Mumbai: Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his boys are set to take on Australia in the virtual quarterfinal of the ICC World Twenty20 in Mohali on Sunday. Though India earned the tag ‘favourites’ even before the tournament started, tables may turn against the Steve Smith-led side who looked supreme against Pakistan. Here is why.
Records say Aussies: Sunday’s match could remind few of the current players about the 2006 Champions Trophy nightmare. Shane Watson, Ricky Ponting and Damien Martyn’s heroics crushed India at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali. Australia beat India by six wickets and later, went on to win the tournament as well.
No Asian teams in last 4: India is the only Asian team left in the tournament who are likely to book a berth in the semi-final. The 2006 Champions Trophy experienced a similar situation but it saw Men in Blue’s ouster.
Non-Asian teams’ better show: In the ongoing ICC World Twenty20, statistics say the Asian seamers averaged 41.58 compared to 25.92 from their non-Asian counterparts.
Spin medicine: India’s Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have been on a good run but on an average, Asian spinners have averaged 28.85. The non-Asians impressed with 10.48. Adam Zampa is to watch out for; on the other hand, the Indians didn’t look comfortable against the likes of Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner in the opener.
