India vs Australia 2019: Matthew Hayden Predicts About ODI and T20I Series
Feb 24, 2019 at 11:47 AM
Former Australia opening batsman Matthew Hayden has put forward his insight regarding the five-match One-day Internationals and two-match Twenty20 International series between hosts India and visiting side Australia. The India vs Australia 2019 limited-overs campaign will kick off in Visakhapatnam on February 24.
Hayden expects India could repeat what they did on Kiwis shores. He believes India has all the bases covered to tackle the visitors.
Owing to his prophecy, Hayden on the eve of the first T20I at Vizag, revealed it’s going to be an exciting contest between the two top-notch teams.
However, India has delivered goods recently in series Down Under by routing hosts Australia 2-1 in the three-match ODI series, earlier this year. It was also first-ever win for India in the bilateral series on the Australian soil.
The southpaw believes India will clinch the series 4-1 while considering their remarkable performance against New Zealand. Under the leadership of Kohli, India claimed their ODI series win in New Zealand after 10-long years.
Furthermore, the veteran batsman believes the T20I series will culminate with a draw.
“Based on what India has achieved in New Zealand, I think it is going to be 4-1 (in ODIs). And I think it going to be a tie in the T20Is with Australia winning one of those,” Hayden told broadcasting giant Star Sports.
Both the teams boast about hard-hitters and the prominent faces who has further excelled in the pressure-cooker situations. So, it’s not going to be an easy task for the captains to sit down and relax.
Apart from it, India is ranked second on the ICC’s T20 team list, whereas, Australia has maintained the fifth spot.
On the other side, the teams are preparing for the ICC World Cup, starting May 30. The youngsters have a major chance to impress selectors in a bid to break into the coveted squad. The quadrennial event in the United Kingdom (UK) will host the pool of youngsters.
In the last couple of years, India has been a dominant force across formats. With youngsters showing the progress, it has overall benefitted the Men in Blue. Australia has struggled to make an impact after losing on Steven Smith and David Warner in the wake up of a ball-tampering saga.
On the other side, India won’t show any complacency against the visitors.
Also, both the teams could show off to have a talented pool of young players. With Indian selectors reposing faith in KL Rahul, wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant has an excellent chance to deliver in the lead up to the 2019 World Cup. Also, young leg-spinner Mayank Markande has a big opportunity to make his numbers count with the ball.
Well, Aaron Finch-led side would want D’Arcy Short to deliver goods alongside promising paceman Jhye Richardson, who troubled Virat Kohli in Australia.