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India vs Australia, ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 2nd semi-final: Virat Kohli and Mitchell Starc go head-to-head in 3 key battles of IND vs AUS
Find out who features among the three key battles as India take on Australia in the semi-finals of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
A showdown before a showdown is what this clash is all about! Two heavyweights of Cricket, India take on Australia in the semi-final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Thursday. The victorious nation will be pitted against co-hosts New Zealand in the final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday. Over this time, we have seen some exceptional performance both with the bat and ball from players of both nations. We take a look at the key battles that will bear a humongous impact in deciding which team will vie for the trophy! SF 2 Preview: Will Dhoni’s IND edge past Clarke’s AUS in Sydney?
Virat Kohli vs Mitchell Starc
From the Indian camp, the spotlight has been shining on Virat Kohli but barring the 107 against arch-rivals Pakistan, the aggressive vice-captain has failed to live up to his expectations. Though he stands second in the top scorers list among his compatriots, the 26-year-old will have to put on a show against the four-time winners to assert his claims as MS Dhoni’s successor. However, he faces a robust Mitchell Starc, who has 18 wickets in six matches played so far in the tournament. The left-handed pacer’s economy, Average and Best bowling figures are the best in the top five leading wicket takers chart. A battle between the pair will be mouth-watering given that they are certain to face each other in the middle of the innings. Likely Playing XI & Statistics of IND vs AUS.
Ravichandran Ashwin vs Glenn Maxwell
Should India depend on spin to restrict Australia, Ashwin has a mammoth task on his shoulders when he goes head-to-head against GlennMaxwell. The off-spinner hasnicked 12 wickets so far The free-flowing right-handed batsman has not exceeded expectations but has managed to put in a robust display against each and every opponent except New Zealand. He leads the run-scoring charts for Michael Clarke’s side and will once again carry the responsibility of adding to the scoreboard should the openers fail to deliver. Virat Kohli, David Warner among 5 key players for IND vs AUS clash.
Mohammed Shami vs David Warner
Shami is India’s leading wicket-taker in the tournament but has just one man of the match accolade to his name in the tournament. The right-arm pacer would have certainly had more awards had it not been for some extraordinary batting by the likes of Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina. Warner, on the other hand, has been lacklustre and failed to plunder the runs at will; barring 178 against Afghanistan. A battle between the opening batsman and the bowler, the one who reigns supreme will have little for their personal plaudits but a lot for their respective team’s fortunes. The 28-year-old batsman did score 104 in the warm-up match against India and he will be eager to once again pile misery on MS Dhoni’s boys like they did in the recent months.
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