The Ashes is in the Australian air, but before that, there’s cricket of a different kind
that promises to be no less interesting.
The first match of the Australia-India T20I series in Canberra on Wednesday was cut short by rain. India were going great at 97/1 in 9.4 overs when the heavens intervened. But in that short time, it was evident that the rivalry between two of the best teams in the format is set to make this series a special one. Be it the Australian pacers’ testing line-and-length stuff, or the Indians’ counterpunch, Canberra served as the trailer of an exciting contest.
The second match of the five-game series is on Friday at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). And there perhaps couldn’t be a better arena for the gladiators from the two sides to present an exhibition of power and finesse. The MCG is expected to be houseful with about 90,000 or more spectators spicing up the battle from the stands.
The gigantic venue, of course, brings with it its own advantages and disadvantages. While the deafening noise can serve as music to some players who thrive as showstoppers, for others it can mean a mountain of pressure. So whoever handles the environment better will have an edge on Friday.
Both teams are likely to go in with unchanged line-ups from the first T20I. India had kept out Arshdeep Singh from the playing XI, preferring Harshit Rana instead because of the latter’s ability to contribute better with the bat. It’s a tricky call. Yes, Harshit can land a few big blows with the bat, but at the same time he can be expensive. Left-arm pacer Arshdeep on the other hand is a proven T20I performer, with a skillset that comes good both in the Powerplay and the death overs.
India, however, will be banking on their spin factory to apply pressure on the Australians. The trio of Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav have the potential not only to choke the big-hitting Aussies, but also pick up wickets in the middle overs, the underrated phase where T20s are often won and lost.
Batting-wise India have enough firepower to set a big total or chase down steep targets. Captain Suryakumar Yadav seemed to have finally recovered his form in the abandoned Canberra match. He was batting on 39 off 24 balls when rain stopped play. Shubman Gill too looked good as he made 37 not out off 20 balls.
The only one who missed out was Abhishek Sharma, currently the most exciting batter in the XI. If he gets going, the MCG crowd will be in for a treat. But the left-handed opener will have to be alert about the bigger boundaries and not be overconfident.
Australia are no pushovers. With the likes of captain Mitch Marsh, Travis Head, Marcus Stoinis and Tim David in their team, they too are fearsome in their batting. Josh Hazlewood is the biggest name in their bowling attack.
In a nutshell, it’s a clash between two well-matched teams. Who will blink first?