The Test series between India and Australia, earlier in the year, proved to be an entertaining affair, with lots of drama, controversies and not to forget the competitive cricket. A few months later, Australia have arrived in India, once again, and this time for the limited overs series, which is expected to be another humdinger of a contest.
There is something between India and Australia cricket matches these days. Their rivalry seems to have become intense in the last few years. Hence the sledging and odd stares have just increased.
So, it is time to strap your seat belt as the India vs Australia ODI series is scheduled to start on Sunday. Five ODI matches will be played in a span of 14 days, across the length and breadth of the country.
India come into this series with an impeccable performance against Sri Lanka in the island nation, where the Men in Blue won all the matches, across all formats. Australia, on the other hand, had a mixed tour of Bangladesh, with the Test series ending 1-1.
Squads
India (team for the first three ODIs)
Besides giving further rest to key spinners, R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, there are no major surprises in the Indian team. They look a solid team, capable of beating Australia in the five-match series
Virat Kohli (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni (wk), KL Rahul, Ajinkya Rahane, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami.
Australia
They are a dangerous ODI side, especially with players such as Smith, Warner and Maxwell having great IPL experience of playing in India, they can make life tough for the home team. However, they could miss their strike bowler, Mitchell Starc.
Steve Smith, David Warner, Ashton Agar, Hilton Cartwright, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Patrick Cummins, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa
Looking at India and Australia squads, both teams have their bases covered in all departments. It all depends on the execution of their plans with consistency, which will play an important role in determining the champion side for the series.
Can India attain number one ranking?
India, who are the number one ranked Test team in the world, are miles ahead in the longer format of the game. But, this ODI series gives them a wonderful chance to attain the top spot in the ODIs too.
For that to happen, India will need to win all the first three ODIs, which will propel them to number one position. At present, India lie on third place, with South Africa on top with 119 points while Kohli and Smith's team are tied at 117 points
Other important information
Scores can be followed on these Twitter handles
TV and live streaming options
India: TV: Star Sports. Live Streaming: Hotstar.
Australia: TV: Fox Sports. Live Streaming: Foxtel.
UK: TV: Sky Sports Cricket. Live Streaming: Watch Sky Sports.
USA: TV: Willow TV. Live Streaming: Willow TV Online.
Where to book tickets - Bookmyshow.com
