Australia vs India 2018-19: Fearless India need to play sensible cricket if they want to rule Down Under

The Indian cricket team managed to draw the T20 series last week, which many believe they deserved to win. The wrath of the weather came to Australia’s rescue in the first two matches, but the visitors looked a much better side in spite of being unfamiliar with the conditions.

The Australian team is going through a really tough phase after the controversial ban imposed on former captain Steve Smith, former vice-captain David Warner and Cameron Bancroft. They have not been the same ever since.

It seems like every match the players are trying to prove a point, trying to remove the stain of corruption from Australian cricket. However, that is not helping their cause and they are struggling to find their consistency and competitiveness back.

India, on the other hand, are flying high under their captain Virat Kohli, full of confidence. Many in-form Indian players like Cheteshwar Pujara, Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav are ready to take up the fierce challenge Down Under.

Their skipper Kohli has notably been in top notch form in 2018. He is the number one batsman in both Tests and ODIs, with an incredibly high average in both formats this year.

Kohli was the best Indian batsman when India toured Australia last time around; he registered four centuries in as many Tests and notched up 692 runs in total, at a mind-boggling average of 86.25. But the other team members will have to support him this time if they want to win their first-ever series on Australian soil.

The idea of fearless cricket that Kohli espouses is fascinating, but the young guns also need to prepare themselves mentally before going into this stern test.

Tim Paine, the Australian Test captain, has got some real quality bowlers at his disposal, who become all the more lethal in Australian conditions. The Indian batsmen need to be disciplined with their shot selection and more solid with their approach than last time.

Kohli can play under any given conditions, and his brand of attacking stroke-play may not be the best example for the others to follow. The captain can afford to be fearless with his batting, but the others probably can't.

The Indian bowling lineup is also very strong this time, with some really talented seamers and spinners in the attack. The Australian batting, meanwhile, has not been at its best recently, and without Warner and Smith they could struggle to tackle Bumrah & Co.

This series has a lot to promise, and expectations are always high when two heavyweights of world cricket collide. For India, this is the best opportunity to finally win a series in Australia and end the long drought, but they need to go in with the right approach in order to come out triumphant.