The Indian cricket team will be looking to continue their winning run in the ICC World Cup 2019 when they take on Australia in their second match of the tournament at the Oval on Sunday.

Virat Kohli & Co started their campaign with a brilliant six-wicket win over South Africa and it was a good outing for both the batsmen and the bowlers. While Yuzvendra Chahal and Jasprit Bumrah impressed with the ball, it was Rohit Sharma who slammed his 23rd ODI hundred to guide his team to victory.

The match was also not free of controversies after wicket-keeper MS Dhoni was spotted with the regimental dagger insignia of the Indian Para Special Forces on his wicket-keeping gloves.

While the BCCI asked the ICC to allow Dhoni to continue sporting the insignia, ICC rejected the plea saying that the regulations for ICC events do not permit any individual message and that the logo also breaches the regulations.

However, when it comes to Australia, Kohli & Co cannot rest on past laurels and it will be a tough fight against a team rejuvenated by the return of Steve Smith and David Warner. While convention dictates that teams generally stick to their winning combination, the conditions at the Oval may force India to make a change to their side.

Mohammed Shami was not part of the team that played against South Africa as India wanted to exploit the Proteas’ weakness against the two wrist spinners - Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal. But, considering the overcast conditions at the Oval, Shami may find a place in the team and he will most likely replace Kuldeep.

Shami will provide a lot of support to the duo of Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar with Hardik Pandya being the fourth pace option. Chahal, who took four wickets against South Africa, will be the specialist spin option and he will be assisted by Kedar Jadav who is more than capable of bowling a handful of overs as a part-timer.

India Predicted XI: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah

First Published: Jun 08, 2019 14:22 IST