Two top sides of international cricket, Australia and India, will be battling it out at Sydney Cricket Ground on Thursday for a spot in the finals of the ICC Cricket World Cup. Both the teams have looked in ominous form throughout the competition and the match could go either way.
India have not suffered any defeat in the tournament, while Australia have lost one, but one has to remember that the Aussies have a cent percent record at home in the competition as their loss against the Black Caps was at New Zealand.
The defending champions are aware of the big task at hand, as the Australians have always been a difficult team to beat at home. To add to it, India's recent record against Australia has been nothing less than dismal. India could not register a single victory against the Aussies just before the World Cup.
Former Australian fast bowler, Brett Lee feels Australia will defeat India. "I honestly think that Australia will win on Thursday, I think they've got the right balance in the team," AFP quoted Brett Lee as saying.
Talking about balance, the Indian team have also performed in all departments of the game – batting bowling and fielding -- as a result of which they find themselves with their tails up.
Though Indian batsmen's good performance in the tournament should not come as a huge surprise, it is the bowlers who have been hogging the headlines, where they have managed to bowl out the opposition in all their matches.
If they manage to do so against the Australians as well, they could well be in the driver's seat. But the Aussies also have quality batsmen such as David Warner, Aaron Finch, Steven Smith just to name a few.
The Australians would also depend on these batsmen, primarily Warner and Smith, who have tormented India in the recent past.
The Australian speedster feels that the Australia have a very balanced side.
"With David Warner and Aaron Finch at the top, Steven Smith's slotted in beautifully at number three, Michael Clarke at four, Shane Watson at five, I think that's a really good balance for the side, whichever way they want to go with the quicks."
So the Indian bowlers might well hold the key for the semi-finals clash. The Indian team would look upto Mohammad Shammi and Umesh Yadav to take crucial wickets with the new ball. Shammi has been India's best bowler with 17 wickets.
Brett Lee, who has been impressed with Shammi, feels if the Indian bowlers bowl in the right areas, they have a good chance of taking wickets.
"He's been really impressive. I've played a fair bit of cricket with Shami over the last couple of years, he's a wonderful guy and goes in hard.
"Yadav is the other player that bowls good pace. They've got a three-pronged pace attack who can all bowl quick, who can all bowl up to 145 km/h.
"If they land the ball in the right spot, they've got a really good chance of getting wickets."
