Former Australian captain, Ian Chappell felt that India will not be able to beat Australia in the upcoming ODI series, although he did concede that India would pose a serious challenge to the hosts. Chappell believed that India missing one specialist batsman would cause them to struggle against the World Champions.
In his column for The Daily Telegraph, Chappell felt that the absence of a batsman for India will be a matter of concern for the visitors. He also stated that the Indian fast bowlers would have their task cut out against a formidable Australian batting lineup.
Australia's recently concluded series was a 2-0 win in the three-match Test series against a poor West Indies squad. The Australian cricket fans will be hoping for a more entertaining contest in the limited-overs series against India.
“Following a lacklustre Test season, the public is thirsty for some meaningful contests. What looms is a battle between the current (Australia) and previous (India) ODI World Cup holders. M.S. Dhoni will provide a true test for Australia and Steve Smith,” Chappell wrote in his column.
“India has the big names and the talent to push Australia but I don’t see them beating the home side, as both teams ramp up their quest for another world title (World T20 in March-April in India).
“Australia will have a psychological advantage in the first two contests,” Chappell added.
Australia included two uncapped bowlers in Scott Boland and Joel Paris in the squad for the first two ODIs. Chappell, however, believed missing out on naming fast bowler James Pattinson for the first two matches in Perth and Brisbane was questionable as Pattinson's aggression could unnerve a ‘weak’ Indian batting lineup.
“If Australia is looking to inflict serious psychological damage on India prior to World T20, then why not unleash aggressive Pattinson on the bouncy WACA and Gabba? Especially as India’s batting line-up, while talented, is one specialist short,” Chappell wrote.
Chappell, on the other hand, was delighted with the Australian batting lineup and felt that the hosts had depth in batting.
“Australia, on the other hand, has a deep line-up. Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Wade and James Faulkner can all either capitalise on a fast start from dashing David Warner and Aaron Finch, or resurrect an innings that has gone awry at the top,” he said.
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