Australia vs. India ODI Tri Series: Date, Live Stream, TV Info and Preview
Australia and India meet in Melbourne for the second match of the Carlton Mid One-Day International Tri-Series on Sunday after Australia cruised past England to earn a bonus point in the series opener in Sydney on Friday.
Venue: Melbourne Cricket Ground
Date: Sunday, Jan. 18
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Start Time: 3:20 a.m. GMT/2:20 p.m. local
Live On: Nine Network (Australia), STAR Sports (India), Orbit Show Network (Middle East), PTV Sports (Pakistan), SuperSport (South Africa), Sky Sports (United Kingdom), Sky Sport (New Zealand)
Live Stream: Sky Go (United Kingdom)
Weather: The Weather Channel is forecasting a mild and partly cloudy day with the temperature set to reach 20 degrees Celsius during the afternoon.
Overview
After their 2-0 loss to Australia in the recent Test series, India fell to seventh place in the ICC Test Rankings—an alarming drop for a cricketing nation of such vast size, wealth and depth of talent.
Of course, some may wonder if there'll be a spillover effect for India into this tri-series, but in truth, none of what's previously happened on this tour for MS Dhoni's team is actually relevant. With every month that passes, Test cricket and the limited-overs formats grow further apart, and India embody that more than anyone.
In the ICC ODI Rankings, they sit alongside Australia on a rating of 117. Joint No. 1.
For Dhoni and his team, this series represents an ideal opportunity ahead of the World Cup to test themselves against host nation and favourites Australia in the least comfortable surrounds of all.
Notably, residing in the Indian camp is extraordinary limited-overs batting strength, led by Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Sharma—the sort of ensemble capable of taking it to the Australians on home soil.
Additionally, India's maligned and often wayward bowling attack will benefit from the shorter spells and smaller workloads of 50-over cricket and shouldn't prove to be the liability it was during the Test series.
But perhaps most interesting will be the way India respond to Dhoni, the captain who stepped away from the Test arena in December but will continue in coloured clothing.
Australia, meanwhile, will arrive at the second match of the series full of confidence, having disposed of England with ease in Sydney on Friday.
Leading the attack, Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins were both fast and incisive—the qualities India aren't fond of—while the batting lineup looked as explosive as ever led by David Warner.
India, one suspects, will give the hosts a greater challenge than England. But Australia, at home and in this sort of form, are a daunting proposition for any side.
Squads
Australia
Michael Clarke (c), George Bailey (vc), Pat Cummins, Xavier Doherty, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Brad Haddin (wk), Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner, Shane Watson
India
MS Dhoni (c/wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Stuart Binny, Shikhar Dhawan, Ravindra Jadeja, Virat Kohli, Dhawal Kulkarni, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Akshar Patel, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Ishant Sharma, Mohit Sharma, Rohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav
Form Lines (most recent first)
Australia - WWWWLW
India - WWWWWW
Players to Watch
Australia
Ahead of the World Cup, Australia are facing a slight conundrum in the middle order. At the moment, it's George Bailey and Steve Smith who anchor the Australian side in the middle overs, but if Michael Clarke is able to prove his fitness and return to the side for the global tournament, it's hard to see all three men—players of a similar style who a team can build around—fitting into the same XI.
Clarke, as captain, is guaranteed of a spot (if fit). Smith, as the player of the summer, is too. It means Bailey, who's presently deputising for Clarke, faces the possibility of going from stand-in captain to a man on the sidelines.
As such, the Tasmanian is in a position where he simply must pile on the runs. And after just 10 (from 25 balls) against England, there's an urgency to the situation.
India
Rohit Sharma might be the only player in one-day international history to have struck two double centuries, but his record in Australia in this format is poor.
Whereas he averages 65.59 at home, the stylish right-hander has averaged just 26.16 in 15 ODIs Down Under.
Viewed as a key figure in India's quest to defend their World Cup title, Rohit needs to find a way to get going on Australian soil before the global tournament arrives.
This match in Melbourne is his first chance to do so.
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