FANTASY
Follow UsWe are back to the iconic stadium here in Ahmedabad – the Narendra Modi Stadium – which assures us to provide a cracker of a contest. Australia’s struggle was evident in the first two Tests, in Nagpur and Delhi but even then, they had created enough chances at some point in the encounter.
But everything changed in Indore, where they cracked open the Indian batting. And, they will head into the fourth Test in Ahmedabad with that confidence, with that energy that they could still draw the series 2-2, with everything there to play for both the teams.
Ground Details
Joke not, we are in Ahmedabad, a stadium that is notoriously known for the ball spinning square, and England could attest to that without the blink of an eye. Since 2021, the Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad has been the most assisting of pitches for the spinners, with 48 wickets at the venue across just seven innings.
The average for the spinners at the venue is 14.7. Additionally, for the pacers it has been a difficult ground to bowl, with an average of 30.6. See the stark difference? Australia will have to come prepared for another rank-turner but if Rohit is to be believed, there are chances that this particular Test will bring out a new look of the venue.
Suggested Team
Captaincy Suggestion
For Small leagues: Ravindra Jadeja (captain), Nathan Lyon (vice-captain)
For Grand leagues: Travis Head (captain), Ravichandran Ashwin (vice-captain)
Stats that matter
- India’s top-order has had a little struggle against spin in the series thus far, and numbers vindicate that problem. Across five innings, the Indian top-order (1-3) have averaged 21 against spin, losing a wicket every 44.2th ball. India would want to turn things around, starting with the Ahmedabad Test.
- When India last played England at the venue, 27 of England’s 40 wickets came off that length, where they averaged 7.8. India averaged 17.3. Why is that length necessary to understand? Nathan Lyon has bowled 103.5 of his 125 overs in that length, and has fetched 15 wickets. So, it will be crucial for India to understand their batting on that length.
- Out of all venues in the country since 2021, the Narendra Modi Stadium has been most notorious for the spinners. The average for spinners at the venue is just 14.7, and 48 wickets have been picked by spinners across seven innings. Another rank-turner could await us if history suggests anything.
Grand League punts
- Why on earth did Australia drop Travis Head in Nagpur? That’s the question that was on every Australian fans’ lips after their win in Indore. What has Head done? Amongst all the openers in the series thus far, Head has shown the most aggression, and that’s evident from the 98.3 strike-rate that he possesses. In the two innings that he has played, Head has scored 58 runs in 59 balls, including scoring a crucial 49* in the second innings under pressure. While Australia haven’t had to utilize his bowling thus far, that could too be a big factor.
- Ravindra Jadeja has been on every headline throughout this series but Ravichandran Ashwin has pretty much won several battles, giving India an edge. Ashwin (18 wickets) is just one wicket away from Lyon, and averages just 15.7 with the ball, only behind Jadeja and Mohammed Shami. His batting didn’t quite click in Indore but expect the all-rounder to make a sharp U-turn with the bat.
Here are the top 10 Criclytics projection
Probable XI
India Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, KS Bharat (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Mohammad Shami, Umesh Yadav
Australia Probable XI: Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (c), Alex Carey (wk), Peter Handscomb, Cameron Green, Mitchell Starc, Todd Murphy, Nathan Lyon, Matt Kuhnemann
