The Indian cricket team recorded a magnificent 2-1 T20I series over hosts Australia recently. Not many fans expected the visitors to dominate the home side the way they did. The reason why Australia started as the favourites to win was that this was India’s first T20I series after MS Dhoni’s retirement. Also, Rohit Sharma was unavailable and the Indian cricket team rested Jasprit Bumrah.
On top of that, the Australian batsmen ruled the Indian bowlers in the first ODI matches at the Sydney Cricket Ground. India got some new heroes in the T20I series, while some old faces of Australian cricket shone once again.
Here is the best combined XI from the India vs Australia T20I series.
Openers – Matthew Wade (wk) and Shikhar Dhawan
It was tough to keep KL Rahul out of this XI, but Matthew Wade deserved a spot after his destructive batting performances at the top of the order. The left-handed batsman smacked consecutive half-centuries and played a huge role in Australia’s win in the final T20I match.
Shikhar Dhawan edged KL Rahul in this race because the southpaw scored a half-century in the 2nd T20I and set the tone for India’s big run chase. Both Rahul and Dhawan aggregated 81 runs in three matches, including a fifty and at an average of 27. But Dhawan’s strike rate was slightly better.
Middle Order – Virat Kohli (c), Steve Smith, and Hardik Pandya
Virat Kohli played a top-class innings in the final T20I of the series. Unfortunately, that knock went in vain. Still, Kohli impressed everyone with his batting and captaincy decisions. He gets both positions in this XI.
Steve Smith could not score runs at a quick rate, but he ensured that Australia did not lose wickets regularly when he was in the middle. Smith aggregated 82 runs in three innings at a strike rate of 117.14.
Man of the Series Hardik Pandya will bat at number five in this team. The Indian all-rounder played as a specialist batsman and scored 78 runs in the three matches. His knock in the 2nd T20I was the game-changer of the series.
All-rounders – Glenn Maxwell, Moises Henriques, and Ravindra Jadeja
Glenn Maxwell carried forward his brilliant form from the ODI series and scored 78 runs at a blistering strike rate of 150 for the Aussies. The right-handed batsman smacked the Indian bowlers all over the park. Also, he dismissed KL Rahul for a duck in the final T20I.
Moises Henriques did not receive enough credit for his stellar performance. Captain Aaron Finch gave him a four-over spell in the second T20I, where he returned with figures of 3/22. But in the next two matches, he bowled only one over. With the bat, Henriques scored 61 runs at an average of 30.5.
Ravindra Jadeja played an only half match in this series, but even that was enough to give him a place in the combined T20I XI. The southpaw scored 44 runs in the first game and laid the platform for an Indian victory.
Bowlers – T Natarajan, Mitchell Swepson, and Yuzvendra Chahal
Hardik Pandya handed over his Man of the Series award to debutant T Natarajan which shows his immense contribution in India’s win. The southpaw took six wickets in his debut series and also maintained a decent economy rate on flat batting tracks.
Mitchell Swepson had played only one T20I before this series, but the leg-spinner tormented the Indian batsmen with his bowling skills. He picked up five wickets in three matches, including a 3-wicket haul that helped the home team win the last T20I.
Yuzvendra Chahal did not get a place in the Indian playing XI for the first match. Still, he came in as a concussion substitute and won the match for the team. Although his next two performances were not so impressive, Chahal gets a place in this XI because of his 3/25 in Canberra.
