Daijiworld Media Network
Melbourne, Jan 20 : The weather in Brisbane has been erratic for the last couple of days. It was pouring last night and we have a 90% chance of rain today. However, the good news is that it is sunny right now. There might be a few showers later but let's hope we get a full game.
Meanwhile, for England it has been the same old story. A change in captain has done nothing to bring about a change in fortune for them. Their batting inconsistency has troubled them the most. Although skipper Eoin Morgan navigated them out of a tough situation, a below par total on the board was never going to stand chance against Australia's formidable batting line-up. Their bowling has been better in comparison but not too threatening. With James Anderson's return to the fold, after he missed the Sydeny game due to an injury, England might fancy their chances this time around.
One of the major problems that has troubled India repeatedly over the last few months is their bowling and their first game was no different. Except Bhuvneshwar Kumar, wayward line and lengths from the other bowlers ensured that Australia cruised in the middle overs. A spirited performance towards the end however, changed things drastically and it required James Faulkner's usual brilliance to haul the hosts over the finish line.
India's opening encounter against Australia in the tri-series was a competitive one. After days of being ridiculed for their Test performance, the duo of Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina, showed just why they can compete with the likes of Virat Kohli in the shorter format of the game. Rohit's well-compiled century and Raina's resilience pushed India past the 250-mark after they were reduced to 59/3 at one stage. However, that was not enough.
India have won the toss and have opted to bat
MS Dhoni: 'We will bat first. It looks like a good wicket. There will be bounce for the fast bowlers and once we negotiate the new ball, it will be better. We have to get a win in this format. The last game was not too good for us but we have taken plenty of positives from it. We performed well in patches. We bowled well in the last few overs. We have made a couple of changes. Rohit has a sore hamstring, Rayudu will come in his place. Binny comes in for Ashwin.'
Eoin Morgan: 'We would have batted as well. But we are not too worried. We will look to bowl well against them. Anderson comes back. The last game hurt us. Our start was not good but we managed to pull things back later. However, it was not enough. I have full confidence in the boys.'
Pitch Report: 'It is a rock hard pitch. There will be a fair bit of bounce. The fast bowlers will enjoy bowling here but they need to get their lengths right. The nature of the pitch won't change much over the 7-hour period of play. There will be a lot of carry. But once you get set, it will be a very good track to bat on,' reckon Sunil Gavaskar and Wasim Akram.
Teams:
India (Playing XI): Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni(w/c), Stuart Binny, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav
England (Playing XI): Ian Bell, Moeen Ali, James Taylor, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan(c), Ravi Bopara, Jos Buttler(w), Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Steven Finn
Match Preview
India and England lost their opening games to Australia but the manner of their defeats sent out different signals. With both bat and ball, England were poor in Sydney while India had some positives to take from their defeat in Melbourne on Sunday. With the teams locking horns in Australia for the first time in 22 years, India will be aiming to register their first win on tour, knowing that England have won just three of their last 10 ODIs and are low on confidence. England need a turnaround desperately but that will not be easy against an Indian team that fought hard against Australia.
Team News
India
Rohit Sharma gave India 138 reasons to smile with his performance against Australia in Melbourne and his touch augurs well for the team. However, the same cannot be said about Shikhar Dhawan, who departed in the first over. The left-hander's lack of form is a source of real worry and his continued failures challenge the team. There have been calls for Ajinkya Rahane to step up as opener and it will be interesting to see if MS Dhoni decides to go with that in Brisbane.
The Indian bowlers came into their own with a spirited display towards the end of the opening match. Umesh Yadav, who strayed with the new ball, came back and bowled with pace and hostility. Bhuvneshwar Kumar held things up nicely until he went for 16 runs in what turned out to be the final over of the match. Mohammed Shami is under a cloud after walking off the MCG pitch with a fitness problem. Mohit Sharma or Dhawal Kulkarni could take his place if he is ruled unfit.
England
There seems to be no end to England's woes in ODIs. They lost three successive ODI series and were out of depth in Sydney. The inconsistency at the top is a major source of worry. Only four batsmen average over 30, with Joe Root the only one with an average of over 40. Ian Bell averages 24 in the last 10 matches and his struggles have highlighted England's plight. Eoin Morgan's century against Australia held the middle-order together but he lacked support. England's batting must function as a unit if they are to change their fortunes.
England will welcome James Anderson back after he missed Sydney game due to an injury. Anderson will be valuable on a Gabba deck that is expected to assist swing and offer extra bounce. Stuart Broad looked rusty and the team will be hoping that he can get into rhythm.