Red-hot India carry advantage over Australia

Chennai, September 16: On a roll after decimating Sri Lanka, Virat Kohli's Indian team will be aiming for another comprehensive show against a depleted Australia when the two sides square off in the opening encounter of the five-match series at the M A Chidamabram stadium here on Sunday (September 17).

The ranking story

A 5-0 win for India, which could be a rare first against Australia, will put them at the top of the ICC World rankings while a 4-1 win for the visitors will help them grab pole position.

Inexperienced bowlers

For India, facing an Australian side without their top two pacers - Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood - would certainly work to their advantage but at the same time, the likes of Steve Smith, David Warner and Glenn Maxwell are seasoned pros for whom India is like a "second home".

Left-arm spinner Axar Patel suffered an injury scare, spraining his ankle while playing football.

However, the Aussies are well aware of what threat wrist spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal can pose.

Accordingly, they summoned mystery spinners KK Jiyas and local lad Murugan Ashwin to prepare for the match.

Explosive batting

Along with his captain Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma is part of a formidable batting unit that could take on any attack. Rohit also indicated that his Mumbai teammate Ajinkya Rahane may don the opener's role in the absence of Shikhar Dhawan, who has been granted a break to attend to his ailing wife.

Middle-order worry

Despite the thrashing handed out to the Sri Lankans, the Indian think-tank would be worried about a middle-order that didn't look too convincing.

KL Rahul's struggles at the No 4 spot pose a few questions but the skipper and coach Ravi Shastri have hinted that the Karnataka batsman was being considered for the role given the fact that Rohit and Shikhar Dhawan are the established opening pair.

Kohli himself has been in wonderful form and carved out a couple of tons against Lanka while veteran MS Dhoni guided the team home in his own inimitable style in two matches.

History & Pitch

The two teams are playing an ODI here after a gap of three decades, having last met at the iconic stadium in the opening fixture of the Reliance World Cup, way back in 1987.

The last time the Australians played a bilateral ODI series in India in 2013, the hosts won seven-match series 3-2 with two games were abandoned due to inclement weather. The Chepauk track is expected to be a batting paradise.

Teams (from): India: Virat Kohli (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, M S Dhoni (WK), Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Yazuvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav.

Australia: Steve Smith (captain), David Warner, Hilton Cartwright, Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade (WK), James Faulkner, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Kane Richardson, Ashton Agar, Adam Zampa, Peter Handscomb, Aaron Finch.