Just one win at Sydney and India will seal the T20I series on Sunday. Having won their last eight T20I matches, India looks to be on a roll. However, Sunday’s game will be interesting for a variety of reasons.
After the last encounter between the two teams, Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was ruled out of the T20I series and Shardul Thakur was brought into the side. India is also playing the first of the two three-day practice game on Sunday to prepare for the upcoming Tests. Jasprit Bumrah is likely to be a playing the practice game, however, with Mohammed Shami being expensive in the last match, Kohli may be forced to bring Bumrah into the T20I playing XI. Yuzavendra Chahal is likely to start after having come in as India’s first concussion substitute player for Jadeja in the first T20I. His contribution helped India win the game and was awarded the Man of the Match. India may also bring in Shreyas Iyer in place of Manish Pandey or Sanju Samson to bolster the middle order with the absence of Jadeja.
On the other hand, Australia is sweating over captain Aaron Finch’s fitness. Finch was slightly in discomfort with his hip during the last game. Finch has been on song throughout the ODI and T20I series. If Finch is out, Marnus Labuschagne may get to open the innings and but it is unclear as to who will lead the side. In a surprising move, Australia released youngster Chris Green to play for Australia A against India A in the practice game and veteran Nathan Lyon has been added to the side.
The last two T20I will be played in Sydney. Interestingly, the last time India played a T20 match here was in 2018 and they won it by six wickets. It is most likely to be a high-scoring game.
