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The SCG. Australia and New Zealand played an ODI here in March, in eerie silence. It was to be the last international action for four months.
Cricket has been back for a while, but the silence hasn’t gone away. On Friday, however, we could see something close to normal – something like the old days – with the SCG filled to 50% capacity as Australia meets India for the first of three ODI.
Fans on the ground and India. You both missed.
The match will open a long and important Australian summer for both teams, who are looking to tackle two major long-term goals: building towards next year’s T20 World Cup and winning the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and consolidating their respective qualifying chances. for the final of the World Test Championship.
There is also a broader context for the ODI series. It’s part of the new ODI Super League and for Indian players who will also be featured in the Test series, it’s also an opportunity to get back to longer innings and longer periods after a long IPL season that followed months of dormancy. For once, however, the larger context will be secondary.
The context, Friday, will be the game itself, and for fans of India in particular, all those familiar pleasures that you may have regretted taking for granted. Two of the best teams in the world have filled in some of the most competitive characters in the sport, clashing in front of a crowd. What more could you ask for?
Shape guide
Australia WLWWL (last five completed games, most recent first)
India LLLWW
In the spotlight
An average of 15.42, a strike rate just above a run-a-ball and no six in 106 balls. Glenn Maxwell had a horror IPL with the bat, but came home. And also in the ODI format, which should give him a little more space and time – just a little, beware, number 7 – to get back in shape. He beat beautifully in his latest ODI series, in England just before the IPL, toning 77 balls with 59 in the first ODI and 108 with 90 in the third, turning two terrible situations into victories for Australia. But can Maxwell get that kind of shape back after a little thinness, and how will he fare against his old nemesis Yuzvendra Chahal?
Hardik Pandya didn’t throw a ball during IPL 2020, and while that didn’t necessarily hurt the Mumbai Indian campaign, it could upset India’s ODI balance as none of their other hitters are a viable sixth bowling option. Pandya was in excellent shape during the IPL, but may need to show a little more versatility as one of the top six hitters in ODI cricket. He has the game for it, but it will be interesting to see how he fits in, especially considering he hasn’t played an ODI since the World Cup semi-final against New Zealand in July 2019.
Team news
Steven Smith, who missed the ODI series in England with a concussion, is ready to re-enter the flank in place of the injured Mitchell Marsh, with Marcus Stoinis likely leaving position no. 3.
Australia: 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Steven Smith, 4 Marnus Labuschagne, 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Alex Carey (Sept.), 7 Glenn Maxwell, 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood.
In the absence of Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal is likely to team up with Shikhar Dhawan at the top of the order with KL Rahul who will continue to keep wickets and bats at number 5. If India chooses both Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah, they will have to choose between the rhythm of Navdeep Saini and the lower-order bar of Shardul Thakur for the role of the third sailor. Additionally, Chahal’s IPL module could help him outrun Kuldeep Yadav for the lone cuff slot.
India: 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Mayank Agarwal, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 KL Rahul (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Shardul Thakur / Navdeep Saini, 9 Yuzvendra Chahal / Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Jasprit Bumrah.
Pitch and conditions
The match should have a high score if the pitch is faithful to recent form. The teams that have batted first have won six of the last seven ODI on this turf, and the average first inning total during that period was 312. The weather should be warm and sunny, with a maximum of around 24 degrees Celsius.
Statistics and curiosities
Quotes
“If you look at his record, he is second to none. He is truly remarkable. So I think what we have to keep in mind is that we have to keep trying to get him out. When you walk away and are looking to contain players, you can lose. a trick there. He’s probably the best player of a day of all time, so it’s about sticking to our plans and being really committed to that. “
Aaron Finch on how he wants Australia to approach his counterpart Virat Kohli this time around
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