After facing a 10-wicket defeat in the second ODI, Team India is all set to face Australia in the third and final ODI of the three-match series in Chennai on Wednesday. The series is locked at 1-1 and the starry quartet of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav will have to bat out of their skins to stop the left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc, who is gearing up once again to bring the ball back viciously into the right-handers while taking a few away. The refurbished Chepauk, with all its stands being open for public viewing, will be hosting an international game after quite some time and the re-laid pitch will attract a lot of attention. It will be interesting to see whether team management will be using young Umran Malik as their third pacer or not.
Here is what we think could be India's playing XI for the third ODI against Australia:
Rohit Sharma: The Indian skipper returned to the field after missing out on the first match due to family reasons. However, he failed to leave a mark as he was dismissed for 13. Rohit will definitely look for a big innings in the third match.
Shubman Gill: The right-handed batter retained his spot in the playing XI in the second ODI but once again failed to provide India with a solid start in both the matches. Known for his aggressive batting, he will aim for redemption in the third ODI.
Virat Kohli: The star batter was one of the positives for Team India during the debacle in the second ODI. He was India's highest scorer with his knock of 31 off 35 balls.
Suryakumar Yadav: The ruthless T20I batter is having a forgetful outing in the ongoing ODIs against Australia. In both the matches, he was dismissed for a golden duck by Mitchell Starc. His back-to-back failures have been raising many questions regarding his spot in the team.
KL Rahul: The wicketkeeper-batter shut down all the trolls with his match-winning knock of 75* in the first ODI. However, he also fell into the trap of Mitchell Starc in the second ODI and departed for 9.
Hardik Pandya: The all-rounder played a good innings in the first match but failed with the bat in the second match as he could only score 1 run. With the ball, he leaked 18 runs in one over.
Ravindra Jadeja: The all-rounder has had a superb return to international cricket post his knee surgery. He scored 16 runs in the second ODI and will definitely look for a better performance in the third match.
Kuldeep Yadav/Umran Malik: The left-arm wrist spinner was decent with the ball in the first game against Australia as he picked one wicket for 48 runs in 8 overs. However, he ended up leaking 12 runs in one over in the second ODI. As the new pitch in Chennai reportedly favours fast bowling, the management might go with Umran Malik to strengthen their pace attack.
Axar Patel: The all-rounder remained unbeaten at 29 in the second ODI. He conceded 25 runs in 3 overs. He will definitely look for a better innings in the third ODI.
Mohammed Siraj: After returning with the figures of 3 for 29 in the first ODI, Siraj leaked 37 runs in three overs in the second match.
Mohammed Shami: The veteran pacer picked three wickets in the first ODI which included two clean bowled dismissals. However, he conceded 29 runs in 3 overs in the second match and will aim for redemption in the third ODI.