India would eye nothing less than a clean sweep when they take on an Australian side significantly weakened by injury blows, in the third and final T20 International, in Sydney, on Tuesday.
Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli thwarted Australia in a diligent partnership to push India to a position of strength and a 166-run lead at the close of day three of the first Test.
India sealed a semi-final berth in the World Twenty20 after defeating Australia by six wickets in a do-or-die Group 2 match in Mohali.
India showed commendable character in Rajkot to level the series, proving that the panic buttons were pressed prematurely following the 10-wicket loss in Mumbai.
Senior off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin insists that he is not losing sleep over making a limited-overs comeback for India and his immediate focus is on the 'big responsibility' of captaining Kings XI Punjab in the upcoming 11th season of the Indian Premier League.
Mark Waugh reckons the 25-year-old will succeed at the No 4 spot against Indian spinners.
Australia qualified for the final of the triangular one-day international series (ODI) with a six-wicket win over West Indies in Barbados on Tuesday.
Australia pick two uncapped players for first two Tests
The dew factor will go out of the window but the searing heat will be an issue when Royal Challengers Bangalore take on a better prepared Rajasthan Royals in the first of the 10 IPL double-headers, in Abu Dhabi, on Saturday.
India turned in a fine all-round show to beat Australia by 27 runs in the second Twenty20 International and take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, on Friday.
The Australians, led by Steve Smith, arrived in Chennai from Bangladesh after drawing a two-Test series and the match tomorrow would give them opportunity to at least switch to the One-day format.
The Men in Blue have never won a bilateral ODI contest on Australian soil.
Australia's three-match series in South Africa will finalise their World T20 preparations.
Royal Challengers Bangalore's head coach Simon Katich and Director of Cricket Operations Mike Hesson backed Virat Kohli to stay as the captain despite yet another IPL heartbreak and the criticism around it.
Spinner Nathan Lyon, top order batsman Usman Khawaja and all-rounder Moises Henriques have been omitted after being selected in the squad that defeated Sri Lanka 4-1 away
Australian all-rounder Shane Watson has said hosts India will be the toughest team to beat in next month's World Twenty20 Championship due to their familiarity with the conditions.
David Warner scored 124 in his 100th match and combined with Aaron Finch (94) for a record 231-run opening stand, as Australia posted a 21-run victory over India in the fourth One-Day International in Bengaluru, on Thursday. Check out some statistical highlights from the match.
A series win in Australia will certainly put Kohli on a higher pedestal even though the quality of the home team's batting line-up suffered adversely due to the bans of former skipper Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner.
Kohli (886 points) and Rohit (868 points) have gained two and three ratings points, respectively to occupy the top two positions in the batting rankings.
All-rounder Asela Gunaratne struck a superb 84 off 46 balls to inspire Sri Lanka to a dramatic two-wicket victory over Australia in the second Twenty20 International in South Geelong, Victoria on Sunday.
Sri Lanka beat Australia off last ball to win first T20
Dhoni slammed an unbeaten 55 off 54 balls after Kohli laid the foundation for India's series-levelling six-wicket victory over Australia in the second ODI with a fluent century.
Australian batsmen yet again took the Indian bowling attack to the cleaners as they scored a massive 359 for five, equaling their highest ever total against India, in the second cricket ODI in Jaipur on Wednesday.
Virat Kohli smashed his 39th one-day international century as India claimed a dramatic six-wicket victory over Australia at a sweltering Adelaide Oval on Tuesday to level up the three-match series at 1-1.
It was only a fourth win in 20 one-dayers going back to June 2017 for world champions Australia and came at the same Sydney Cricket Ground where their first home Test series loss to India was sealed on Monday.
Australia, who host the T20 World Cup from October 18 to November 15, had won eight games in a row before losing to South Africa by 12 runs in Port Elizabeth on Sunday.
Purnendu Maji and Srinivas Bhogle list the Most Valuable Players during the India-Australia ODI series.
David Warner scored an unbeaten half-century in vain as Australia blew a comfortable chase
The Virat Kohli-led RCB has won five of its eight games on the back of all-round performances but seemingly blundered in the eight-wicket defeat to laggards KXIP on Thursday.
Steve Smith smashed an unbeaten half-century to power Australia to a seven-wicket victory against Pakistan in the second T20 International in Canberra on Tuesday.
Rajneesh Gupta previews Game 3 in IPL 12: Mumbai Indians vversus Delhi Capitals.
India moved within two wickets of an emphatic victory in the third Test after reducing Australia to 258 for eight at the close of day four.
The IPL starts on September 19 and, in all likelihood, all the English and Australian players will land in the UAE via a charter flight on September 17, making them available for their respective team's opening match.
Chennai Super Kings will look to continue their winning streak when they lock horns with Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League (IPL), in Mohali, on Sunday.
Former Australian skipper Ian Chappell has slammed his country's selectors after the failure of the Australian batting line-up.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni lavished praise on his bowlers after India beat Australia by 27 runs in the second Twenty20 International at the MCG on Friday to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
Australia opener David Warner became the fifth batsman at the World Cup to get an unexpected reprieve after he dragged a ball on to his stump but the impact failed to dislodge the zing bails in Sunday's match against India.
With 12 matches to go across the two Super 12 groups, here's a look at what all 12 teams need to do to book their spots in the tournament knockouts.
Steve Smith and David Warner may wake with some relief on Thursday as they greet the final day of their ball-tampering bans
Australia have drawn inspiration from former World Cup-winning captain Steve Waugh in how to handle big-match pressure ahead of Friday's quarter-final against Pakistan.
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