Second ODI: India to take on Australia in Indore tomorrow
In Cricket, India will lock horns with Australia in the second ODI of a three-match series in Holker Stadium, Indore tomorrow. The match will begin at 1:30 p.m. Having taken a 1-0 lead, India will look to clinch the series.
In the first ODI, India defeated Australia by five wickets in Mohali yesterday. Chasing the target of 277 runs set by Australia, India made 281 runs losing five wickets with eight balls to spare.
With this win, India elevated to the number one spot in the ODI rankings displacing arch-rivals Pakistan. Already leading the Test and T20 chart, India has now become the top-ranked side in all three formats of the game.
A no. 1 trifecta isn’t the worst way to begin proceedings for a home World Cup. Especially when the metaphorical base is otherwise shaky with injury troubles, selection dilemmas, form trouble, and the problem of plenty. India are now the no. 1 ranked team in all three formats after the win in Mohali – a run-chase where they took it deep and finished the job effectively, with four half-centurions in the batting order.
India couldn’t have timed it better. KL Rahul has a pressure hundred and an unbeaten captain’s half-century under his belt. Suryakumar Yadav not only has a run against his name after four innings against Australia, he also scored a fifty at quicker than a run-a-ball — an innings where he admitted to “playing slower and taking it deep”.
Shreyas Iyer is on the field. Two Indian pacers have taken five-wicket hauls in two consecutive ODIs, both in winning causes. No one is exactly out of form, even though Iyer lacks game time, and India’s first choice XI remains a mystery.
Squads:
India Squad: Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w/c), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Tilak Varma, Washington Sundar
Australia Squad: David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis(w), Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Short, Pat Cummins(c), Sean Abbott, Adam Zampa, Alex Carey, Josh Hazlewood, Glenn Maxwell, Spencer Johnson, Tanveer Sangha, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Ellis
