DISCLAIMER: ALL STATS UPDATED TILL END OF MATCH 46: WI vs USA

LAST 5 MATCHES

THE LIKELY PLAYING XIs FOR INDIA & AUSTRALIA

India likely XI

Batters – Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal

All-Rounders – Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja

Wicketkeeper – Rishabh Pant

Bowlers – Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav

Australia likely XI

Batters – David Warner, Travis Head, Tim David

All-Rounders – Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis

Wicketkeeper – Matthew Wade

Bowlers – Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa

Statistical Performance (India)

1. VIRAT KOHLI

Virat Kohli has a great record against Australia and will be itching to go out and pile on a big score after failing so far in the tournament.

VIRAT KOHLI IN T20 WORLD CUPS

2. JASPRIT BUMRAH

Jasprit Bumrah was the Player of the Match against Pakistan and Ireland and has been the best bowler of the tournament so far. Bumrah has bagged 8 wickets in 4 matches at an average of 6.5 and economy of 3.5!

JASPRIT BUMRAH IN 2024 T20 WORLD CUP

Players who can make a Difference (India)

1. Suryakumar Yadav

Suryakumar Yadav showed his class with a Player of the Match performance on a tricky wicket at Barbados against Afghanistan. His unconventional stroke-play and ability to score boundaries behind square makes him a very dangerous batter in the middle-order.

2. Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant’s unorthodox stroke-play makes him a match-winner against any opposition. He has been in fine form in the tournament scoring 116 runs in four innings in difficult batting conditions. Pant’s promotion to number 3 has been a brilliant move by India.

Statistical Performance (Australia)

1. MARCUS STOINIS

Marcus Stoinis is a match-winner for Australia in the middle-order and has a strike rate of 190.2 in the tournament. He has scored two fifties in three innings.

MARCUS STOINIS IN 2024 T20 WORLD CUP

2. ADAM ZAMPA

Adam Zampa is a big wicket-taker in T20I cricket and will be crucial for Australia in the middle overs against India. Zampa has bagged 103 wickets in just 84 innings at a strike rate of 17.8 and economy of 7.2 in T20I cricket.

ADAM ZAMPA IN T20 WORLD CUPS

Players who can make a Difference (Australia)

1.Travis Head

Travis Head is in the form of his life and is currently the most dangerous batter in the world in the powerplay. He was in menacing form in the IPL and has a strike rate of 156 in this tournament.

2. Mitchell Starc

Mitchell Starc has an uncanny ability to strike in the first over and his battle with the Indian openers will define the rest of the encounter on Monday. Starc is one of the greatest bowlers in white-ball cricket history!

Team Head to Head

India and Australia have played each other 31 times and India has dominated this rivalry winning 19 encounters. Australia has won 11 matches. India has maintained a stranglehold in the last five encounters too.

INDIA v AUSTRALIA – HEAD TO HEAD RECORD

Player Match-Ups

1. ROHIT SHARMA vs MITCHELL STARC IN T20s

INNINGS – 5

BALLS FACED – 16

RUNS SCORED – 23

WICKETS – 1

Rohit Sharma has struggled a bit against left-arm pace in all formats. He was dismissed by Fazalhaq Farooqi against Afghanistan too. Starc vs Rohit will be the battle in the powerplay.

2. VIRAT KOHLI vs ADAM ZAMPA IN T20Is

INNINGS – 12

BALLS FACED – 74

RUNS SCORED – 90

WICKETS – 3

Virat Kohli vs Adam Zampa will be the battle of the middle overs. Kohli slows down against quality leg spin and it will be interesting to see what approach he adopts against Zampa.

3. DAVID WARNER vs JASPRIT BUMRAH IN T20s

INNINGS – 11

BALLS FACED – 50

RUNS SCORED – 56

WICKETS – 2

Bumrah is in great form and his battle with David Warner in the Australian powerplay will set the tone for the rest of the match.

Venue and Pitch

The Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in Gros Islet at St Lucia has hosted five T20Is in the World Cup. Interestingly, the captain winning the toss has elected to bowl all 5 times. But the team batting first has won three matches. The average score batting first at St Lucia in the tournament is 188/5 which makes it a very high-scoring venue. The average score chasing is 151/7.

The wicket is good for batting where the ball comes onto the bat. Pacers have picked 58% of the wickets at St Lucia but been expensive with an economy of 9.4. Spinners have been more restrictive with an economy of 7.9. The average score at St Lucia is 170. There will be high speed winds blowing across the stadium on Monday. The mean temperature will be 29 degrees while there is a 60% chance of rain.

Match Prediction

This will be a marquee encounter. It is the El-Clasico of cricket! It is very difficult to pick the favourites for Monday. Both teams have a very strong batting line-up and an equally potent bowling attack. The contest between Starc-Hazlwood and the Indian openers will define the match. Kohli is expected to get a big score against his favourite opponents. Bumrah vs Head will be a crucial battle too as will be the clash between Kuldeep and Maxwell/Stoinis. Based on the relative strengths and form in the tournament, Australia start marginal favourites with a 51% chance of victory.

Fantasy XI

And finally, this is our Fantasy XI for the India vs Australia encounter. We have 6 players from India and 5 from Australia. Rohit and Head will open the innings while SKY, Kohli and Stoinis will comprise the middle order. Bumrah and Starc will share the new ball while the middle overs will be controlled by Zampa.

Bumrah is our captain while Head is the vice-captain.

Our backup players include JAISWAL as batter, MOHAMMED SIRAJ as bowler and CAMERON GREEN as all-rounder.

Fantasy XI

Wicketkeeper: RISHABH PANT

Batters: VIRAT KOHLI, ROHIT SHARMA, SURYAKUMAR YADAV, TRAVIS HEAD (VC)

All-rounders: HARDIK PANDYA, MARCUS STOINIS, MITCHELL MARSH

Bowlers: JASPRIT BUMRAH (C), MITCHELL STARC, ADAM ZAMPA

BACKUP PLAYERS:

BATTER – YASHASVI JAISWAL

BOWLER – MOHAMMED SIRAJ

ALL-ROUNDER – CAMERON GREEN