India vs Australia Match Prediction: Who will win today's AUS vs IND 2025 2nd ODI match?

In Perth, Shubman Gill became the ninth captain to lose his first international match at the helm in all three formats. After India went down by seven wickets at the Optus Stadium, the skipper would've perhaps had a word with Virat Kohli, whose captaincy history also witnessed such an ingominious record.

Gill will know the ongoing three-match series against Australia is a challenging one. The hosts seem better equipped to the conditions despite being without some key players like Pat Cummins. Moreover, the Aussies are expected to have Alex Carey and Adam Zampa back for the second ODI in Adelaide on Thursday, October 23.

The Men in Blue have a few holes left unfilled in Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya's absence, while the obvious rustiness of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma hasn't helped matters. Gill has a real task on his hands if his side are to level the rubber and push it into a decider.

India’s ODI squad for the Australia tour: Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vice-captain), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal.

Australia's ODI squad for the India series: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Owen, Josh Philippe, Matthew Renshaw, Matthew Short, Mitchell Starc. Games two and three only: Adam Zampa, Alex Carey, Josh Inglis.

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AUS vs IND 2025: India in search of series-leveling win

Australia v India - ODI Series: Game 1 - Source: Getty

India aren't going to get any stronger. They are unlikely to play Kuldeep Yadav as Gautam Gambhir loves having batters at least until No. 8, and their senior batters didn't spend enough time at the crease in Perth to have been able to find any rhythm.

Australia, meanwhile, seem to be in better shape. Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood clicked on all cylinders in the series opener, while Zampa's return will boost their control over the middle overs significantly.

Moreover, many of the home side's batters, including Travis Head and Matthew Short, will enjoy the conditions at a familiar venue in the form of the Adelaide Oval. The short square boundaries will play into the hands of most Aussie batters, and without Bumrah, Hardik and Kuldeep, the Men in Blue might not be able to compete.

India are a world-class ODI side and cannot be taken lightly. Even if a few of the many match-winners in their ranks show up, they should be able to challenge Australia. However, it's safe to say that Mitchell Marsh and his men are the favorites for this encounter as well.

Prediction: Australia to win the 2nd ODI vs India.