Plot:

Such has been the tour for Australia, that even the rains gods haven’t showed any mercy on them. The heavy downpour in Ranchi ended when the match was on the verge of being called off. Their poor run continued when they suffered another loss in the first T20I. The Australian batsmen struggled yet again as their middle order fell apart. The Indian bowlers were terrific with the white ball and made the Australian batsmen dance to their tune.

Australia were led by David Warner, who had a 100% win record in internationals, until the first game of the T20I series. Virat Kohli’s men were dominant throughout and the Aussies suffered another loss in a rain-affected game. The visitors must win this second T20I to stay alive in the 3-match series. They got a decent start but their middle order succumbed under pressure. Their top 3 were the dangerous hitters of the ball – David Warner, Aaron Finch and Glenn Maxwell while players like Moises Henriques, Tim Paine and Travis Head manned the lower order and that didn’t work for them. India, on the other hand, didn’t have to do much with the bat as they had to chase less than 50 in 6 overs and successfully managed to do so. Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav were clinical with the ball and kept it tight throughout which led to wickets falling at regular intervals. Team India will look for nothing less in the second T20I here in Guwahati.

The hosts are running hot in their form and will look for their 8th successive win against Australia in this format. Australia have to get it right with their batting order as this has been their major issue for quite a while now. David Warner will look to lead from the front as he is extremely experienced at playing in India. Can the visitors bounce back and keep the series alive? Or will Team India continue with their winning streak?

Stage:

Barsapara Cricket Stadium will host the second T20I of the series and it will be the first ever international game at this venue. It will be interesting to see how the pitch behaves over here.

Acts:

Rohit Sharma vs Nathan Coulter-Nile:

The Australian seamer had a good ODI series and grabbed the wicket of Rohit Sharma in the first T20I. The Indian opener will look to go hard after him and disturb his length. It should be an exciting battle between the two.

Jasprit Bumrah vs Aaron Finch:

The Aussie opener has been in fine form. He would look to give Australia another good start but Jasprit Bumrah will try to use his skills and keep Finch silent.

David Warner vs Bhuvneshwar Kumar:

The stand-in Australia captain might have played Bhuvneshwar Kumar a lot in the nets but the Indian seamer picked up the prized scalp of Warner in the first T20I. The swing bowler will look to make things difficult for Warner once again.