Big picture
The home team wins the first ODI of a three-game series, in Sydney. Both India and Australia have been here before, in fact the last time they played a bilateral series in Australia. On that occasion, India came from behind to win 2-1, but that was in January 2019. When Covid had only five letters that would not have been very useful in Scrabble.
In November 2020, Australia not only got stronger with the returns of Steven Smith and David Warner, but all three first-choice pace picks played as well. None of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood or Mitchell Starc played in the 2019 matches. Also, India had Rohit Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in shape and in XI. India now has a lopsided look where players with great individual skills make up the XI, but batters can’t pitch and players can’t hit. That means there is no scope for ‘relief’ overs if you need them, and the hitting force drops off a cliff after the number 7. It’s not like they have off-road players on their team that they can turn to, so At least for this series, India will have to find a way with the resources it has, especially with Hardik Pandya not ready to go bowling yet.
The second game of a three-game series is, by default, a must for one team and an opportunity to stitch the series together for the other. However, rather than losing or winning the series, this will be an opportunity for several of the players to continue the adjustment phase to a format of more than 20 overs. Players will tell you it’s more of a mind shift than anything else, and playing more games helps transition at that pace faster. There are three T20Is after the ODIs, yes, but they clash with the three-day tour games scheduled before Trials, so it’s a good bet that most multi-format players on the ODI side will pass from cricket of 50 overs after three days. cricket to test cricket.
Not relevant to the series’ result, but not insignificant either, the first ODI was also the first international cricket match after the Covid-19 pandemic to have spectators in the stands. This game will have fans too, and every cricket match that is held safely with an audience these days is a step forward.
Forms guide
Australia WWLWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
India LLLLW
In the spotlight
Mitchell starc he has the best archery rate in ODI history, given a minimum of 500 overs thrown, and is one of the best bowlers in the format. However, strangely, it has been quite normal against India. In 12 parties, their average, economy rate, and strike rate are 34.70, 5.80, and 35.8, each significantly worse than their overall numbers. He started the first ODI by taking the new ball and sending a first over 20 runs that lasted 11 balls. Starc was one of the few men on both sides not to be a part of IPL 2020, so the game’s first effort could be down to rust. And while 12 games is not a large enough sample size, the last three times Starc has pitched against India, he has managed more than seven runs per game and has gained solitary terrain. That’s something to rectify soon, rust or not.
Shreyas IyerODI’s career has only 19 games and his stats in the format so far are formidable enough, averaging 46.87 faster than a run per ball. But Iyer will have his eyes focused on him with more concentration than usual, particularly for how he came out in the first ODI: too late to get out of the way of a Hazlewood short ball, and too awkward when he did so with the bat sticking out of his head. . That firing mode ensures that Iyer can expect few deliveries thrown in his middle. How you will deal with the expected barrage of short balls could determine your near-term prospects.
Team news
Marcus Stoinis left the field in the first ODI after just 6.2 overs, after sustaining an injury. Cricket Australia later said that Stoinis had “low-grade lateral tension”, making it unlikely that he will be available for this game, or even the next. His unavailability is a hit, as Stoinis has started to become a powerful presence in the higher order and a more than useful option on the ball.
Australia has options to replace Stoinis. Cameron Green and Moises Henriques are both versatile, with Green in particular highly rated. However, neither of them have played too much of late. Aside from them is Sean Abbott, more of a bowling all-rounder, but who has made noise with 271 runs in five innings at the Sheffield Shield while out only twice, and with a bag full of terrain as well. Ashton Agar is also an off-road bowling alley, if Australia wants to add more spin.
Australia {possible): 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (captain), 3 Steven Smith, 4 Marnus Labuschagne, 5 Alex Carey (week), 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Cameron Green / Sean Abbott, 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood.
India might be keeping a close eye on Yuzvendra Chahal, who also went off the field during the first ODI, but after bowling her full quota. However, Chahal’s problem did not look worse than a cramp, but if he has a problem, it could lead to a change in the XI. India might want to consider bringing someone like T Natarajan for Navdeep Saini as well.
India (possible): 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Mayank Agarwal, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 KL Rahul (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 T Natarajan / Navdeep Saini, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal / Kuldeep Yadav, 11 Jasprit Bumrah.
Plot and conditions
It is forecast to be a hot day in Sydney, with temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius in the afternoon. The first game was a high-scoring one, true to SCG’s recent form, but it remains to be seen what effect the scorching sun has on the surface and playing one match so soon on the heels of another. The spinners found some twist in the first ODI, but other than that, there wasn’t much for the bowlers.
Statistics and trivia
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11.40 – that’s Virat Kohli’s ODI average in the SCG, the third lowest average in which any ground, and the lowest on ground where he has hit at least five times. When you consider that the 21 he made in the first ODI equaled his highest score at the venue, thus raising his average, the curious anomaly that Kohli did not score runs at SCG is amplified, especially since Kohli has scored tons. racing in Australia otherwise.
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1 – Hardik Pandya’s rank among Indian hitters, when sorted by strike index in ODIs, given at least 1000 runs scored. Pandya surpassed 1000 runs in the first ODI during the top 90 of his career, and his ODI hit rate is now 115.81. This is one of the reasons why even if you are not bowling, your batting is enough to get you ranked No. 6.
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Cameron Green’s top-class batting average is hitting 50, while his bowling average is 22.5, which is still higher than his age at 21. You can see why you have everyone excited about your potential. However, Green has played just nine A-List games, and his numbers in those (27.8 and 34.4) aren’t all that striking. However, there is no question of its potential.
Quotes
“It was just a rocker ball, a batting ball and obviously the base had been laid out so that it could be quite aggressive. I chose my bowls and where I wanted to hit them, and I just made some good shots in my strengths areas. It was nice to hit. some in the middle, and spending a little time out there and hopefully it will keep me in good stead for the rest of the summer. “
Steven Smith on his 105 of 66 balls in the first ODI.
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