Australia’s inexperienced ODI bowling attack faces a massive challenge today against India’s dominant batting lineup in the opening match in Sydney.
India currently boast arguably the best top three in ODI history – Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli – followed by a very talented middle order.
Kohli, Rohit and Dhawan collectively own an incredible 74 tons in ODI cricket, and will face an Australian attack which combined has a paltry total of just 40 career wickets in this format.
It is a massive mismatch in experience and, potentially, in skill too. To make matters worse for the home side India’s commanding top three have an extraordinary record against Australia – together they have made 3,401 runs at 56 versus the Aussies.
That’s downright scary. What’s even more frightening is that Australia have fielded attacks which were full-strength or close to it in many of those encounters with Kohli, Rohit and Dhawan and yet they still ran amok.
What, then, will they do to a modest and green ODI attack of Jhye Richardson (four career ODIs), Jason Behrendorff (on ODI debut), Peter Siddle (hasn’t played an ODI in eight years) and Nathan Lyon (15 career ODIs)?
Richardson has showed glimpses of promise in his brief limited overs international career but has also been carved up several times.
Behrendorff is hugely-gifted – the best 50-over bowler yet to represent Australia. He made a big impression on India last year when inside his first 2.3 overs he dismissed Kohli, Rohit, Dhawan and Manish Pandey in a T20I in Guwahati. It was the left armer’s late swing which troubled the Indian batsmen on that occasion.
But Behrendorff has a huge task today making his ODI debut on an expected SCG road against this dominant Indian batting unit. The same goes for Siddle, making a shock comeback to ODIs, and Lyon who has never had a proper run in the format.
Beyond their intimidating top three, India also have at four a skilful accumulator in Ambati Rayudu, who has 1,447 runs at 52 in ODIs.
Offering late innings fire power are Kedhar Jadhav, who averages 42 at a strike rate of 108 in ODIs, and all-rounder Hardik Pandya (average of 29, strike rate of 114).
Pandya is particularly explosive and is at his most destructive against spin. If he crosses paths with Lyon today make sure you’re watching.
As odd it sounds, India’s weakest link may just be the man who has claims to be considered their best ODI player of all time.
In his past 30 ODIs, veteran wicketkeeper-batsman MS Dhoni has averaged just 25 with the bat.
What stands out most is his consistently snail-paced scoring – Dhoni’s strike rate in that period is 74, which equates to a run rate of 4.44 runs per over, an incredibly low mark in an era when team totals of 330-plus are common.
Regardless, it’s a daunting scenario for the Australian bowlers when perhaps India’s most vulnerable batsman owns 10,000 ODI runs at an average of 50.
Australia are going to have to either set or chase huge totals in this series because it is very hard to see how their attack can contain this amazing Indian batting unit.
bazza200
Roar Rookie
Fox n kayo
bazza200
Roar Rookie
Our best bet is to not have roads
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
Dhoni had his best ever IPL in terms of boundary hitting. 274 runs scored in boundaries including 30 sixers. It clear to me he is much slower now, for his age he is fast.
Tim Carter
Roar Pro
Kalu' showed the way for openers, but he could not rack up the scores year in year out. At his peak, though...
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Tremain, Mennie and Fawad would all perform well and would not be over awed. Sayers would be out of his league but not over awed. Experience would be his greatest ally.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Voila! He really put in today. Dharwan is not out of India’s Test set up by accident.
CSKERD
Roar Rookie
I like it as an Indian fan to see our batters getting hyped, but be realistic. Any bowler with decent pace and good basics can and will castle out batsmen irrespective of their past accolades. So yeah,India has an enviable batting attack but basics still matter. If they play ball per ball on its merit,yeah they're gonna be hard to stop or they could fold within 100.
RogerTA
Roar Rookie
There's no logic Ronan, it's based on dontuition.
Franctony
Roar Rookie
I've always believed he tries to hit too hard and loses shape. He's actually a sweet timer of the ball. His best and quickest innings are where he timed the ball and did not try to hit it out of the ground (will still hit it to the top tiers!)
Franctony
Roar Rookie
From the same cricinfo source. Dhawan in Asia: 40 innings, 1767 runs @ 47.57 and SR of 95.35. Dhawan in Aus, Eng, SA, NZ: 42 innings, 2002 runs at 51 avg and SR of 95.60. Sure looks like he prefers to play the top guns in their own den. He spends a lot of time in his house in Melbourne. Maybe we should get him to change his citizenship…
Chris
Guest
Are the ODIs on network tv, or hidden from us plebs?
Pom in Oz
Roar Guru
Dhawan hasn't played Australia since the 2015-16 tour, where (as Franctony points out) he performed admirably. So, how is he Australia's bunny? Oh, I see. You made it up!
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Yes.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
It is now 2018-2019. Dharwan has failed consistenly since. Revives his numbers against minnows.
Ronan O'Connell
Expert
I'd imagine if the World Cup was 2 years away not 6 months away that Pant would be in the Indian ODI team now instead of Dhoni. But because the WC is so close Dhoni perhaps is using his clout to keep his spot or India's selectors are playing it safe, or a bit of both.
Ronan O'Connell
Expert
"Of that attack, only Richardson is really ‘inexperienced’. They just haven’t played for the Australian ODI team much." By that logic a Test attack of Tremain, Mennie, Sayers and Fawad Ahmed would be considered a "very experienced Test attack".
Ronan O'Connell
Expert
Dhoni is still incredibly fast between wickets, he's an amazing athlete. He just has lost that ability to hit boundaries and is over-reliant on working 1s and 2s (not many ODI batsmen around like that these days, normally the opposite!)
Ronan O'Connell
Expert
"India have been having problems accelerating in the late overs and with Dhoni past his prime and Pandya suspended that is a huge area of vulnerability." I think that's far less of a problem against Australia because the Aussies are not a high-scoring team. Australia don't have one single explosive batsman in their top five for this match so it's hard to see them churning out a huge total if they bat first or chasing a huge one if they bat second. India's batting needs just to be solid not spectacular to beat this current Aussie lineup.
Franctony
Roar Rookie
In India's tour of Australia in 2015-16, Dhawan scored 287 runs in 5 matches with an average of 57 including one century and two fifties (source cricinfo).
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Of that attack, only Richardson is really 'inexperienced'. They just haven't played for the Australian ODI team much. Dharwan is Australia's bunny. Looking forward to this series.