IND vs AUS 2022: 3 Australian players who can be a threat to Team India

India and Australia will resume their rivalry when the two teams face off in a three-match T20I series, which starts in Mohali on Tuesday, September 20. Both sides have been working hard in the nets ahead of the series. The matches will be significant, considering that the T20 World Cup to be played Down Under is less than a month away.

The Men in Blue will be keen to come up with a good showing in the wake of their disappointing performance in the Asia Cup 2022 in the UAE. Team India began the tournament in impressive fashion, defeating arch-rivals Pakistan by five wickets. However, they faltered in the Super 4 stage, going down to Pakistan and Sri Lanka. As a result, they failed to make the final.

Looking at India-Australia T20I contests, the Men in Blue have a slight edge in the head-to-head rivalry with a 13-9 win-loss record. At home, though, the numbers are much closer - India have won four and lost three of their seven matches.

A number of Australian players could be a threat to Team India in the three-match T20I series. In this feature, we look at three such cricketers.

---

#3 Tim David

Tim David in action during The Hundred. Pic: Getty Images

There is a lot of hype around Tim David, and there is a reason behind it. Although he is yet to play for Australia, the 26-year-old has made a name for himself with his monster-hitting ability in franchise T20 leagues. It was no surprise that he was purchased by the Mumbai Indians (MI) for a whopping ₹8.25 crore at the IPL 2022 mega auction.

MI did not utilize the clean striker for most of their disastrous campaign. However, in the few chances that he had towards the end of the season, he displayed his skills in no uncertain terms. David ended the IPL season with 186 runs at an exceptional strike rate of 216.28.

The Singapore-born cricketer is a highly experienced T20 campaigner. In 127 matches, he has scored 2725 runs at a strike rate of 163.17. Seasoned Australian pacer Pat Cummins reckons that David has that “X factor”.

Speaking ahead of the series, he had commented:

“(He) goes about it slightly differently, so look forward to it. He has been right up there with the best in the world, batting in the middle-order of T20 cricket is a really tough spot to bat. If he gets his chance, hopefully he can continue doing what he has been doing in the domesticT20 league.”

Against an experienced Indian attack comprising Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yuzvendra Chahal, David won’t have it easy. At the same time, he has a massive opportunity to make his mark at the international level.

---

#2 Adam Zampa

Adam Zampa has had the wood over Virat Kohli. Pic: Getty Images

Australian leg-spinner Adam Zampa seems to be the perennial unsung hero of the team in the T20I format. He earned some belated but much-deserved fame following his impactful bowling performances in the T20 World Cup. In fact, he was one of the key figures in Australia’s unexpected triumph at the ICC event in the UAE.

Zampa will be confident of performing well against Team India. He has a particularly impressive record against Virat Kohli, who seems to struggle against the Aussie leggie. Zampa has already dismissed Kohli seven times in limited overs matches, five times in ODIs and twice in T20Is.

He was impressive during India’s previous tour to Australia as well. In three T20Is, he picked up three wickets at an excellent economy rate of seven. The 30-year-old’s T20I record speaks for itself. In 62 matches, he has picked up 71 scalps at an average of 21.22 and an economy rate of 6.79.

He is among those rare leg-spinners who are genuine wicket-takers, but rarely go for too many runs. One of his biggest assets is that he doesn’t depend on the surface to make an impact. Zampa has quite a few versatile tricks up his sleeve.

---

#1 Glenn Maxwell

Glenn Maxwell enjoys batting against India. Pic: Getty Images

Consistency is not Glenn Maxwell’s forte, but it is equally true that the “Big Show” enjoys batting against India. Somehow, he seems to reserve something special for the Men in Blue bowlers in India-Australia contests. Maxwell has been a different player since his success for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) during IPL 2021.

The Men in Blue won’t like to remember Maxwell’s exploits during Australia's previous tour to India in 2019. The Aussie big-hitter was in scintillating form as he smacked 56 off 43 in the first T20I. In the second game of the two-match series, India did reasonably well to post 190 for four, batting first.

Maxwell made a mockery of the target, clobbering seven fours and nine sixes in an unbeaten 113 off 55 balls. The result of the match was reduced to a mere formality. The 33-year-old was once again in his elements during India’s tour Down Under in 2020-21. He top-scored for Australia with 54 off 36 in the third T20I in Sydney.

Having been on the receiving end a number of times recently, Team India will be wary of the threat posed by Maxwell in the three-match T20I series, which begins in Mohali on Tuesday, September 20.

---