Australia, one of the giants of world cricket, are gearing up for a high-voltage limited-overs series against India that includes five ODIs and three T20s.
However, before they meet Virat Kohli's Team India, they will have to deal with Board President's XI. The two teams are set for an ODI clash in Chennai on Wednesday.
The Aussies travelled to India in two batches, and all the players have now arrived. This is their only practice game ahead of the highly-anticipated series.
The visitors will be keen to take this practice match seriously and get a good feel of the conditions in Chennai, as the MA Chidambaram Stadium will host the first ODI as well.
Skipper Steve Smith will want his players to gain confidence before they face India, and a good performance on Wednesday could act as a booster.
Australia have a wonderful squad, with plenty of experienced players like David Warner, James Faulkner and Glenn Maxwell.
With most of the players having featured in IPL, Australia will bank on their experience.
One such player, who could hold the key in this entire limited-overs series, is leggie Adam Zampa. The 25-year-old will be eager to start on a bright note against Board President's XI.
While Australia have proven players in their side, Board President's XI include some young guns who have been performing consistently in domestic circuit and IPL.
It is an opportunity for players such as Rahul Tripathi, Mayank Agarwal, Gurkeerat Mann and Washington Sundar to prove they can play against the big boys of world cricket.
Sundar, who was the star performer in the recently-concluded Tamil Nadu Premier League, is looking forward to the contest against Smith, who was his IPL captain in the last edition at Rising Pune Supergiant.
"I have played many times alongside Smith. But now I am going to play against him. I have bowled aplenty to him at the nets. We had a lot of fun whenever we played together. I am now looking forward to bowling at him now," Sundar told International Business Times, India, recently.
Australia are favourites and should emerge victorious, but their major objective would be let players spend time at the middle before taking on the mighty Indian team on Sunday.
Squads
Board President's XI: Rahul Tripathi, Mayank Agarwal, Shivam Chaudhary, Nitish Rana, Govinda Poddar, Gurkeerat Mann, Shreevats Goswami, Akshay Karnewar, Kulwant Khejroliya, Kushang Patel, Avesh Khan, Sandeep Sharma, Washington Sundar, Rahil Shah. Coach: Hemang Badani.
Australia: Steve Smith, David Warner, Ashton Agar, Hilton Cartwright, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Patrick Cummins, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa
Schedule
Venue: MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Date: 12 September
Time: 9 am local time, 1:30 pm Australia
All the live scores will be made available on BCCI website and their Twitter handle
