India took a walloping in the first ODI after setting Australia a gettable target which David Warner and Aaron Finch ate up in a hurry.
Image Copyright – Steve Haag Sports
The Aussie openers shattered records, but the wheel can turn very quickly in international cricket.
India vs Australia | Friday 17 January | Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium | 10:00
India
India have shown the ability to bounce back very quickly in past series, but against an outfit like the Australians, it will be easier said than done.
Positions 5-7 in the batting order couldn’t produce the goods in the opening ODI, which is an area of concern for India who rely heavily on their top four.
That top four is a phenomenal combination of batsmen, but if they fail India’s lower order often cannot right the ship despite sporting talented and aggressive batsmen.
India’s bowlers all took some punishment from two men with significant experience in white-ball cricket in the country thanks to the IPL. The spinners pulled things back well but without any scoreboard pressure weren’t able to force a breakthrough.
The batsmen need to do a better job for the likes of Kuldeep Yadav to expose the visitors middle order.
India might be tempted to throw the new ball to one of their tweakers to prevent another runaway start.
Australia
An emphatic victory to open the series might thrill fans of Australian cricket. Still, the team weren’t under any pressure, and the record-breaking opening stand means that the entire middle order went unused.
With Alex Carey batting as high as six, Australia have a fairly long, albeit obstinate tail.
The opening match let us know that Australia can function with two frontline spinners. It helps that they came on after some brilliant pace bowling from Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Kane Richardson.
Cummins and Richardson were the difference between the attacks with India’s seamers failing to make use of the new ball adequately.
Verdict: Australia
India usually bounce back well, but Australia are challenging to halt when they are confident.
Written by James Richardson for Hollywoodbets.
