India played like they should have done from the start of the series against Zimbabwe in the 2nd ODI, and now Ajinkya Rahane's men will be determined to complete a whitewash when the 3rd ODI comes to the fore on Tuesday.
The batting, while not begin a 100% convincing, improved considerably in the second ODI, with the openers – Rahane and Murali Vijay – putting on a solid partnership at the top to setup the rest of the innings.
While the batting was a lot better, it was the bowling that India will take heart from, with Bhuvneshwar Kumar leading from the front, as he should, being one of the more experienced bowlers on this tour.
Bhuvneshwar's lack of swing in recent matches has been a worry, but the new-ball bowler has found his range a lot more in this ODI series, even if it is against the they-leave-a-lot-to-be-desired Zimbabwe batsmen.
The India bowler saved his team in the 1st ODI, bowling a terrific final over to keep Zimbabwe from reaching their target, and then in the second, he put in a man of the match performance, picking up four wickets to snuff out any hopes the home team would have had of chasing down a biggish target.
India's bowling will remain the key in this final ODI match of the three-match series, even if the visitors are expected to make a few changes to their squad.
One forced change will be Ambati Rayudu missing the match after a quadriceps injury ruled the batsman out of the rest of the tour. Rayudu has been India's most potent batsman on this tour, but with Sanju Samson called in as a replacement, and Manish Pandey waiting on the bench for a chance, this will be another opportunity to see how the fringe players perform.
Sandeep Sharma and Mohit Sharma will also hope to be included, but India must ensure they don't take their foot off the pedal in this 3rd ODI, just because they have already won the series.
Zimbabwe, who are expected to be without all-rounder Sean Williams in the third one-dayer, will be ruing that loss in the 1st one-day international, and having failed to make an impression in the last match, they will want to finish off the ODI series in the best possible note.
They certainly have the tools to do that, it is just about finding the batting and bowling rhythm together in the same match.
Where to Watch Live
Get the 3rd ODI Report HERE
India vs Zimbabwe 3rd ODI Match is scheduled for a 12.30 pm IST (9 am local time, 8 am BST, 3 am ET) start. Ten Sports and Ten HD will cover the match live on TV in India, while the free online live streaming option is available on Ten Sports Live.
Viewers in the US can catch all the match action live on Willow TV, while the online live stream option is on Willow TV Online.
