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Australia struggling with bowlers 4 and 5
The three pacers are doing a good job but Aaron Finch is under pressure trying to extract overs from his fourth and fifth bowlers. Dhawan has attacked Zampa which has forced Finch to give Pat Cummins an extended spell at this juncture
Dhawan clobbering Zampa
Full ball on off, Dhawan stretches forward and smacks the ball through covers. He then rushes forward and lifts the ball over mid on to find another boundary. The left-hander has put Adam Zampa under extreme pressure here and Finch is a man under pressure.
Rohit departs
That ball was short of a good length from Nathan Coulter-Nile and it had extra lift as Rohit tried to fend it away, gets the top edge and is caught by Alex Carey. Australia break through finally, but the opener has done his job.
The form continues, thrashes a ball through covers, gets a boundary as the opener sprints to his own half-century. India have found the perfect platform here. Where is Australia getting their first wicket from?
100 partnership is raised
The Indian openers are at it again, both are looking extremely confident now. They have raised their 100-run partnership and now the loose balls are being dished up. Dhawan is putting them away with aplomb. Australia will be under pressure, extreme pressure!
50 for Dhawan
It has been a great start by the left-hander, he was watchful at the start and then slowly picked up his pace as the innings progressed. A 50 for him as India have found the perfect platform here. Australia need to find their first wicket
Dhawan is looking good
India will be thrilled with this start, they have withstood the early storm and are now commanding proceedings at the Oval. Aaron Finch will need to find a wicket here, or this could get out of hand very quickly for him
Good Partnership
This is now a good partnership between these two. 75 runs added in 15 overs and India have the perfect start on this pitch.
50 raised
Now this is a good start by the Indian openers. After a watchful start, they are slowly finding momentum. 50 has been raised and Australia will be worried now. They need a wicket to crack things up and this pitch is also showing signs of spinning. It is set up nicely for India right now.
Spin introduced
Glenn Maxwell has the ball in hand, Finch wants to get through few overs of spin. This could be the chance for Rohit and Dhawan to break free. Wow, and there is turn on this surface, Maxwell is getting it to turn. Now then, this is what might get the Indian spinners salivating!
Good comeback by Coulter-Nile
Shikhar Dhawan was hit on the left thumb and this could impede his stroke-making. Coulter-Nile has made a good comeback after being taken for three boundaries in his first over.
Dhawan gets going
He was patient against Cummins and Starc and now Dhawan has stamped his authority over Nathan Coulter-Nile. A straight biff down the ground and then standing tall to cut one away through covers. And then shuffling across to snap his wrists to get the ball racing across point
No wickets, not a rapid start
It been a good start by Cummins and Starc. Keeping it tight and not allowing the Indian openers to get cracking. Well, Rohit and Dhawan are looking to rotate the strike, the boundary balls are not coming as of now, but they are willing to bide their time
Dhawan with a drive
Fullish ball angled across by Pat Cummins, Dhawan leans into a drive and caresses it through covers for the first four of the match. The massive Indian contingent lets out a huge roar, India finally get some momentum
Dhawan being targetted with the short-pitched stuff
First Cummins and now Starc, they are banging the ball in to Shikhar Dhawan, testing him out with the short stuff. Dhawan is letting it go and then Starc follows it up with a pacy full ball aimed at the stumps. Good bowling, watchful and patient from Dhawan so far
Rohit survives a tough chance
Starc bowls one on the pads and Rohit flicks it uppishly towards square leg where Nathan Coulter-Nile dives full stretch but puts down a tough chance. Early reprieve for Rohit, top effort by the big quick there.
India off the mark
Rohit takes a short stride forward and then opens the face of the bat to drive a ball through covers, he takes a brace and India get going. A stroke of a man in form. Solid first over for both the sides
Rohit, Shikhar walk out
The centurion Rohit Sharma marks his guard. He will be watchful against this Australian attack. Shikhar Dhawan needs runs. Pat Cummins will run in with the new ball.
It’s building up
The teams have yelled out their respective national anthems, the crowd is making their presence felt, the Oval is bathed in sunshine, clouds are scattered all over, but those are fluffy ones, adding to the theatre. And here we go!
Australia playing XI
David Warner, Aaron Finch(c), Usman Khawaja, Steven Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey(w), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa
Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli(c), Lokesh Rahul, MS Dhoni(w), Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah
Finch speaks
I would have batted first. It’s a dry surface, might get slower later. I think in the World Cup you are playing against different oppositions, good chance for the players to get out there and express themselves.
Kohli speaks
We are gonna bat first, looks a nice wicket. It’s been used before and it’ll get slower. Best conditions to bat first and put some runs on the board. The bowling attack can put pressure on the opposition. The batsmen would be wary about the situation. With the sun out, it’s a no brainer to bat first. It’s been used before so there is not much moisture in the pitch. We think it’s gonna play nicely and the bat will come on to the bat. We are playing with the same line-up because we have a nice balance.
Pitch report
It’s a typical Oval wicket with a covering of thick grass and it will do a bit later in the day. Kohli or Finch might select to bat first as it looks a good pitch to bat on. 280+ score on the cards, reckons Michael Slater.
Since the last World Cup Australia & India have played 18 ODIs against one another & are locked at nine wins each. The most reccent series was won 3-2 by Australia after going 2-0 down. Overall they have played 11 times in World Cups & Australia lead the head-to-head 8-3.
However, when it comes to Australia, Kohli & Co cannot rest on past laurels and it will be a tough fight against a team rejuvenated by the return of Steve Smith and David Warner. While convention dictates that teams generally stick to their winning combination, the conditions at the Oval may force India to make a change to their side.
The playing surface
How does this pitch look like?
Australia predicted XI against India
The bowling unit, led by seamers Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins has looked good and Australia would not want to make any changes in that department, considering India’s weakness against fast bowling on overseas surface. Adam Zampa has been a good spin bowling option, and it is highly unlikely, the Aussies would replace him with Nathan Lyon, who does not enjoy a good record in the limited-overs format.
The prospect of seeing Mitchell Starc running in to Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli fighting it out against the pace and bounce of Pat Cummins might be luring during the India vs Australia ICC World Cup 2019 match at The Oval on Sunday. But it is actually Australia’s ‘third seamer’ Nathan Coulter-Nile that India should be most concerned about.
Australian opener David Warner is meticulously preparing for the tougher battles ahead in the World Cup by using a new device on his bat – a sensor that stores important data like back lift angle and maximum bat speed.
The International Cricket Council had approved the usage of bat sensor back in 2017 but save the Australian batsmen, not many have used it over the past two years.
A Bengaluru based company named ‘Smart Cricket’ has introduced its version of sensor chip device ‘Bat Sense’ which Warner has been using to collate data to counter the likes of Jasprit Bumrah.
Defending champions Australia too will come into this clash high on confidence, following their victories in first two matches against Afghanistan and Windies respectively.
If there is one thing the Australian cricket team knows how to do at 50-over World Cups, it is to win. All the talk coming into the 2019 edition was that Australia, five-time champions and the current holders of the trophy, weren’t the dominant team they once used to be
At the Oval on Sunday, all eyes will be on MS Dhoni when India meet Australia. The cameras will be zooming in on his gloves to look for the ‘badge’; his body language will be studied for clues—has the controversy with the insignia lifted him or subdued him? Then finally, the performance. Because a transformed Dhoni has been sensational against Australia in the recent past. With the bat, his average against Australia since 2018 is a towering 92, partly because the Aussies managed to get him out in only 3 of the six innings he has played in that period.
See, short ball for any batsman is not easy. Even the best guy who can pull the ball, who can hook the ball, will find it difficult. We understand that. And probably we have the bowling attack to do that. Having said that, you don’t want to be carried away with that.
The World Cup is warming up nicely
This World Cup has already seen some fine contests. Pakistan humbled England, Bangladesh took down South Africa, West Indies almost took care of Australia, and New Zealand stumbled, stuttered, but managed to get home against Bangladesh. And now, we have to heavyweights, just what this World Cup wanted.
World Cup is a great endorsement for 50-over cricket
The 2019 World Cup has lived up to the expectations of an elite tournament, what with some tight finishes, a couple of upsets and individual batting and bowling highlights.
Just like any other place in England, London’s weather too has been all but ideal. Team India’s practice session on Friday was washed out due to rain. The North, West and Southern parts of London received thunderstorms on the eve of the India-Australia World Cup game.
Australia have won 10 matches on the bounce, India are one of the favourites, they beat Australia in their own backyard and then were humbled by Aaron Finch’s side in India. There is rivalry, there is past history, there are match-winners and there is a trophy. All this make this clash between India and Australia a mouth-watering prospect, two contenders for the crown will battle it out at the Oval and it will all boil down to the nerves.
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