India Vs Australia: Probable India XI for 1st T20I in Brisbane

Brisbane, Nov 20: Team India will begin their campaign in Australia with the Twenty20 series and the opening game kicks off on Wednesday (November 21) at Brisbane.

Virat Kohli-led Indian side will be hoping to repeat their success in the shortest format against Australia, when they last toured Down Under in 2016.

Under MS Dhoni's leadership, the Indian team became the first visiting side to whitewash Australia in a shorter format of the game. The Indian side is now being led by Kohli, who has successfully carried the baton from his predecessor.

Full Schedule" title="India-Australia: Top 5 batsmen, bowlers in T20Is | Full Schedule" />India-Australia: Top 5 batsmen, bowlers in T20Is | Full Schedule

Under the leadership of Kohli, India defeated South Africa at their home in the limited-overs format to create history. The Men In Blue must be again eager to repeat a similar performance against the Aussies.

Kohli and Co. will be up against Aaron Finch's boys in the first T20I in Brisbane on Wednesday (November 21). It will be a test of India's batting on the fast Gabba track.

The Men In Blue have been sweating it out hard in the nets at the venue and the fact that their top-order is in good form, the visitors must be hoping to start their campaign with a win. For that, they will have to overcome a formidable Australian bowling attack comprising Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Andrew Tye, and Billy Stanlake.

The pitch at Gabba have always favoured the pace bowlers hence, it will be an exciting contest between bat and bowl where the batters will be consistently tested.

In-form India batsman and vice-captain Rohit Sharma has already said that tall Australian bowlers will have the advantage against their batsmen.

We've announced our 12 for the 1st T20I against Australia at The Gabba #TeamIndia pic.twitter.com/c6boLtieGf
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 20, 2018

The BCCI has already announced the Probable 12-member squad for the opening T20I.

Here's how India's Playing XI might look like as they aim for a winning start:

1. Rohit Sharma

Not just Virat Kohli, the Australian bowling attack is already making strategies to counter the Indian vice-captain. This shows how dangerous a batsman Rohit Sharma is.

The right-handed batsman has been in phenomenal form in 2018 and if the Hitman continues his menacing form then the Australians would be at the receiving end.

Rohit, who is the only cricketer to have slammed four T20I centuries, could be hoping to continue in Australia from where he left back home.

2. Shikhar Dhawan

After a patchy 50-over tournament against West Indies, the southpaw regained his form during the T20I series.

Dhawan scored match-winning 92 against the Windies in the third T20I which also happens to be his highest score in the T20Is.

Now that he's found his form, Dhawan would be eager to continue his rich vein of form against the Aussies.

3. Virat Kohli

The Indian captain is often termed Australia's nemesis for the simple reason that he's always come blazing against them. Kohli is the leading run-scorer in the T20Is between these two teams with 423 runs at an average of 60.42 in 11 games.

Kohli has also notched up 4 fifties against the Men in Baggy Green and teammates would be hoping the Run Machine continues his sensational form.

4. Lokesh Rahul

The talented Karnataka batsman was included in the T20I side against Windies after warming the benches for long.

Rahul didn't score too many runs against the Windies but a batsman like him needs to be given a longer run.

Rahul slammed a T20I ton against England. Fast pitches suit the batting style of this right-handed batsman. Hence, team management will give him a go in the middle-order.

5. Dinesh Karthik

The veteran Tamil Nadu cricketer always made most of the opportunities and deservedly earned a spot in the limited-overs' squad.

The right-handed batsman played well against the Windies in the limited-overs series and the team management has rewarded him for his good show at crunch situations.

In the absence of MS Dhoni, the veteran cricketer would have to shoulder the responsibility if the top-order collapses early.

6. Rishabh Pant

The talented young batsman would be performing the duties of the wicket-keeper in Australia series. The Delhi-lad will have to showcase his wicketkeeping skills in the absence of MS Dhoni.

Pant scored his career-best 58 against Windies in the third T20I and it felt that the southpaw has finally found his groove in the international format.

This is Pant's maiden Australia tour with the senior team and all eyes would be on the pint-size dynamite.

7. Krunal Pandya

The left-arm spinner and a decent batsman lower down the order, Krunal Pandya would be performing the duties of an all-rounder for India. Pandya made his debut during the West Indies T20I series and impressed all.

Team management would be hoping that the Baroda cricketer, who is a seasoned campaigner in the IPL, does well in Australia.

8. Bhuvneshwar Kumar

The right-arm swing bowler will be leading India's the pace attack against the Aussies. Bhuvneshwar has picked up six wickets against the Aussies in 4 T20I games and has been pretty economical against the Aussies as well.

9. Kuldeep Yadav

The Uttar Pradesh chinaman was awarded man of the series for his superlative show against the Windies. Kuldeep was in sublime form in limited-overs series in England and South Africa and perhaps the X-factor behind India's win (India, however, lost the ODI series in England).

Kuldeep's form will be crucial for Men In Blue's success in Australia.

10. Jasprit Bumrah

The unorthodox pacer, who made his debut during India's previous tour of Australia, has emerged as a match-winner for them.

The Gujarat pacer has already picked up 10 wickets in 6 encounters against the Aussies and happens to be the leading wicket-taker between the two teams in the shortest format.

The yorker-specialist owns the reputation of a match-winner in the shortest version and it will be interesting to see how he performs Down Under as he's going to play for India in all three formats.

11. Khaleel Ahmed

The young left-arm pacer, who made his T20I debut during the West Indies series, has been impressing all with his bowling effort. Khaleel has bowled well and even picked up wickets on Indian pitches and Australian tracks would suit him the most.

Yuzvendra Chahal has also been picked up in the 12-member squad but the team management would be inclined to play with two spinners (Kuldeep and Pandya) and three pacers. Hence, Chahal would not make it to the playing XI at Gabba.