INDIA LOOK TO EXTEND WINNING STREAK
KOHLI’S INFORM TEAM TAKES ON AUSSIES IN T20I SERIES TODAY
RANCHI:The glory ride that Indian cricket team has been on since ViratKohlitookoverascaptainis showing no signs of slowing down,especiallywiththeMenin Blue getting an extended run at home.And,thethree-matchT20I series against Australia, starting on Saturday, is expected to present Indian fans with yet another opportunity tocelebrate their favourite team’s success.
HavingwontheirlastsixT20Is against Australia, Kohli’s men will start favourites when the teamsclashattheJSCAStadium here on Saturday.
Whilerecordspointtoanabsolute domination by India, the Australians have in their ranks batsmen who can turn the table singlehandedly. David Warner and Aaron Finch, with enough experienceintheIndianPremier League, are the most dangerous opening pair on paper.
The Australian captain Steve Smith also has happy memories of his last T20 outing in Rising Pune Supergiant colours, when, under his leadership,the side finishedrunners-up.Histeammate Glenn Maxwell too was the captainof anotherIPL team---Kings XI Punjab --- and haswq the ability to go for big shots.
But, then, the strength and experience on paper did not resultinwinintheODIseriesand a major reason was that Indian bowlers fought back hard even whentheAustraliansweregoing full steam. A perfect case in point is the third ODI, when Australia were 224/1 in the 38th over but in thenext 12overs,they could only take the total to 293/6.
The likes of Yuzvendra Chahal,KuldeepYadav,JaspritBumrah, Bhuvenshwar Kumar have shown the potential to do well on the big stage. Add to this, veteran AshishNehraalongwiththeeconomicalAxarPatel,andtheIndia teammanagementseemstohave a problem of plenty.
In four of the five T20Is in 2017, India bowlers have been able to break the opening stand within the first four overs, which only shows their potency.
India’sbattinglineupofmostly set batsmen, like Virat Kohli, RohitSharmaandMSDhoni,has been among runs. The big question, however, is that with the fieryShikharDhawancomingin the squad, will KL Rahul have to sit out?
He could not find a place in the playing XI in the ODI series and now faces the prospect of sitting out of the first T20 as well. He opened for India in the last T20I it played in Sri Lanka and also featured in the England T20I home series in February. But his form in Sri Lanka has left a big question mark on his immediate future?
He is part of the middle-order now in ODIs and, for him to play that same role in T20Is, one among Manish Pandey and KedarJadhavwillhavetositout. It will be a tough call for the team management,especiallywiththe latter earning the moniker of
‘golden arm’ with his ability to take wickets.
Pandya is another crucial cog inthewheel.Hehasemergedasa big hitterwhile hismediumpace can be effective.
Jasprit Bumrah, Ashish NehraandBhuvneshwarKumar have also proved their mettle.