India is gearing up to play Australia in a significant cricket match, reminiscent of the 2023 World Cup final where Australia defeated India, disappointing millions of fans. Now, there’s a chance for India and Rohit Sharma to seek redemption in another important game.
The Australian team in 2025 is not the same as it was in 2023. Key players from their previous lineup are absent. Notably, their strong opening bowlers, Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc, will be missing, which weakens their bowling attack.
India is also missing Jasprit Bumrah, a key bowler, but the team led by Rohit Sharma appears to be even stronger than before. They have more players who can win matches, including Varun Chakaravarthy, a potentially game-changing spinner. India’s spin bowling is particularly strong with Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav also in the squad. Given that the pitch in Dubai is expected to favor spin bowlers, India is in a strong position.
Rohit Sharma mentioned that they need to focus on their own game plan, just like they did in their recent victories. Understanding the opponent is important, but concentrating on their own strengths as a team in batting and bowling is crucial.
The team management is considering whether to include an extra spin bowler or a fast bowler in the lineup. A key decision is whether to play Chakaravarthy, who performed exceptionally in the last game. Despite having played only a few matches, he can make a big impact. This selection choice is a positive challenge for the team.
A major advantage for India is the current form of their batsmen. Even when the top order batsmen didn’t score heavily in the previous match against New Zealand, India still managed to score enough runs to win. The good form of Shreyas Iyer, along with solid batting from Axar Patel and Hardik Pandya, strengthens India’s chances in this important upcoming match.
However, there are some concerns. Virat Kohli’s matches against Adam Zampa, the Australian leg-spinner, have been challenging. Zampa has dismissed Kohli several times, more than any other Indian batsman.
Additionally, Rohit Sharma has recently had difficulties against left-arm fast bowlers, and Australia has two of them, Spencer Johnson and Ben Dwarshuis. Also, Rohit sometimes plays with a faster, T20 style approach, even in One Day matches where there is more time to build an innings.
For India, another worry is Travis Head, an Australian batsman who has performed well against them in the past, notably in the previous World Cup match. On the other hand, Australia might miss having more spin bowling options, as they only have Adam Zampa as a specialist spinner, in addition to missing their key fast bowlers.
As Rohit Sharma stated, Australia is a strong team and India expects a tough competition with tense moments during the match.
Teams:
India
The Indian team is likely to remain unchanged, although Rohit Sharma hasn’t confirmed if Varun Chakaravarthy will play as the fourth spinner. The decision will depend on the pitch conditions. While there’s a strong possibility of including Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh could potentially replace Mohammed Shami in the team.
Possible India XI: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakaravarthy
Australia
With Matthew Short out, Jake Fraser-McGurk might replace him in the top order. However, Australia would miss Short’s off-spin bowling. Considering the conditions in Dubai, Cooper Connolly could also be an option, and Tanveer Sangha might be considered instead of a fast bowler if the pitch heavily favors spin.
Possible Australia XI: Travis Head, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey, Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshius, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson
Interesting Facts
Head to head records: Australia has won more ODI matches against India (84 to 57). In ICC ODI tournaments, Australia leads 10-7, but since 2020, both teams have won 7 matches each.
– India’s only loss in the 2023 World Cup was when their spinners didn’t take any wickets in a game.
– Rohit Sharma is the top scorer in the first 10 overs of ODI matches since 2023. Among players with at least 100 runs in this phase, only Travis Head has a better scoring rate.
What They Said
Rohit Sharma commented that they are unsure about the pitch for the semi-final and need to adapt to the conditions. He also mentioned that Dubai is not their home ground and conditions are new to them as well.
