Get ready for an epic showdown! Check out our Cricket Match Preview of India vs Australia, featuring key players and predictions.
India vs Australia Preview
India will come up against Australia in the Final of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in Ahmedabad on the 19th of November.
India played New Zealand in their Semi-Final of the CWC, and India won by 70 runs. India won the toss and elected to bat first. India was off to a great start with the bat and quickly made their way through to 71 before Sharma was dismissed in the 9th over. Gill and Kohli kept the pressure on the Kiwis as they were able to find the boundary often and keep up the good run rate. Gill retired hurt in the 23rd over with the score at 164. This brought the inform Iyer to the crease to join Kohli and both batsmen continued the onslaught on the Kiwi bowlers. Kohli made his way through to his 50th ODI century and became the first ever batsmen to do so. Kohli was finally dismissed for 117 in the 44th over with the score at 327. Iyer scored his second century in as many games as he and Rahul put on a late flourish and helped India to a total of 397 off their 50 overs. India had New Zealand under pressure early and dismissed Conway in the 6th over. Ravindra followed shortly after and New Zealand were in a spot of bother at 39/2 in the 8th over. The Kiwis fought back through Williamson and Mitchell and the game was in the balance with 20 overs to go. Shami was able to produce the much-needed breakthrough that India needed and dismissed Williamson for 69 with the score at 220 in the 33rd over. Latham found himself joining Williamson back in the pavilion the very same over without troubling the scorers. Mitchell and Phillips put on a decent partnership of 75 runs before Phillips was dismissed with the score at 295 in the 43rd over. The Indian bowlers then made short work of the New Zealand lower middle order and tail. India ended up bowling New Zealand out for 327 in the 49th over to book their place in the Final.
The top performers in GDS for India were:
Mohammed Shami – 191 points
Virat Kohli – 146 points
Shreyas Iyer – 141 points
Shubman Gill – 102 points
KL Rahul – 90 points
Australia played South Africa in their Semi-Final of the CWC, and Australia won by 3 wickets. South Africa won the toss and elected to bat first. Australia were off to a great start with the ball and had South Africa in all sorts of trouble in the 12th over with the score at 24/4. There was then a slight delay due to rain before Klaasen and Miller put on 95 runs for the fifth wicket. With the score at 119, Head made a double break through dismissing Klaasen and Jansen in consecutive deliveries. Miller was the backbone of the South African innings and was eventually dismissed for 101. Most of the Australian bowlers were very good throughout the innings and they were able to bowl South Africa all out for 212 in the 50th over. Australia was off to a cracking start with the bat and made it through to 60 before Warner was bowled by Markram for 29 off 18 deliveries. Marsh was unable to trouble the scorers and was dismissed for a duck in the 8th over with the score at 61. This gave South Africa a glimmer of hope, but Head and Smith kept up the good run rate as they took the score through to 106 before Head was bowled by Maharaj. At this point, Australia had already scored half the required runs and still had 35 overs to chase down the target. South Africa were able to slow down the Australian batsmen but the target of 213 just wasn’t enough and Australia chased it down with 16 balls to spare.
The top performers in GDS for Australia were:
Travis Head – 149 points
Mitchell Starc – 139 points
Josh Hazlewood – 124 points
Pat Cummins – 118 points
Steven Smith – 52 points
Narendra Modi Stadium Pitch Information
Pace bowlers may see some seam and swing early on, and it may be difficult for the batters to get set. There have been 30 games played at this venue with pace bowlers picking up 245 wickets and spin bowlers 136 wickets. There have been four matches at this venue so far in the CWC. Three have been won by the chasing team and the highest first innings score was 286 by Australia against England.
India vs Australia predicted XIs
India: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj
Australia: David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
Who to play in your GDS starting XI
Batters
The three batters that I am likely going to start will be Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli and Travis Head. Over the CWC these batters average the following points in GDS.
Shubman Gill – 61 points
Virat Kohli – 95 points
Travis Head – 72 points
In GDS there are eight players combined from India and Australia that have the batter position designation. All eight of these players are predicted to play, five from India and three from Australia. Gill was all class in his innings against New Zealand and if he hadn’t retired hurt, he looked set for a big century. I have him ranked just ahead of Sharma as I believe Sharma will continue to be the aggressor at the top of the Indian batting order and has more chance of being dismissed early. After Kohli’s record breaking 50th ODI century, he is an auto pick for me. He averages 71 runs over the CWC, and he has scored three centuries and five fifties. Head rounds out my starting batters due to his bowling upside. In his five innings this CWC he has scored one century, one fifty and has three scores of less than 11 runs. The three miss fires are a concern, but I believe he has the sort of game in fantasy that can produce a higher ceiling compared to the other predicted to play batsmen. He has had a bowl in the last four Australian matches and averages 22 points in GDS with the ball. This provides a higher floor than all the other batsmen in this match.
If you don’t have the suggested players in your squad, I have ranked the remaining batters for India and Australia in the following order. Rohit Sharma, Steven Smith, Shreyas Iyer, David Warner and Suryakumar Yadav.
All-Rounders
The all-rounders that I am likely going to start will be Ravindra Jadeja, Mitchell Marsh and Glenn Maxwell. Over the CWC these all-rounders average the following points in GDS.
Ravindra Jadeja – 88 points
Mitchell Marsh – 68 points
Glenn Maxwell – 107 points
In GDS there are eight players combined from India and Australia that have the all-rounder position designation. Three of these eight players are predicted to play, one from India and two from Australia. Selecting the all-rounders for this match has been the easiest decision to make compared to the other positions. This is due to only three all-rounders predicted to play and there are four all-rounder positions to fill in the starting XI. This means all three will have to play. It’s been suggested that Stoinis may replace Labuschagne in Australia’s starting XI. If he does start, he is an auto pick as you will be receiving zero points for the fourth all-rounder position if you don’t start him.
Bowlers
The three bowlers that I am likely going to start will be Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah and Mitchell Starc. Over the CWC these bowlers average the following points in GDS.
Mohammed Shami – 122 points
Jasprit Bumrah – 82 points
Mitchell Starc – 73 points
In GDS there are nine players combined from India and Australia that have the bowler position designation. Eight of these nine players are predicted to play, four from both India and Australia. Shami is the first picked after he took seven wickets against New Zealand. He is also the leading wicket taker of the CWC and has taken 23 wickets. Bumrah is the next picked as he has been one of the hardest bowlers to face this CWC. He averages 4 dot balls an over and has taken 18 wickets. Now picking the third bowler might just be the hardest selection to make for this match. I’m fading Zampa as spin bowlers have struggled against the Indian batting line up. Spin bowlers have only averaged 45 points in GDS against India. When Zampa bowled against India earlier in the tournament, he only bowled eight overs and scored 19 points in GDS. The Australian quicks of Starc, Cummins and Hazlewood all average between 71 and 74 points in GDS and there is nothing really separating them. I’m leaning towards Starc as my third bowler, only because I believe he has looked the most threatening of the Australian pace men.
If you don’t have the suggested players in your squad, I have ranked the remaining bowlers for India and Australia in the following order. Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj and Adam Zampa.
Wicket Keeper
The wicket keeper that I am likely going to start will be KL Rahul. Over the CWC these wicket keepers average the following points in GDS.
KL Rahul – 62 points