As for Australia, their game was disappointing to say the least. Their talisman Steven Smith has yet to show what he can do. His defeats in both matches were pretty humbling and unlike him. Marnus Labushenge, on the other hand, looks like a shadow of the player he was in South Africa. Oh and the rest of the lower level players were spineless. While bowling is also a concern, they are expected to be in better form once Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazelwood and Pat Cummins start playing together and Adam Zampa’s slow but steady return to form after scoring 113 in South Africa in 10 overs is a huge plus for the Kangaroos.

Rohit Sharma in

Shubman Gill has been rested for the final game, and justifiably so. He has been in terrific form this year and doesn’t need the extra game time ahead of the World Cup. Rohit, who missed the first two games, will be back in action. Although he is not scoring big points, he is making quick shots and creating a solid platformHe will try to do the same in Rajkot.

Mohammed Siraj should get a game

Mohammed Shami has played two games and in both matches he looked in good rhythm and ready to play. His five kicks in Mohali actually showed that he too deserves a place in the starting lineup for the World Cup. However, in this game, the management may try to let Siraj play instead, allowing him to get some game time ahead of the tournament. Siraj is excellent with the new ball and it will be difficult for the Aussies to deal with him.

Mitchell Starc is back in the team

In the first two ODIs apart from Pat Cummins and Josh Hazelwood, Australia lacked extra pace in their bowling attack, allowing India to bat comfortably in both matches. Starc, who returns to the team for the next match, will not only provide the left-arm angle that has troubled Indian batters in the past, but Rajkot has also been a fixture at some points because of his dry area of izwesten reverse swing, and Stark is one of the best exponents of reverse swing in the modern game.

India predicted XI: Rohit Sharma, Ruturaj Gaikwad Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (c, wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj

Australia predicted XI: David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Marcus Stoinis, Sean Abbott, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Stark, Adam Zampa