Australia vs India, 3rd T20I: Preview, Dream11 and stats
Australia and India are set to lock horns in the third T20I, which will be the final white-ball fixture of the tour. The upcoming contest will certainly be a dead rubber as India already have the unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series. Meanwhile, the Aussies will aim to gain some momentum before the all-important Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Here is the match preview.
Venue, timing, TV listing, pitch report and conditions
The SCG will host the third T20I on December 8 (1:40 PM IST). While the wicket here has been favorable for the batsmen throughout the tour, bowlers have little to muster. The temperature could hover around 20 degrees Celsius. Besides, one can watch the match live on the Sony Sports Network, while live streaming will be available on the SonyLIV app (paid subscription).
Australia still fretting over Aaron Finch's fitness
Australia are still fretting over captain Aaron Finch's fitness. He missed the second T20I after suffering an injury. In his absence, vice-captain Matthew Wade led the side against India. Meanwhile, it remains to be seen if Josh Hazlewood makes a comeback by proving his fitness. Probable XI: Short, Wade (c/wk), Smith, Maxwell, Henriques, Stoinis, Sams, Abbott, Swepson, Zampa, Tye/Hazlewood.
Team India have the room to experiment
For India, Ravindra Jadeja was ruled out of the series after sustaining concussion in the series opener. While Shreyas Iyer replaced Manish Pandey, Shardul Thakur was drafted in place of Mohammed Shami. As India have already sealed the series, Virat Kohli might be tempted to try out different combinations. Probable XI: Rahul (wk), Dhawan, Kohli (c), Iyer, Samson/Mayank, Pandya, Sundar, Thakur/Saini, Chahar/Bumrah, Natarajan, Chahal.
AUS vs IND: A look at the interesting stats
Kohli could become the second Indian captain after MS Dhoni to register a 3-0 series sweep over Australia in T20Is. The latter did so on the 2015/16 tour, wherein India won all the three T20Is. This will also be India's first (T20I) series victory against the Aussies, since 2016. Meanwhile, Kohli (633) might be the first-ever cricketer with 700 T20I runs against Australia.
Dream11: Pandya, Wade to lead the side
Wicket-keepers: KL Rahul, Matthew Wade (VC). Batsmen: Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Shreyas Iyer, Shikhar Dhawan. All-rounders: Hardik Pandya (C), Henriques. Bowlers: Natarajan, Yuzvendra Chahal, Adam Zampa.
