India vs Australia 2017: India's predicted playing XI for the 1st ODI

Middle order:

Virat Kohli

The captain has been in the form of his life over the past couple of years and has been scoring centuries for fun. He scored consecutive centuries against Sri Lanka and followed that up with an 82 run knock in the final ODI.

He has a spectacular record against Australia and has always performed well against them, both home and away. He has scored 5 centuries against the Kangaroos in ODIs and will look to increase that number this time around.

He will relish the challenge which is going to come his way, this time as captain as well.

Manish Pandey

The 28 year old from Karnataka would have felt extremely hard done by the fact that he had to miss the ICC Champions Trophy due to an injury.

Even after making his comeback last month, he was given limited opportunities but he made use of those and gave the selectors a lot to think about with his performances against Sri Lanka.

He will always be remembered for the breathtaking ODI century against Australia in 2016 where India won the only match of the series down under. He will look to continue performing well against the weakened OZ bowling line-up and cement his place in the side.

MS Dhoni

Ever since Dhoni stepped down from captaincy, his place in the side is being questioned by many. However, with his performance in every series since the beginning of the year, the former Indian captain is shutting his critics up.

He had an exceptional outing against Sri Lanka as he was not dismissed even once throughout the series. He scored one half century and remained not-out in the forties twice including the 49 he scored in his 300th ODI.

His wicket-keeping skills are arguably the best in the world and it will take some time before someone comes up to his level behind the stumps.

Kedar Jadhav

He might have made his debut for the Indian cricket team really late but it looks like the Men in Blue have unearthed a gem in the form of Kedar Jadhav.

On one hand, he has the ability to play a composed innings and guide the side with a steady knock. On the other hand, he also has the ability to decimate the opposition bowling attack and play an aggressive knock as well.

Apart from his batting skills, he has been extremely handy with the ball as well and is known to break partnerships and pick up wickets at regular intervals.