4 Fantastico Battles that could impact the 3rd T20I between India and Australia at SCG

India are 2-0 up against the Australians after winning the first T20I at Adelaide by 37 runs and then handing out a 23 run trashing to them at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the second T20I. We have seen some Fantastico battles in both these games and we will certainly see some more fascinating clashes in the last game in the third and final T20I to be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Let us have a look at 4 Fantastico Battles that might have an impact on the overall game.

Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan Vs Shaun Tait

Shaun Tait was recalled for this T20I series after a few good performances in the BBL05 but after getting smacked for 45 runs in the first match, he was dropped. He still retained his pace and was getting some nice away shape on the ball in that match. With Kane Richardson not available for this match Tait might get another chance and how he goes against the in-form Rohit and Dhawan might seal the fate of the match as well as the future of Tait in international cricket.

Virat Kohli Vs James Faulkner and Shane Watson

None of the Aussie bowlers have had any kind of impact on Kohli and the form that he is in at the moment indicates that the trend is set to continue. Australia will look to Faulkner and Watson, perhaps their best bowlers in the absence of several leading players, to provide them with some control in the middle of the innings and take Kohli out of the equation early for Australia to have any chance of winning the dead rubber.

Shaun Marsh Vs Ashish Nehra

In the absence of Warner and Finch, Shaun Marsh will have the added responsibility of being a mentor to other players in addition to providing a quick start. He is well acquainted to the Indian bowlers having been a regular in the IPL and he need to step up against the wily old customer in Ashish Nehra to provide Australia a sound beginning.

Glenn Maxwell and Usman Khawaja Vs Indian Spinners

The Indian spinners have dominated the Australian middle order and their stranglehold in the central part of the innings has meant that the Australians have never flourished. Glenn Maxwell returned in the 2nd T20I after an injury but he fell to the spin of Yuvraj Singh. He is a very good player of spin and his highly unorthodox stroke play has the potential to disrupt the line and length of any spinner in the world. Usman Khawaja, on the other hand, has been banging on the doors of the Australian selectors in the recent past. He has bulldozed his way in to this Aussie team with a weight of runs behind him, his last 8 visits to the batting crease have seen scores of 70, 104*, 62, 144, 56, 109*, 121, 174. He is a very efficient player of spin and he and Maxwell must counter the spin of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja for Australia to have any chance of avoiding a white-wash.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.