The heavyweights of cricket once did all justice to the claims by showcasing immense grit and perseverance. The third test match between Australia and India went down into the history books as one of the best finishes ever and Team India showed great character and determination to play out close to 130 overs in the 4th innings against one of the best bowling units in the world.
The Aussies after winning the toss made the right decision to bat first and managed to score 338 runs. The Indians in reply had a solid start but the fall of wickets at regular intervals meant that they finished their innings at 244, giving the hosts a lead of 94 runs.
The Aussies decided to declare their second innings at 312, giving a stiff target of 406 runs to win the 3rd test match. Though a win looked uncertain and it was evident the Men in Blue were looking for the draw. The arrival of Rishabh Pant sparked the hopes of millions of Indian fans, one did think India could pull off a historic win. The youngster was dismissed on 97 unfortunately and it was up to the injured Hanuman Vihari and Ashwin to play out the day.
The duo did a magnificent job to play out the day and the Sydney test match went down as one of the best matches between the two sides ever.
The series now leveled, 1-1. Who do you think will prevail in the much-awaited series decider? Can Ajinkya Rahane keep his unbeaten record intact? Or will the Aussies make the home conditions count?
Match Toss Time: 09:30 Local (04:30 IST)
Match Start Time: 10:00 Local (05:00 IST)
Match Venue: The Gabba, Brisbane
Weather Report
The conditions are not the best for cricket as heavy rainfall is expected during the last two days of the game. Though the first 3 days may be played without any interruptions, the last 2 days is expected to play the spoilsport. The temperature is expected to be hovering in the 32- 24 degree Celsius range and the humidity at the peak is likely to touch the 58 percent mark.
Pitch
The pitch in Gabba is heavily in favor of the batsmen and there should be no shortage of runs whatsoever. The pacers will find it difficult to get a move on as not much assistance is expected for them. The spinners will enjoy the bounce, as the Australian frontline spinner reported in his latest press conference on how he could trouble the Indian batsmen with the extra bounce.
The team winning the toss should be looking to bat first as chasing on the last two days could be a very difficult task especially with heavy rainfall and overcast conditions forecasted.
Team News
Australia will have to take the field without their in-form opener Will Pucovski, who has been ruled out due to a shoulder injury. He has been replaced by Marcus Harris and looks likely to be David Warner’s partner at the top. The rest of the team is expected to remain the same as the last encounter.
Team India are forced to go into this decider with an almost reformed team as they have close to seven injuries in their camp, which includes the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Ravindra Jadeja, Mayank Agarwal, Hanuman Vihari, KL Rahul, and Umesh Yadav. Adding to the misery is the injury of Ashwin, but the all-rounder looks to have recovered right in time for the important clash.
With a barrage of injuries, team India is likely to play Kuldeep Yadav and Saha is expected to take down the responsibility behind the stumps.
Washington Sundar too was seen practicing hard in the nets with both the bat and ball and would not be a surprise if he makes it to the playing Xl.
Probable Playing Xl
Australia (Aus): David Warner, Marcus Harris, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Matthew Wade, Cameron Green, Tim Paine (c & wk), Pat Cummins, Mitch Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood
India (Ind): Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Rishabh Pant, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Shardul Thakur/ Washington Sundar, Ravichandran Ashwin, T Natarajan, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj
Aus vs Ind Fantasy Team
Rishabh Pant, Tim Paine, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Ravichandran Ashwin, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins, Mohammad Siraj
Captain Picks: Marnus Labuschagne (Aus), Rohit Sharma (Ind)
Vice-captain Picks: Cheteshwar Pujara (Ind), Steve Smith (Aus)
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