The third and final ODI between India and Australia is set to be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The first two matches turned out to be one-sided even though the visitors put up a fight in the series opener. It has been a tough series for the Indian batters especially with the ball swinging around significantly. Things might change a bit in Chennai with the surface at the Chepauk historically assisting spin bowling but the new ball is expected to swing and yet again, toss will play a crucial role.
For Australia, it remains to be seen if David Warner and Glenn Maxwell will return to the playing XI. With Marsh playing really well, it will be interesting to see if he moves down to number three in case, Warner is fit. For India, meanwhile, Suryakumar Yadav's place is under the scanner but he is likely to keep his place with skipper Rohit Sharma stressing on giving more opportunities to the batter.
Match Details
Match: IND vs AUS, 3rd ODI
Venue: MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai
Time: 1:30 PM IST
Broadcast and Live Streaming: Star Sports Network and Disney+Hotstar
Probable Playing XIs
India: Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma (C), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav
Australia: David Warner/Marnus Labuschagne, Travis Head, Steve Smith (c), Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis (WK), Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Mitchell Starc
Pitch and Weather Report
The surface in Chennai is known to assist spinners right from the word go. Winning the toss and batting first will be key to make use of the pitch on offer and then, if dew doesn't come, the ball will spin big for sure.
However, weather might play spoilsport and might prompt the captains to bowl first after winning the toss. New ball will keep swinging under overcast conditions and yet again, might test the batters up front.
Predictions
Best Batter of the Match: Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli doesn't go off the entire series quietly often. Australia have managed to keep him quiet so far courtesy some excellent pace bowling. But come Chennai ODI, the former India skipper should get back to what he does best batting at number three.
Best Bowler of the Match: Mitchell Starc
If the ball swings, there is no better bowler than Starc especially against India. He has been amongst the wicket in both ODIs so far scalping 8 wickets in just 17.5 overs. Starc would love to add a few more wickets to his tally and help Australia win the series.
