While Bumrah is leaking runs from one end, Bhuvneshwar is somewhat making up for it with tight lines from the other. Gives away just two runs — both singles — off his fourth over. Australia's going at five per over at the moment.
Preview: India will aim for a return to the top spot in One-Day International (ODI) rankings when they face Australia in the fifth and final match at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground in Nagpur on Sunday.
The hosts, who have already clinched the five-match ODI series with an unassailable 3-1 lead, slipped to the second spot after losing the fourth tie in Bengaluru by 21 runs on Thursday.
India captain Virat Kohli and Australia captain Steve Smith. AFP
Australia rode on an all-round show, with openers Aaron Finch and David Warner starring with the bat along side pacer Kane Richardson's three-wicket haul to clinch their first victory in the series.
India will look to get back to winning ways banking on in-form batsmen Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav.
The hosts, who played pacers Mohammad Shami and Umesh Yadav in place of Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be forced to make changes in the bowling department which failed to look lethal in the last match.
Spinners Axar Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal will be the key in the middle overs to provide important breakthroughs.
The visitors, however, will look to emulate the previous ODI to end the series on a respectable note.
Openers Warner and Finch will be the key to the batting line-up. The side will also expect skipper Steve Smith to play a vital role in adding to the teams score tally.
In the bowling department, pacers Nathan Counter-Nile and Richardson will look to vary their pace to pick up crucial wickets.
Squads:
India: Virat Kohli (captain), Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Lokesh Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah.
Australia: Steven Smith (captain), Aaron Finch, Matthew Wade (wicket-keeper), David Warner, Kane Richardson, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Travis Head, Adam Zampa, Marcus Stoinis BenchGlenn Maxwell, James Faulkner, Hilton Cartwright.
HIGHLIGHTS
AUS XI: Aaron Finch, David Warner, Travis Head, Steve Smith (c), Peter Handscomb, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade(wk), Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Adam Zampa, James Faulkner
Steve Smith: Looks a bit dry, hopefully will slow down later on.
Just one change for the Aussies — Faulkner replacing Kane Richardson.
TOSS: Australia win the toss for the third time in this series, and skipper Steve Smith opts to bat first.
After 7 overs,Australia 35/0 ( David Warner 22 , Aaron Finch 13)
While Bumrah is leaking runs from one end, Bhuvneshwar is somewhat making up for it with tight lines from the other. Gives away just two runs — both singles — off his fourth over. Australia's going at five per over at the moment.
The ball is not swinging much and the plan has been to bowl short. There is a deep square leg in place and the short fine leg since the last couple of overs. But Warner and Finch are putting away the shortish deliveries with pulls and cuts. India need to change their strategy. Introducing spin might help.
Aussies, particularly Warner are punching the ball on both sides of pitch with powerful short arm jabs. The restriction of field -- only 2 allowed outside circle for first 10 overs -- is helping Aussies to rustle up some boundaries. Warner looking aggressive and finding gaps in field with shots to both side of wicket. Good batting by Aussie openers.
After 6 overs,Australia 33/0 ( David Warner 21 , Aaron Finch 12)
Another expensive Bumrah over, with 12 coming off it, as Australia start finding their feet. Warner it is this time who gets successive boundaries — guiding the penultimate delivery over midwicket before punching the last delivery of the over through the covers. He moves to 21 at the end of this over.
FOUR! Now successive boundaries for Warner, as he punches the last ball of the sixth over through the covers, piercing the packed arc! AUS 33/0
FOUR! Another short-arm jab executed by Warner, who seems to have a liking for this shit. The ball is too high for the fielder at midwicket to grab. AUS 29/0
After 5 overs,Australia 21/0 ( David Warner 10 , Aaron Finch 11)
Warner helps himself to his first boundary at the start of the over, going for a short-arm jab towards the square-leg boundary. Collects a single a couple of deliveries later to hand the strike back to Finch, who guides the last ball towards the leg side for a couple of runs. Seven off the over.
The strategy from Australian openers are clear and that is of playing cautiously in the first ten over and then up-the-ante if needed while building a partnership. On the other hand, with the 6-3 field, India also don't want allow Australia to off to a quick start and they have somehow managed to achieve it with both their front-line bowlers' accuracy so far.
Bumrah suddenly testing the hardness of the newly laid pitch with two short-pitched deliveries. Finch pulled to the mid-wicket fence both times without trouble or fuss. Most expensive over as Bumrah temporarily abandoned plan. India needs to get back to the length that helped in the first three overs
FOUR! Now Warner helps himself to a boundary, guiding a length ball from Sunrisers Hyderabad teammate Bhuvneshwar Kumar towards the square-leg boundary with a short-arm jab! AUS 18/0
After 4 overs,Australia 14/0 ( David Warner 5 , Aaron Finch 9)
Good over for the Australians, with Finch pulling Bumrah towards the leg side for back-to-back boundaries to finally get the visitors going. Eight off the over. Let's see when Warner unleashes himself.
FOUR! That's back-to-back boundaries for Finch, as he pulls once again, this time going towards cow corner. AUS 14/0
FOUR! Pulled away powerfull by Finch towards the midwicket fence off Bumrah! First boundary of the Australian innings. AUS 10/0
Bhuvi and Bumrah doing what they do best: bowl a tight line and length and pose questions with the moving ball. Run scoring is tough at this time with both bowlers keeping it tight and batsmen Warner and Finch yet to find their feet.
After 3 overs,Australia 5/0 ( David Warner 4 , Aaron Finch 1)
Bhuvneshwar raps Warner on the pads off the first delivery, going into an appeal immediately after, with the umpire turning it down presumably due to height. Just three singles off the over.
India deployed a catching fielder for Warner for the cut and short midwicket for Finch. Clearly, the plan is choke the openers' favourite shots. Bhuvi is bowling in the fourth-fifth stump line to Warner. It won't be long before the aggressive southpaw loses his patience and looks to cut one.
After 2 overs,Australia 2/0 ( David Warner 2 , Aaron Finch 0)
Bumrah is right on the mark in his first over. He didn't cause any discomfort to Finch, but neither did he give anything away. Hitiing the right lengths straightaway. Holding it a little back of a length and Finch punches of the backfoot for no run. Maiden to begin with.
Jasprit Bumrah to take the other new ball. He has one slip.
A 6-3 field for David Warner first up. Interestingly, Kohli had two slips only for the first ball. He immediately sent the second slip to cover-point before the second ball. As I type this, Warner edged one to first slip but the ball fell agonisingly short of Rohit Sharma.
After 1 overs,Australia 2/0 ( David Warner 2 , Aaron Finch 0)
David Warner starts positively with a flick through the onside off the first ball with Bhuvi getting some shape in, like he always does. Warner and Finch run two first up. Kumar's outswinger find Warner's edge on the third ball but falls just short of 1st slip. The battle is on. Final couple of balls are played out safely.
The teams have lined up for their national anthems. Advance Australia Fair will be followed by the Indian anthem.
Teams batting first have won only two ODIs out of seven at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur before today.
At VCA Ground, Nagpur in ODIs:
The crowd has gone absolutely berserk as the Indian players arrived near the boundary ropes for the national anthems. No surprises as to who the fan favourite is. Chants of 'Dhoni, Dhoni' have already began.
Both the Indian openers Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane are taking throwdowns and looking to play as straight as possible. Rahane has been quite consistent since the Windies tour but would like to finish this series with another ton series to put some pressure on Shikhar Dhawan, who will make a comeback in the New Zealand series.
Before the start of the match, give a read to the preview of the 5th ODI, you can find the link below.
As much as the match is about the contest between India and Australia, it is also a test for VCA. Can they put behind the ghosts of that 2015 Test and redeem themselves?
India vs Australia: Nagpur waits with bated breath as relaid pitch promises spectacular series finale
http://www.firstpost.com
So, India will chase yet again and the bowling experiment has lasted only one game. Umesh did take four wickets but he was expensive and on the other side Shami lacked rhythm. Bhuvi and Bumrah will play the 5th ODI. Kohli also decided to bring back Kuldeep to have more attacking options in the middle overs, where Warner took the attack to the opposition. A forced change for Australia, Faulkner is back for Richardson, who is sick. It will hurt the visitors as Kane has been Smith's go to bowler throughout the series. On the other side, Faulkner has an opportunity to reinvent his methods in the slog overs. But he will have to wait for the Australian innings to get over first.
Have India panicked after losing the bengaluru match? They've fallen back on the two fast bowlers Bhuvi and Bumrah while dropping Umesh And Shami. Umesh picked lots of wickets but won't feature on his home ground as selectors believe he is not at his best. India have piled pressure on themselves by talking of number one spot. No change in batting
Chahal reportedly sick and replaced by Kuldeep Yadav. India will once again chase and this gives the Indian batsmen another opportunity to fine tune their target chasing skills
India are obviously better off defending a target. They struggled to chase one in Bengaluru. They looked in control of the chase when the openers were around. But managed to mess it up with panic running between the wickets and slow batting in the middle overs. May be another chase at VCA should help them iron out the flaws.
The Australian players are getting ready to get into a huddle. A few of them are under pressure to perform with selectors asking Wade that if the runs keep deserting him, he will get dropped. By his standards, Smith has also had a quiet series. But with Warner, Finch and Stoinis looking in great touch, the visitors will fancy their chances of a win here.
The VCA Stadium outfield is a big one. Probably the biggest in India. Obviously this huge outfield would be useful for spinners. Would India go for left arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav rather than orthodox spinner Axar Patel? Two wrist spinners would come in handy in defending a target. Also, would India opt for KL Rahul instead of Kedar Jadhav? The latter can chip in with his slow, low off spinners for a handful of overs. But he would struggle to bat aggressively. If the Aussies refrain from pitching the ball short he would struggle to clear the straight fields with his lofted drives. They allowed him to play the square cut and pull shot in Bengaluru but would have wised up to his game by now.
Any experimentation with the team or strategy in ODI cricket against Australia would end with the fifth and final ODI at Vidarbha CA Stadium. The next set of ODIs are against New Zealand, a relatively easier opponent and hence the true worth of the experimentation would not come through and be validated. Australia with new found confidence after that win in Bengaluru will be a tougher nut to crack. Virat Kohli & coach Ravi Shastri would probably relish the opportunity to test the mettle of some of the players.Thus there would be plenty at stake for the Indian players in this match even if it is a dead rubber. Of course the consolidation of India's position as number one ODI team would be a great attraction to ensure a win. If they lose India might just slip into the second spot in ICC ODI ranking
AUS XI: Aaron Finch, David Warner, Travis Head, Steve Smith (c), Peter Handscomb, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade(wk), Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Adam Zampa, James Faulkner
Steve Smith: Looks a bit dry, hopefully will slow down later on.
Just one change for the Aussies — Faulkner replacing Kane Richardson.
TOSS: Australia win the toss for the third time in this series, and skipper Steve Smith opts to bat first.
Our correspondent Devdutt Kshirsagar chats with fans and previews the upcoming series finale between India and Australia outside the VCA Stadium in Jamtha, Nagpur minutes before toss.
Hello and welcome to Firstpost's live blog of the 5th ODI between India and Australia from VCA Stadium Nagpur. The series has already been won by India but Australia would love to have a 3-2 scoreline rather than a 4-1 whilst Virat Kohli and Co's aim would be not make anything easy, especially for there advarsaries Australia. It would be interesting to see how the new relaid pitch would behave and would add colour to the final ODI.
We will be bringing you, all the live scores, updates, coverage and many more interesting things. So hop on, it is never an dull game between India and Australia, expect a cracker!