After eight defeats in 11 outings, Chennai Super Kings will look to give their forgettable campaign a semblance of respectability when they take on in-form Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League in Dubai on Sunday.
Lockie Ferguson's inclusion gave the much-needed impetus to the side, but KKR are still struggling with their star all-rounder Andre Russell who capped yet another flop show with the bat.
Overall, Kohli was pleased with the way his side fought and found ways to win matches from tough situations.
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.
For KKR, the biggest cause of concern will be the availability of big-hitter Andre Russell, who hurt his knee when he dived into the advertisement boards after missing a catch on Saturday.
Team India possess a much more balanced squad in the shortest format.
India's vacant cupboard of all-rounders will give Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri numerous points to ponder.
Finch scored 114 in an opening stand of 156 with David Warner (69) to lay a platform before his predecessor as captain Smith smashed 105 off 66 balls to drive Australia to 374 for six -- their highest total against India.
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.
After scores of 14 and 1, Virat Kohli is due for a big one and will be hoping to spend more time in the middle when Royal Challengers Bangalore take on Mumbai Indians in the IPL in Dubai.
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.
The Indian Playing XI will also have Bhuvneshwar Kumar on Sunday as he replaces Mohammed Shami, who was hit on the leg in his follow through during the third match.
A match-winning three-wicket bowling stint by Mitchell Marsh lifted Australia to a convincing victory by 58 runs against West Indies in the final of the triangular One-day international (ODI) series in Barbados on Sunday.
The Virat Kohli-led team ticked all the boxes in their opening win of the series Australia on Saturday.
Kane Richardson gets nod ahead of Josh Hazlewood as replacement
Rohit Sharma is likely to miss his third game in a row when Mumbai Indians take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday with both teams aiming to secure their spot in the IPL play-offs.
Will Ashton Agar and Adam Zampa both play the 1st ODI in Chennai on Sunday?
Yuzvendra Chahal is among the best leg-spinners in international cricket right now but he can be more effective with better use of the crease, says former Pakistan spinner Mushtaq Ahmed. Ahmed picked Chahal, Australia's Adam Zampa and Pakistan's Shadab Khan among the top leg-spinners in white-ball cricket.
Former wicketkeeper Brad Haddin says Australia missed the experience and skills of senior spinner Nathan Lyon during their unsuccessful World T20 campaign in India. Lyon was kept out in favour of young spinners Adam Zampa and Ashton Agar, while allrounder Glenn Maxwell also chipped in with his part-timers. Rookie leg-spinner Zampa was a revelation for the Aussies, claiming five wickets in four matches in the tournament. But Australia's other spin options were used sparingly throughout the tournament; Agar bowled just one over in his only match against New Zealand, which went for 18, while Maxwell sent down eight overs in four matches, taking two wickets and conceding 7.6 runs an over. Australia suffered defeats to New Zealand and hosts India to be knocked out in the group stage and on wickets the supported spin bowling, Haddin says Lyon was sorely missed.
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.
Australia beat New Zealand by 71 runs in the first one-day international in front of 48,000 empty seats at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Friday as precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus hit home Down Under. Cricket Australia (CA) said on Friday morning that no fans would be allowed into any of the three matches in the series, which continues at the SCG on Sunday before moving on to Hobart next Friday.
Purnendu Maji and Srinivas Bhogle list the Most Valuable Players during the India-Australia ODI series.
Rohit Sharma's 119 laid the foundation for India's chase
Jonty Rhodes believes Australia's omission of spinner Nathan Lyon will hurt them in the World T20.
Virat Kohli shared the experience of facing the top bowler in the nets
Most of these incredible performances came against one team -- the Gujarat Lions.
'I'm in the team to take wickets and I've had two wicketless games, so we'll see how we go.'
Playing only his second international match, 27-year-old Jason Behrendorff scythed through India's top order. He took four wickets for 21 runs in an inspired spell of fast bowling to set up an eight-wicket victory and enable the tourists square the three-match series at 1-1.
RCB suffered four consecutive defeats to finish the league stage at the fourth spot, SRH registered a hat-trick of wins to edge past Virat Kohli's men in the standings.
Australia coach Darren Lehmann wants one-day international matches to continue as long as conditions are safe.
The World Cup is just a couple of months away, and even after even a 0-2 loss in the just-concluded T20 series there won't be any shift in plans as far as skipper Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri are concerned.
Australia warmed up for the limited-overs series against India in style by crushing Board President's (BP) XI by 103 runs in the lone practice match, in Chennai, on Tuesday.
Warner and Finch then smashed the Indian bowlers to all corners of the ground, picking up boundaries at will to chase down the target with more than 12 overs to spare at the Wankhede Stadium, which overlooks the Arabian Sea.
Left chasing shadows in the first two games, a listless Indian team would most certainly tweak its bowling combination in order to avoid a second successive clean-sweep when it takes on Australia in the third and final ODI, in Canberra, on Wednesday.
Australia left-arm spinner Ashton Agar took a career-best 5-24, including a hat-trick, as they thrashed hosts South Africa by a massive 107 runs in the first Twenty20 International at The Wanderers in Johannesburg on Friday. After being sent in to bat, Australia amassed 196 for six in their 20 overs as South Africa struggled with their line and length and missed a number of catches in the field in what was a sloppy display. The home side were in early trouble in their reply when they lost mainstay Quinton de Kock in the first over and it became a precession after that as Agar helped bowl the hosts out for 89, a record low for South Africa.
Images from Monday's IPL match between Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore, in Dubai.
Steve Smith and David Warner's first batting partnership on home soil since their ball-tampering suspensions helped Australia to a series-sealing nine-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in Brisbane.
'It won't be easy like the other matches but confidence is the main thing... If we took that confidence into the ground and deliver to our best, you never know'
Australia vice-captain Alex Carey said the ODI series win against a top team like India 'will mean a lot' considering the hosts' struggles over the last 12 months.
A century stand from Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja propelled Australia to a nine-wicket victory over Ireland in their one-off One-Day International played at Willowmoore Park on Tuesday. Ireland won the toss and elected to bat but were bowled out for 198, a target that never looked enough against the Australians, who posted 199 for one for the loss of opener David Warner (48), with almost 20 overs to spare.
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