India vs Australia World Cup 2015 Semis: Kohli vs Johnson, Dhawan vs Starc - Battle Lines Drawn
India take on Australia in the second World Cup 2015 semifinal at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The winners plays New Zealand in the final at Melbourne on Sunday. Here is a look at the five top encounters that will define the India vs Australia clash.
The battle lines are drawn. Two champion sides -- India and Australia -- will engage in a highly-anticipated clash at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Thursday in a bid to inch closer towards crowning glory. (Superpowers Collide in Sydney)
Based on how the tournament has panned out over the last six weeks, it is indeed unfortunate that only one of the two will proceed to the final, where they face a high-flying Kiwi side for the World Cup. (Where Team Dhoni Can Hurt Michael Clarke's Men)
Here are the key battles to watch out for:
MS Dhoni vs Michael Clarke
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Cometh an ICC tournament, cometh a champion leader! Mahendra Singh Dhoni & Co. have successfully shed their cloak of incompetence to emerge as the most clinical side of the tournament and a lot of credit goes to the skipper. After long periods of dwindling batting forms and errant bowling lengths, every department seems to be falling right in place for the Indian skipper. Dhoni is just two steps away from defending the title he sealed four years ago at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium with a memorable six. (Where the Aussies can Hurt the Men in Blue)
Barring the narrow defeat to the Kiwis, Michael Clarke's men too have been on top of their game and have looked every bit the favourites they have been billed as from the start of the tournament.
Australia have the most number (four) of World Cup titles to their credit and have never lost in a semifinal but Clarke will be smart enough to acknowledge that Thursday's high-voltage clash is everything but statistics. To beat a rampaging side like India, Clarke needs his men to put on a back-breaking performance at the SCG.
Shikhar Dhawan vs Mitchell Starc
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Like his skipper, Shikhar Dhawan too has proved to be an ICC tournament connoisseur. Struggling to find his feet, or even move them in sync with the moving ball has been the left-handed opener's achilles heel all through the Australian tour. (Australia and India to Continue War of Words)
But, the prospect of another coveted medal seems to have urged the Delhi dasher to smother his flaws. And so he did to great effect. With two tons and a fifty, Dhawan is India's leading run-scorer in the tournament and the one who can get the team to a quintessential flying start on Thursday.
In an era of outrageous batsmanship, Australia's left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc has been phenomenal, with 18 wickets in six games at an economy rate of 3.74 - the best in the tournament. In the quarterfinal clash versus Pakistan, it was Starc's dismissal of the in-form opener Sarfraz Ahmed that gave Australia early momentum. Come Thursday, Starc will be itching to repeat performance and send Dhawan back on his way early.
Virat Kohli vs Mitchell Johnson
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The Sydney Cricket Ground, thousands of ecstatic fans, high-stakes and bragging rights - this contest is tailor-made for two of the most colourful characters of the modern-day game -- Virat Kohli and Mitchell Johnson.
By their lofty standards, both have had a modest run in the tournament.
Kohli began with a bang, smashing a century against Pakistan but hasn't played long innings since. Dhoni would reckon a big one is due from his champion batsman. With 10 wickets in six games, Johnson has been reduced to second-fiddle to his fiercer bowling partner - Starc. The recent history and his frosty relationship with Kohli, however, are bound to add a few springs to his steps.
Will Kohli be made to smell leather? Or will the Indian superstar batsman get to flex his muscles again? A riveting contest is on the cards.
David Warner vs Mohammed Shami
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In a crucial encounter such as this one, all's well that starts well. On either ends of the 22-yard strip, David Warner and Mohammed Shami will be handed the responsibility of making the first strike in their race towards the final.
Warner has just one century in the tournament but a quick-fire start will go a long way in laying a solid platform for Australia to consolidate. His recent run-ins with the likes of Dhawan and Rohit Sharma in the Tests and Tri-Series will give him extra reasons to excel.
Indian bowling spearhead Mohammed Shami will do all he can to stop Warner. With 17 wickets at an economy rate of 4.43, Shami's early exploits all through the tournament have been the stepping stones for the team's seven straight wins.
Can Warner blaze away? Or will Shami send him packing early? In this you-blink-I-hit-contest, who will have the final say?
Ravichandran Ashwin vs Glenn Maxwell
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The rivalry between Indian off-spinner and the Aussie aggressor goes a long way back to IPL, where audacious hitting and sarcastic send offs were commonplace.
In India's mission rejuvenation, led by skipper extraordinaire Dhoni, Ashwin has been a revelation. After regular lean patches leading up to the tournament, Ashwin has turned a new leaf. The wily off-spinner has made smart use of the extra bounce on the drop-in wickets in Australia to take his wickets tally to 12 at an economy rate of just 4.29.
Dhoni's ploy of crippling the opposition and controlling the game in the middle overs has been boosted by Ashwin's form with the ball. While he's not picking wickets, Ashwin has been busy bowling with fabulous variation and guile to keep the scoring under check.
Glenn 'audacious' Maxwell has been crucial to an Aussie middle-order muddled in self-doubt. With a century and two fifties, Maxwell has demonstrated the modern-day art of turning a game on its head in the span of a handful of overs. His encounter against Ashwin will make for an interesting sub-plot to a match already expected to be drenched in drama.