Hyderabad captain David Warner. Bhuvi accounted for the dismissal of Warner in both the completed T20 matches in the series. He cleaned him up in the first game at Ranchi.

In the second match, he bowled a magnificent spell first up that gave a lot of hope to the team India after they had scored a low total in their innings. Bhuvneshwar gave away only 9 runs in his spell of 3 overs and also dismissed the big fish David Warner.

10. Nathan Coulter-Nile

Nathan Coulter-Nile has arguably been the most consistent performer in the bowling department for Australia on the tour. The tall pace bowler continued his good run of the ODI series in the T20s. In the first match, he bagged the only wicket that fell in the Indian innings.

In the second game, he got another wicket to his name. He bowled tight lines up front to keep the run flow in check. His spell created the ideal environment for Jason Behrendorff to take wickets from the other end as the Indian batsmen tried to attack the latter and ended up throwing wickets.

11. Jason Behrendorff

Jason Behrendorff emerged as the talking point of the series with his four wicket haul in the second T2oI at Ranchi. Behrendorff bowled all his four overs in the opening spell of the match and managed to return with amazing figures of 4/21 in the game.

He started off by trapping Rohit Sharma lbw in his very first over. Soon, he managed to get rid of the danger man Virat Kohli for a duck. Another fine piece of bowling saw him get an edge off the bat off Manish Pandey. Lastly, he sent Shikhar Dhawan packing to complete his four wicket haul.