India vs Australia, 1st T20I: A full-strength Indian squad will start its preparation for T20 World Cup 2022 with a three-match T20 series against Australia, starting on September 20. India vs Australia 1st T20I will be played at the IS Bindra, Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium (PCA) on Tuesday.
Before the home T20 series against Australia, India failed to defend their title in Asia Cup 2022. Rohit Sharma & Co. started their Asia Cup campaign with two consecutive wins but then lost two back-to-back matches against Pakistan and Sri Lanka, respectively, eventually getting knocked out of the tournament in the Super 4 stage.
Legend Virat Kohli ending his dry spell in international cricket was the biggest positive for team India. The ex-India skipper scored 276 runs at a remarkable batting average of 92. The RCB legend ended Asia Cup as the highest run-getter for India in the Asia Cup. The highlight of Virat returning to form in the Asia Cup was him scoring his career's maiden T20I ton (61-ball 122), after a long gap of 1020 days.
Ahead of Ind vs Aus 1st T20I, star Aussie pacer Pat Cummins revealed that he did not watch the Asia Cup, even though he knew that Virat Kohli scored a century.
"To be totally honest, I didn't see any of that tournament. I think Sri Lanka won? Honestly, I didn't see any of it. I saw Virat Kohli, I think he scored a hundred, yeah he's a class player, he was always going to return to form at some point in time. He's going to be a challenge this next week," Cummins revealed in the press conference ahead of the first T20I against India.
"I think a lot of games in India are played at a different pace as compared to Australia, the boundaries are normally a bit smaller. I think you need to adapt really quickly, you will have some days where the wicket is a bit slower, then cutters and those types of things are really important for the bowlers. So, everyone here has played a lot in India and everyone understands it. It is a format you have to be up for, and if it does not work on the day, then you need to move on quickly from it," the fast bowler added.