Australia opener Aaron Finch is doubtful for the series-opener of the upcoming five-match series against India after he left the team’s regular training session on Thursday (September 14) due to a calf problem. The hard-hitting batsman aggravated his right calf injury during the warm-up session in Chennai and subsequently skipped the rest of the session.
The 30-year old had also missed Australia’s warm-up match against Board President’s XI on Tuesday (September 12) due to the calf injury which he sustained while plying his trade for Surrey in England last month. According to a report in cricket.com.au, Finch was expected to play in the first game after returning to training this week but is now doubtful for Sunday’s (September 17) clash.
In case Finch fails to recover in time, Australia is likely to send newcomer Hilton Cartwright or Travis Head to open the innings with David Warner. Cartwright had opened the innings in the practice tie but was dismissed for a duck which might pave the way for Head to play. Moreover, Head’s IPL experience also tilts the balance slightly in his favor, and he had also scored his maiden ODI century against Pakistan earlier this year as an opener.
Meanwhile, the visitors have prepared for the upcoming series in style, thrashing Board President’s XI by 103 runs to send a warning to the Men in Blue. Barring Cartwright and Glenn Maxwell (14), all the batsmen had chipped in with useful knocks to help the visitors post a daunting 347 for 7 in the allotted 50 overs before Ashton Agar’s 4-wicket haul helped them to bowl the home side out for just 244.
India, meanwhile, will also miss a key member in the series-opener as the in-form Shikhar Dhawan has been allowed by the BCCI to skip the first three ODIs to remain with his ailing wife. The southpaw has been in brilliant form since returning to the team during the Champions Trophy, and his absence will be a big blow for the Men in Blue. In his absence, Ajinkya Rahane is the frontrunner to open the innings alongside Rohit Sharma.
Squads:
India (first three ODIs):
Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma (vc), KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami.
Australia:
Steve Smith (c), David Warner, Ashton Agar, Hilton Cartwright, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Patrick Cummins, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa.