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India out to clinch series on Guwahati's T20I debut

01:30PM Mon 9 Oct, 2017

Australia may not have expected to turn up and blow India away across the limited-overs leg of their tour but, a month in, many of their worst fears for the tour have been realised. Not only are they struggling for confidence having won just a solitary international game, they've had to ship out talisman and leader Steven Smith with a shoulder issue with a little over a month to go for the Ashes.
On evidence of their performance in Ranchi, the T20Is don't promise much but, as is always the case in life and sports, there remains a little chasm of opportunity to unearth a silver lining out of this largely forgettable tour. Maybe a shift in setting will do them good. India's ostensible home advantage may be diminished slightly at the new Barsapara Stadium in the country's north-east. The venue's international debut may start both teams on a slightly even keel with regards to familiarity with on-field conditions.
Then there's the T20 format, which often bridges gaps in quality between teams. It is no surprise that when the first T20I was further shortened to a six-over chase, Australia came closest to claiming an unlikely victory. But India barely rode out of second gear on Saturday and still made their visitors look pedestrian. In what is slowly becoming a pattern under Virat Kohli, this empowerment of bowlers to setup wins has opened up a new dimension to their cricket.
In Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Kuldeep and Chahal - the hosts have four very shrewd operators to get 16 overs out of. But Australia must believe they can still upset the apple-cart and keep the series alive, if they play the percentages well and milk the fifth bowler tactfully. That could make India veer away from their patterns and take this matchup to a new avenue.
Given how Australia have batted on the tour and in the last game, it is hard to imagine that they are in possession of the top-two individual scores (Aaron Finch 156, Glenn Maxwell 145*) and two of the top-three totals in T20I history. It is perhaps time to set out and regain some of the lost reputation, to prove they are still very much a force in the 20-overs format.