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India and Australia will face each other in a bilateral ODI series for the second time in the calendar year, with the opener of the upcoming three-match rubber to be played at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali on Friday, September 22.
The last time Australia were in India, they wrapped up the three-match series by a 2-1 margin in March just after India won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. With the upcoming series set to be the last one for both teams before the 2023 World Cup, it holds immense value ahead of the event.
India have chosen to rest skipper Rohit Sharma and vice-captain Hardik Pandya, apart from Virat Kohli and Kuldeep Yadav for the first two ODIs.
With Ravichandran Ashwin earning a recall, he has a chance to stake a claim as a wildcard entrant into the World Cup squad should Axar Patel fail to recover from a left quadriceps injury on time.
Australia are fielding a near full-strength outfit with a number of their A-listers returning from injury. They will be without Travis Head, however, as he sustained a fractured hand during the recently concluded series in South Africa which the Aussies failed to wrap up in their favor despite taking a 2-0 lead.
Ahead of the 1st ODI on Friday, we attempt to pick a combined India-Australia playing XI from the squads named for the first two games.
Openers - David Warner and Shubman Gill
Oh, what a treat it would be to see David Warner and Shubman Gill open the innings in a parallel universe! Sheer power and aggression at one end, nonchalant flamboyance at the other - they would complement each other to the T.
Warner was in destructive form during the recent tour of South Africa with 206 runs at a strike rate of 121.17. He boasts of an excellent record in the 50-over format with an average of just under 45 and 6236 runs against his name after 147 appearances.
Gill, on the other hand, averages a whopping 64.41 in a short ODI career spanning 33 matches thus far. He topped the charts at the recently concluded Asia Cup with 302 runs at an average of 75.50 and is currently the leading run-scorer in ODIs in 2023 with 1052 runs.
Middle order - Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, and KL Rahul (wk)
Mitchell Marsh is easily one of the most fearsome white-ball batters on the planet at the moment. While he couldn't quite light up the ODI leg of the South Africa tour until the last game, he has been in superb form across formats. Marsh was also at his aggressive best when he toured India earlier this year, walking away with the Player of the Series award.
Steven Smith is set to return to the ODI XI after a period on the sidelines with an injury. He remains the fulcrum of the Australian batting lineup and boasts an excellent record in the format - 4939 runs at an average of 44.49. He also stated that he was feeling like a "million bucks now" in the build-up to the series and that's an ominous sign for India ahead of this three-match rubber.
KL Rahul reiterated his value to India's ODI setup with a sparkling century against Pakistan at the Asia Cup in what was his first game on comeback. His glovework throughout the tournament was fabulous and he is the wicketkeeper in this playing XI too.
Rahul averages 46.85 after 55 ODIs - a number that swells to 52.36 in 28 innings at numbers 4 and 5 alone.
All-rounders - Glenn Maxwell and Ravindra Jadeja
Marsh offers this playing combination the option of a fourth seamer although he went through the entire tour of South Africa without rolling his arm over. Glenn Maxwell, another returnee from injury, and Ravindra Jadeja combine as the side's lead all-rounders.
Ever since Australia took the entry point route with Maxwell, his numbers in ODIs have shot up as his average of 43.78 since 2020 indicates. Along expected lines, his strike rate reads a whopping 132.11 in this period while he continues to chip in with handy overs of off-spin.
Jadeja has been brilliant with the ball although his recent white-ball batting returns have left plenty to be desired. Since 2022, his average reads under 25 at an alarming strike rate of 57.61 in ODIs, and will certainly want to improve upon those numbers in the upcoming series.
In the corresponding period, his bowling numbers fare much better having bagged 12 wickets at 30 apiece at a strike-rate of 40.
As for their fielding, not much needs to be said about the athleticism of both Maxwell and Jadeja, right?
Bowlers - Pat Cummins (c), Adam Zampa, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj
Pat Cummins will lead Australia in these three ODIs as well as the World Cup and will don the same role in this playing XI as well. Making a comeback from injury himself, he'll be keen to hit his straps from the word go although his numbers in the format make for excellent reading.
Cummins has bagged 124 wickets in 75 ODI appearances at 27.61 apiece and a phenomenal strike rate of 31.7. He will be partnered by Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj in the pace attack of this playing XI.
Bumrah is arguably the world's best all-format bowler of this generation and hasn't missed a beat since making a comeback from injury. As for Siraj, he catapulted himself to the top of the ICC Rankings for men's ODI bowlers on the back of his breathtaking 6/21 that blew Sri Lanka away in the final of the Asia Cup.
Rounding off this playing XI as the side's lead spinner is Adam Zampa. He might have been in a shootout with Kuldeep Yadav on another day but Zampa walks in on merit in his own right.
Since 2020, he has snared a staggering 74 wickets in 35 ODIs at an average of 22.14 and a strike rate of 25.3 and has often been a thorn in India's flesh. Needless to say, he's going to have a major say in how Australia perform over the next couple of months across the India series and the World Cup.
Combined India-Australia playing XI ahead of first two ODIs: David Warner, Shubman Gill, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, KL Rahul (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Ravindra Jadeja, Pat Cummins (c), Adam Zampa, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.
Who among India and Australia start as favorites for the three-match ODI series? Have your say in the comments section below!
