Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir will have to make a few tweaks. From low, slow, and spin-friendly conditions in the Asia Cup, they are going to fast and bouncy pitches in the India vs Australia T20I series. There will be at least one change, since Hardik Pandya isn’t fit for selection. His backup, Nitish Kumar Reddy, isn’t guaranteed to play either due to an injury as well. But, in all likelihood, that won’t be all.

Manuka Oval in Canberra will host the India vs Australia 1st T20I on October 29. The surface is well regarded as a good track for batting, offering even pace and bounce. Therefore, reliance on fast bowlers will be much more. In this regard, India might have to drop their 3-spinners approach. In the Asia Cup, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Varun Chakaravarthy played together. It’s unlikely the trio will reunite in the India vs Australia 1st T20I.

Kuldeep vs Harshit vs Varun

The ground dimensions do help them, but the surface won’t. This is where Axar clears Kuldeep and Varun. Unlike them, he’s an all-rounder. He secures his spot as a middle-order batter with proven spin-hitting ability. In some ways, you can say it’ll be Kuldeep vs Varun for the second spinner spot. But will it be?

In actuality, it might be a 3-way battle. You see, Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh pick themselves. They are two of the best T20 bowlers. In Arshdeep’s case, he was the highest wicket-taker the last time India played in Australia, the 2022 T20 World Cup. Due to pace-friendly conditions, they’ll get the nod ahead of other bowlers.

Considering the surface, Gill and Gambhir might want another pacer. And the only option available is Harshit Rana. He was India’s highest wicket-taker in the ODI series and showed promise with the bat. This means you can have someone who can whack the ball lower down the order. Therefore, Harshit’s importance increases.

Harshit wins; who goes out?

The management may want to play both Kuldeep and Varun, but the conditions won’t allow them to. Then comes the question, who plays between the two spinners? Fascinatingly, Kuldeep hasn’t played a T20I in Australia since 2018. But it has an exceptional record, an average of 16.50 and 5.50 economy. He’s played Down Under across formats, while Varun is yet to play a match. So, Kuldeep has an edge in experience and reading of the conditions.

Varun bowls a flatter trajectory, gets bounce, and even rushes the batters. He’ll get bounce and pace from the pitch, but it’s uncertain whether his trajectory will trouble batters in Australia. Also, lack of help from the surface might be an issue as well. Kuldeep also gets bounce, has that incredible dip, and is tougher to read as a left-arm wrist spinner. Therefore, India might just lean towards the more tested spinner at the Manuka Oval.

India T20I squad for Australia series

Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (vc), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh

Bench: Nitish Kumar Reddy, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Varun Chakaravarthy, Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar