India have a tricky decision to make before the fifth ODI on whether to keep continuing with their experiments to find the right combination for World Cup since this is India’s last international match before the mega event or to field their best possible XI with each player settling into their preferred slots and give their all to win the series against Australia.
India squandered their 2-0 lead after they started experimenting with their playing XI from the third ODI, ending losing both of them by comfortable margins. India made as many as four changes to give game time all the World Cup aspirants in the fourth ODI at Mohali.
To be fair to the Indian think tank, this series was billed as the last chance for finding the missing pieces before going into the 2019 World Cup in England, starting May 30. But coming into the last game of the series at the Ferozeshah Kotla on Wednesday Virat Kohli and Co would not like to lose an ODI series at home after almost 4 years.
With Dhoni resting, India are already without their first-choice keeper and this very moment, it would be crucial to see whether India still continues with the idea of batting Kohli at No. 4. The crucial spot in the middle order still remains a cause of concern for Team India with Ambati Rayudu failing to cement it. Before the series began, he was pitted as the preferred one for the No. 4 slot but that soon changed after he made way for KL Rahul and Kohli dropped down the order.
While the bowling left a lot to be desired, the opening partnership between Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan augurs well for the team going into the showpiece event. While the two had looked a little out of sync in the previous games, Rohit (95) and Dhawan (143) showed that the top-order is in for business.
Another area that needs to be looked at is the spot of the wicket-keeper. While all is good till MS Dhoni is around, Rishabh Pant left a lot to be desired with his glovework in Mohali. Two stumpings that should have been completed with utmost ease were missed, let alone Pant's failure to handle the low bounce at times. While it is no worry at present as Dhoni is only resting for these two games, it is a matter that will need immediate attention if Dhoni indeed walks into sunset post the World Cup.
The pace bowling department might enjoy some little movement upfront with some rain in the air in the Capital. But even without that, the fast bowling department has done its job and they will once again look to hold fort at the Kotla.
The Indians decided to give training a miss on Tuesday and that shouldn't be too much of a worry as the boys have been playing non-stop. The wicket at the Kotla is once again expected to be a high scoring one with turn coming into the game in the second half.
For the Australians, it will be about once again showing the world that this team has regrouped well and mean business going into the World Cup. With the likes of Steve Smith, David Warner and Mitchell Starc not even part of the squad, this is ominous signs.
To come down to India and challenge the Men in Blue in almost every game is no mean feat and they will once again look to sign off on a high because after all, the Indians are touted as one of the favourites to win the trophy.
India squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, Vijay Shankar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rishabh Pant (Wicket-Keeper), Mohammed Shami, Ravindra Jadeja.
Australia squad: Aaron Finch (Captain), Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Glenn Maxwell, Ashton Turner, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey (Wicket-Keeper), Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Lyon, Adam Zampa, D'Arcy Short.