India vs Australia 2017: India's probable XI for first T20

After having brushed aside the Australians in the one-day series, the Indian team is all ready to extend their dominance in the shortest form, when they take on the visitors in the first of the three-match T20I series.

The hosts look fairly settled and the composition might not change much from the one-dayers.

Here is a look at the possible Indian squad for the first T20I at Ranchi.

# Openers

Rohit Sharma

With 296 runs in the ODIs, Rohit was the highest run-getter in the series, peaking just at the right time for the Indian team as he signed off the ODIs with a dominating century.

He comes into the T20I series brimming with confidence, which augurs well for the hosts.

Shikhar Dhawan

Dhawan was in the midst of a purple patch in his career when he had to skip the ODI series against Australia owing to his ailing wife. However, he is now back into the team and will walk out to bat along with Rohit Sharma. The duo will have another chance to drive home the point that they are the best opening batting combination in the world at the moment.

# Middle Order

The solid nucleus

Virat Kohli

Captain Kohli will walk in at his familiar No.3 position, and after a rather cold ODI series, would want to establish his authority in the format that has seen him emerge as one of the most prolific batsmen over the last two years.

Manish Pandey

Pandey played a couple of innings of substance in the just-concluded ODI series, but the No.4 spot is still a revolving door as no player has been able to nail it down.

Thus, this series becomes very important for the Karnataka player, for the team management is willing to give him a long rope and the time has come for him to repay some of the faith.

MS Dhoni

The veteran might have found new wings in the 50-over format, but he has to prove his worth in the shortest format all over again. He will walk in at No.5 and might have to go for his strokes from the get-go, a trait which has deserted him in the recent months; this where he has to reinvent himself.

# All-rounders

The big-hitting all-rounder

Hardik Pandya

The stocks of this young man from Baroda have risen significantly over the last six months and there have been plenty of accolades strewn towards him. But Pandya knows that he has to keep performing to cement his spot in the side.

There is no denying his promise and mettle with both the bat and ball, but since the spotlight will be on him every time he walks onto the field, his response will now be closely monitored.

Kedar Jadhav

Jadhav is your unassuming cog in the lineup who quietly goes about his business without too much fuss and has been doing whatever has been asked of him by the team management.

Apart from his utility with the bat, he has been surprising many including himself with his ability with the ball when he keeps chipping in with key wickets.

# Spinners

The much-needed mystery

Kuldeep Yadav

The young man from Uttar Pradesh has quickly established himself as one of the go-to men for Kohli in the shortest format and with his wrist spin has given the Indian team the option to not only stem the flow of runs but also the ability to pick up wickets.

Yuzvendra Chahal

Another wrist spinner and a huge positive for India from the Australia series, Chahal has complemented Kuldeep beautifully all through and has also accounted for many useful wickets.

His temperament is rock solid and he enjoys the confidence of captain Kohli. The Haryana-boy is not afraid to bowl the 'dirty' overs and generally gets the job done.

# Seam bowlers

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Perhaps the most improved bowler over the last year, Bhuvneshwar has added a plethora of tricks to his arsenal and is now a complete bowler across all conditions. He can be brought in to bowl at almost any stage of the game.

He swings the new ball, keeps it tight during the middle overs, and then nails his yorkers at the death, a dream for any captain!

Jasprit Bumrah

India's search for a death bowler finally ended with the emergence of Jasprit Bumrah and the young man has repaid all the faith invested on him by the team management.

Along with Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah has become Kohli's bank in the death overs where the two invariably restrict the scoring by picking up wickets when it matters the most.