NEWS
Follow UsAfter two well-contested matches, India and Australia battle it out in the third T20 International (T20I) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad on Sunday (September 25). A win in this game will give Australia back-to-back T20I series wins in India.
India and Australia have played each other on 25 occasions in T20Is with India winning 14 of them while Australia have won 10.
Ground details
The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium has not seen any T20 action since 2019. The last match in the format was a T20I between India and West Indies, which saw the hosts chase 208 quite easily.
Based on the nine T20s played in 2019, the pacers are sure to have a field day as they have picked up 61% of the wickets. They have done so at an economy rate of 8.5, striking once every 19.8 deliveries, 28.1 runs apart.
The spinners, on the other hand, have been a tad economical, conceding at 8.1 runs per over, but lag behind in the runs (30.1) balls (22.3) per wicket ratio.
Since it is not clear how the pitch will behave three years on, ensure you maintain balance between pacers and spinners. Focussing on all-rounders could prove to be fruitful.
Suggested team
While you could go for the above team, you also have the option of choosing your team from Cricket.com’s Fantasy Research Centre. You can use this tool to build your team with the help of algorithms. Then, based on your preferences, the platform will guide you through creating the ideal fantasy XI.
Captaincy suggestions
For small leagues: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Axar Patel (vc)
For grand leagues: Rohit Sharma (c), Matthew Wade (vc)
Stats that matter
India have scored at a run-rate of 9.3, which is the best among all teams after New Zealand who have scored at 9.6 this year. Among Test playing nations, they have the best
Suryakumar Yadav may have been dismissed for a duck in the second T20O at Nagpur, but there’s little doubt that he is the most in-form Indian batter at the moment. He has scored 613 runs at a strike-rate of 182 in 19 innings. In fact, only Nepal’s Dipendra Singh Airee (626) has scored more runs than Surya this year. He occupies the crucial No. 4 spot, which he has become accustomed to since he made his debut last year.
With five wickets in two matches, Axar Patel has been Rohit Sharma’s go-to bowler in the series and could once again be a pivotal figure for India in this match. His wickets this series have come at an average of six, strike-rate of 7.2 and has conceded at just five an over, which is incredible given that both games have been high-scoring affairs.
Grand League Punts
With Rohit Sharma, you often do not know what you’re going to get. He tends to go after the bowling right from the beginning, which could be risky, but then if it pays off, you are in for a treat – not just from the match point of view, but also from a fantasy point of view. With 480 runs at a strike-rate of 148.2, he is India’s second highest run-getter in T20Is this year.
Matthew Wade has scored 358 runs at 59.66 to go with a strike-rate of 165.33 against India. All his three T20I fifties have come against them. He has been unbeaten in both the matches so far and has scored 88 runs at a strike-rate of close215 in the process. Australia will back him to fire once again.
Here are the Top 10 Criclytics Projections:
India probable XI: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant/Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal
Australia probable XI: Aaron Finch (c), Cameron Green, Steven Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Tim David, Matthew Wade (wk), Daniel Sams/Josh Inglis, Sean Abbott/Nathan Ellis, Pat Cummins, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
