History
India and Australia have faced off in 22 T20 international matches over the years, with India winning 13 of those matches and Australia winning only 8, with 1 match being declared as a No Result. 11 of those 22 matches were played in Australia, and India has won 7 of them, with Australia winning 3, and 1 being declared as a No Result. Australia are currently the top-ranked team in T20 Internationals, while India is ranked 3. India beat Australia by 11 runs in the first T20, after scoring 161 in the first innings. In the 2nd T20, Australia batted first and put up a decent total of 194, which was chased down by a spirited batting performance by India.
Team News
The Australians seem to be in the middle of a small crisis with their form. They have lost 3 matches in a row, and the Indians have suddenly become the dominant side in this tour. To make matters worse, David Warner has injured his groin and will miss the 3rd T20 as well. His absence was clearly felt as Australia lost their first 2 matches in a row without him.
They struggled with the bat in the first match of the series, managing only 150, with only Moises Henriques impressing with the bat and ball both. In the second T20, captain Mathew Wade opened the innings with a brilliant half century, and coupled with a solid 46 from Smith, he managed to take his team to 194. Maxwell and Henriques also played decent knocks, however both failed with the ball. Every bowler was smashed to all corners of the field by the Indians as they chased down the target, especially Daniel Sams and Andrew Tye.
The Indians are well and truly back in this series, with 3 consecutive wins now, as they wrapped up the series with a brilliant run chase. In the first match, it was India’s bowlers that did the job, restricting the home side to just 150 in response to their 161, while in the second match, the batsmen stepped up, chasing down 194, with a brilliant partnership between the experienced Delhi pair Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli, followed by a typical late flourish from Hardik Pandya.
Natarajan was the pick of the bowlers with 2 wickets and an economy rate of only 5. India will most likely rest some players for the test series, and give players like Varun Chakravarthy and Mayank Agarwal a chance in the squad.
Betting Preview, Picks And Prediction
To Win The Match
Throughout the series, Australia have been the favourites or at least the joint-favourites before every single match. However, after 3 defeats in a row, they are now the underdogs as India are favourites to win this match at 1.79. Australia are 2.00 to win this match.
Top Team Batsman
Virat Kohli will probably be rested for this match, and hence KL Rahul is the new favourite to be the India’s top scorer at 3.75. He is followed by Mayank Agarwal at 5.00 and Sanju Samson at 6.00.
In Warner’s absence, a flurry of top order batsmen have the same odds. Smith and D’arcy Short are at 4.25. Keeper Mathew Wade is now favourite at 4.00 after his brilliant half century.
Highest Opening Partnership
Both the Indian openers have hit a half century each in this series so far, and seem to be in form. A big partnership is due and hence India are the favourites at 1.79 to have the highest opening partnership in this match.
Top Team Bowler
Adam Zampa is the favourite to be the top bowler, with his bamboozling deliveries troubling the Indians throughout the series. Josh Hazelwood really troubled the Indian batsmen in the previous series, specially Kohli, and he is at 4.50 to be the top bowler.
By far India’s best bowler in the previous match was T Natarajan, who took 2 wickets for only 20 runs in 4 overs. He is the second favourite at 4.33 to be the best bowler, after Chahal at 3.75.
Total Runs In The Match
Odds of there being more than 347 runs in this match are 1.83, as per LeoVegas. This seems highly achievable as Sydney is not a huge ground and is known for plenty of big hits. The 2 ODI matches here saw a lot of runs from both sides, and we expect that to continue. 347 effectively means 174 runs per innings, which is very easily gettable as these two teams scored almost 390 runs in the second match at the same ground.
Individual Player Betting
- KL Rahul to score more than 30.5 runs has odds of 1.83, which is a tempting bet as he would like to continue his current form and build on his previous 3 innings. Mathew Wade to score more than 28.5 runs also has odds of 1.83. He seemed to be in great touch in the previous game and is expected to open the innings again.
- Despite losing the first match, Australia hit more sixes than India, with Henriques and Swepson also joining the party, joining players such as Finch, Smith, Stoinis and Maxwell, who are all capable of the big hits. Mathew Wade can also hit the big shots and Australia are looking imperious for this bet.
- Natarajan to take 2 or more wickets has odds of 2.60, which is very attractive as he has absolutely rattled the Aussies with his yorkers. Zampa to take 2 or more wickets also has odds of 2.45, which is attractive as he can also bowl in the middle overs and break partnerships.
Our Top Betting Picks
- Australia to win the match @2.00
- Australia to hit the most sixes @2.10
- India to have the Highest Opening Partnership @1.79
- Zampa to be Australia’s top bowler @4.00
