India and Australia will lock horns in the first match of their five-match T20I series, commencing on November 23rd. The opening T20I will be played in Visakhapatnam. Suryakumar Yadav will lead India’s T20I charge, while Matthew Wade will captain the Australian contingent.
Steven Smith, Travis Head, and Glenn Maxwell are key players for Australia, while Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel, and Yashasvi Jaiswal are crucial figures for India. In their 26 T20I encounters, India has emerged victorious on 15 occasions, with Australia winning 10 matches. Both teams have assembled a balanced blend of experienced and young players, setting the stage for an enthralling series.
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The pitch, ahead of the match, displayed the characteristic straw color associated with favorable batting conditions at the venue. The last T20I held here, in June 2022, saw India post 179/5, followed by Yuzvendra Chahal and Harshal Patel’s combined seven-wicket haul, dismissing the opposition for 131. However, this being a different time of year, better batting conditions are anticipated. Nevertheless, recent rainfall suggests an overcast sky on matchday.
India
India’s T20 World Cup preparations continue with a five-match T20I series against Australia. India’s squad is missing a lot of their first-choice players, including Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj. The team management is still deciding on the roles that the players in the squad will play. Jitesh Sharma is the only designated keeper in the squad, but stand-in skipper Suryakumar Yadav said that both Ishan and Jitesh Sharma are in line to take the gloves.
However, if Ishan plays as a pure batter, there will be room for only one of Rinku Singh and Tilak Varma in the middle-order. As far as the opening combination is concerned, vice-captain Ruturaj Gaikwad is likely to slot at the top, but who out of Ishan and Yashasvi Jaiswal will partner with him is anybody’s guess. Axar Patel, the all-rounder, is likely to be picked ahead of Washington Sundar.
Probable XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav (C), Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan
Australia
With Matthew Wade an option to take the gloves, Josh Inglis can get some much-needed rest, but questions remain over the availability of Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Adam Zampa, and Marcus Stoinis, all of whom were a crucial part of the World Cup-winning squad. Sean Abbott, who only played one World Cup game, should ideally be fresh enough to take the field.
Probable XI: Matthew Short, Travis Head, Steve Smith, Matthew Wade (c, wk), Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, Glenn Maxwell/Aaron Hardie, Sean Abbott, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa/Tanveer Sangha, Jason Behrendorff
Fantasy XI Suggestion 1:
Ishan Kishan, Travis Head (c), Suryakumar Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal (vc), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Axar Patel, Marcus Stoinis, Arshdeep Singh, Adam Zampa, Ravi Bishnoi, Prasidh Krishna
Fantasy XI Suggestion 2:
Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Travis Head, Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Glenn Maxwell (vc), Axar Patel, Mathew Short, Adam Zampa, Arshdeep Singh, Sean Abbott
