Saturday, October 7, 2023

Gill in Doubt as India prepares for Stern Australia Test in CWC 2023 Opening Match

India vs Australia at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai: Nov 08, 2023 - Match Preview

India will face a strong Aussie side as both teams begin their ICC Men's CWC 2023 campaign. India is sweating over the availability of Shubhman Gill who is down with dengue. India defeated Australia 2-1 just before the World Cup warm up matches began in a series played in India although both teams rested and tested new combinations as part of their preparations for the big event.

India v Australia ICC Men's CWC 2023 Match Chennai

Indian batting has been in cracking form and they are a force to reckon with especially in home conditions. If Gill is unavailable, India might open the innings with Ishan Kishan. Rohit Sharma will accompany him. Virat Kohli at 3 and Shreyas Iyer at 4 provide plenty of firepower in the middle overs. KL Rahul should slot in at number 5. SKY might keep his place after a stellar showing in the Australia series. Pandya and Jadeja complete the lower order although they've both been very cold with the bat and a major worry for India.

Indian bowling has been looking sharp with Bumrah back and Siraj hitting the straps with the new ball. Kuldeep is a master of variations and won't be easy to handle in the middle overs. Hardik Pandya provides reasonable option as the third seamer. Jadeja provides the left arm option. India might look to include veteran R Ashwin in the line up too.

David Warner has found form which would delight the Australian management and he will remain a key force in this Aussie batting line-up. Travis Head opened in the South Africa series but was then out with injury and Mitchell Marsh was slotted in to open the innings. It remains to be seen who Australia will go in with, in their opening match. Smith and Labuschagne should come in at 3 and 4 respectively. Australia have lots of options that can float around 5-6-7 with Green, Carey, Inglis, Maxwell all in the squad.

Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins form a formidable pace attack for the 5 time champions. Zampa is their main spin option with Maxwell providing ample backup. Green, Marsh, Labuschagne can all roll their arm over as well. It's a very well rounded attack all in all.

Key Battles: India vs Australia

Mitchell Starc vs Rohit Sharma and Shubhman Gill

Adam Zampa vs Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer

R Ashwin vs David Warner

Kuldeep Yadav vs Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne 

This promises to be a mouth watering clash between the two heavyweights in this format. The pitch in Chennai should be full of runs if IPL is anything to go by but it should help pace and spin too. The weather looks clear too so we are all set for the Men in Blue to take on the Kangaroos!!

Probable India XI

Rohit Sharma, Shubhman Gill/ Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jaspreet Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj

Probable Australia XI

David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Alex Carey, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood

Top 5 Fantasy Picks for India v Australia at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai

David Warner

Shreyas Iyer

Adam Zampa

Kuldeep Yadav

Mitchell Marsh

The match will start at 02.00 PM IST (streamed live on Disney Hotstar app & on TV on Star Sports 1)

Who will come out on top in this clash? Will India get off to a winning start or will Australia dampen the mood of the host nation?

2 comments:

Pradeep Tiwari said...

Where is Kl Rahul?

DS said...

Missed Him! He should start over SKY maybe!