Australia vs India, 1st Test: Preview, Dream11 and stats
Following an action-packed white-ball leg, Australia and India are all set to lock horns in the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Notably, the match will be a Day/Night affair in Adelaide. While Australia boast a terrific record in pink-ball Tests, this will be the first such game for Team India on foreign soil. Here is the match preview.
Venue, timing, TV listing, pitch report and conditions
The Adelaide Oval will host the first Test from December 17 (9:30 AM IST). The wicket here assists the batsmen, with spin coming into play eventually. However, the fast bowlers are also able to produce movement with the pink ball. Besides, one can watch the match live on the Sony Sports Network, while live streaming will be available on the SonyLIV app (paid subscription).
Cameron Green could make his Test debut
With no David Warner and Will Pucovski, either Joe Burns or Marcus Harris could open the innings. Skipper Tim Paine, in his recent statement, hinted that Australia could go with the Burns-Matthew Wade pair at the top. Further, all-rounder Cameron Green is in line to make his Test debut. Probable XI: Burns/Harris, Wade, Labuschagne, Smith, Head, Green, Paine (C/WK), Cummins, Starc, Lyon, Hazlewood.
Prithvi Shaw expected to open despite faltering in tour games
The Indian team has a rather settled combination. Prithvi Shaw is expected to open the innings alongside Mayank Agarwal despite a string of low scores in the warm-up games. Besides, it remains to be seen if skipper Virat Kohli goes with a four-pronged pace attack, considering the pink ball. Probable XI: Shaw, Agarwal, Pujara, Kohli (C), Rahane, Vihari, Pant (WK), Ashwin/Navdeep, Bumrah, Shami, Yadav.
AUS vs IND: A look at the interesting stats
Australia have played seven Day/Night Tests so far, having maintained a 100% record. On the other hand, India have played only one such Test, the high-voltage Eden Gardens game against Bangladesh (won). While six Australians have registered centuries in Day/Night Tests, Kohli is the only Indian to have done so. Notably, the Indian captain also owns three tons in Adelaide in as many Tests.
The battle between two heavyweights
The stakes will be high as the two modern-day greats, Kohli and Smith will take center stage. Smith presently averages 62.84 in Tests, second-best after Don Bradman (20+ matches). He has racked up 1,429 runs from 10 Tests at 84.05 against India. Meanwhile, Kohli has aggregated 1,604 runs in 19 Tests against Australia. Interestingly, the duo has seven tons against the respective oppositions.
Dream11: Smith, Kohli to lead the side
Wicket-keeper: Tim Paine. Batsmen: Virat Kohli (VC), Steve Smith (C), Cheteshwar Pujara, Marnus Labuschagne. All-rounders: Cameron Green, Hanuma Vihari. Bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell Starc, Mohammed Shami, Pat Cummins.
