In-form Men in Blue begin favourites

Mirpur: On a roll after completing a hat-trick of victories, title contenders India would look to continue with their winning ways in the ongoing ICC World T20 when they meet a struggling Australian team in their last group league encounter here tomorrow.

Having registered comprehensive wins against Pakistan, West Indies and Bangladesh in three successive matches to qualify for the semi-finals, the confidence of the team is at an all-time high as they face George Bailey's Australia which has not done justice to their immense potential.

With back-to-back defeats against Pakistan and West Indies, the Australian team are all but out of the competition with a faint mathematical possibility that has kept them afloat and interested.

But for that to happen, George Bailey and his team first need to beat India by a comprehensive margin which looks a distant reality considering the current form of the two teams.

While India's campaign has gone from strength to strength with a solid all-round show in all the matches, Australia have struggled to maintain the momentum during the key stages of the game which is all the more important in a short format like the Twenty20.

For India, the key has been their spinners, who have done a tremendous job. While left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja has been a bit on the expensive side despite taking wickets, off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and leg-spinner Amit Mishra have been pictures of consistency so far in the tournament.

Ashwin should be lauded for the manner in which he has bowled in the Powerplay overs often seizing the initiative for his team while Mishra has been fantastic for India at the back end with his clever variations.

They have been assigned different roles by their captain and both have so far stood tall to the expectations of their leader.

Ashwin has hardly given any runs to the top-order in the Powerplay overs operating from round the wicket to the right-handers cramping them for room.

Mishra, on the other hand, has bamboozled the batsmen with his guile. His googly has not been read well by most of the batsmen while he has used the flight to deceive the batsmen in the air. The classical leg-breaks have also got him wickets as the seven scalps in three matches with a highly impressive economy rate of 5.50 tells the story.

Dhoni's captaincy in the tournament is like a breath of fresh air for the manner in which he has handled his bowling attack knowing its strengths and limitations.

Dhoni gave a very practical insight as to why the bowling attack has done so well in the tournament.

"The bowlers, who bowl quick are not bowling in the same areas.Definitely we have got potential when it comes to sheer fast bowling. Varun is someone who can bowl quick. Umesh is also someone who can bowl at 140-145 but they are still finding their line and length which may take a bit of time.

India's batting line-up too has not been far behind as they complemented the bowlers quite well.

Squads:

India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Amit Mishra, Mohammed Shami, Mohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Varun Aaron, Stuart Binny.

Australia: George Bailey (captain), Aaron Finch, David Warner, Shane Watson, George Bailey, Glenn Maxwell, Brad Hodge, Nathan Coultier-Nile, Mitchell Starc, Doug Bollinger, James Faulkner, Brad Hogg, James Muirhead, Cameron White, Dan Christian.