India tour of Australia 2025 | AUS vs IND: 3rd T20I | Preview and Predictions
After a blowout in the second T20I which saw the Australian bowlers blow out the Indian batters, out of competition, Suryakumar Yadav and his boys have their backs up against their wall in a must-win game with respect to the series. The action shifts to Hobart for the third T20I as the Indian team look to hit back.
For this game, here we present our preview and predictions.
India tour of Australia 2025 | 3rd T20I | 13:45 IST, November 2
The Indian batting unit’s flaws against sheer pace was exposed in the second T20I in Melbourne. Barring Abhishek Sharma and a fighting effort by Harshit Rana, none of the Indian batters managed looked comfortable out there in the middle. The likes of Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma had no answer to Josh Hazlewood’s pace. Much to India’s relief, the Hobart strip won’t be as quick as the Melbourne ground and there will be no Josh Hazlewood either for the rest of the series, with the Australian quick heading off to prepare for the upcoming Ashes. Suryakumar Yadav will expect his batters to put up a better performance, especially himself, who has been in poor form off late. Yadav and Samson will be two key batters for India at the top of the order, with their experience. Abhishek Sharma was the lone warrior for India in Melbourne, scoring 68 but the young explosive opener batted until the 19th over from the start and managed to face only 37 deliveries. The lack of strike eventually cost India dearly and Sharma will need to take more responsibility upon his shoulders if he is batting deep and the set batter. With the ball, there was not much for the Indian bowlers to defend but Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakravarthy tried their best and with no Arshdeep Singh in the XI, there will be added pressure on Bumrah.
The hosts were clinical with the ball with Josh Hazlewood putting in a fast bowling masterclass to see Australia go 1-0 up in the series. Even though Hazlewood will not be available for the remainder of the series, the support act of Xavier Bartlett, Spencer Johnson and Nathan Ellis has been stellar as well. Australia will also be bolstered by the addition of Glenn Maxwell. The Australian batting hasn’t been put to test yet in the series and with Maxwell’s addition, an explosive lineup gets even more dangerous.
The Hobart strip will offer something for the batters, something the Indian squad will be happy with and after a big loss in Melbourne, we have Suryakumar Yadav and his boys as favourites to tie up the score in the series.
Fantasy XI: Abhishek Sharma, Mitchell Marsh (vc), Travis Head, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Josh Inglis (wk), Tim David, Mitchell Owen, Jasprit Bumrah (c), Varun Chakravarthy, Nathan Ellis
Venue: Bellerive Oval, Hobart
Winners Prediction: India
