India vs Australia tip-off XI: Tilak Varma to keep his place, Avesh Khan makes it to the XI and Kane Richardson into the mix | Cricket News

For the most part, the chase in the first T20I against Australia looked like a cakewalk for the Indian side until it wasn’t in the final moments of the game when they lost a few quick wickets. They eventually snatched the game a whisker. Though Suryakumar Yadav’s side succeeded in chasing down the highest total for India in the format going into the second T20I at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram the hosts would be hoping to improve in both departments of the game.
Though one might argue they have chased a massive total and the batting looks fine, it has come on the back of the side’s T20 talisman Suryakumar’s sublime knock yet again. Ishan Kishan chipped in with a mature knock along with Rinku Singh’s finishing touch but the remaining batters struggled. There was no resance from the lower order once the team lost five wickets. As regards bowling, the spinners did a decent job but the fast bowlers struggled to find the right lines and lengths, especially Prasidh Krishna, who had a day to forget both in the field and with the ball.
For Australia, Josh Inglis was superb with the bat. However, it was their bowling attack which has let them down. Despite the dew and surface helping slower ones, the seamers and spinners struggled to pitch the ball in the right areas.

✈️ Touchdown Trivandrum!#TeamIndia are here for the 2⃣nd #INDvAUS T20I 👌👌@IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/dQT4scn38w
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 24, 2023
Tilak Varma to keep his place
The left-hander came into the middle in a fairly tricky situation during the first game and failed to take the team home. India does have the option of Jitesh Sharma, who is a designated finisher and has experience of finishing games in this format compared to Varma who comes in the middle order and shepherds the innings strike rotation. However, Varma provides the sixth bowling option on the side which enhances the team balance.
Avesh Khan into the eleven
Prasidh looked out of touch in the first game. Almost everything he bowled was being sent into the stands and his fielding looked off too. India has the option of Avesh Khan who too can bowl at a brisk pace of over 140 KPH regularly. In addition to bowling quickly, Avesh also has the knack of picking wickets during different stages of the game, unlike Prasidh who has had issues at death in the past. Hence for the second game, the team might be tempted to go with Avesh.
Kane Richardson into the mix
Nathan Ellis is a bright prospect in Australian cricket and has shown what he can do both for the national team and franchises in the IPL. However, defending a massive score Australian bowling attack looked like they lacked the experience and composure on what to bowl at different stages. Richardson who is a veteran now has an abundance of experience in the format and is a versatile bowler adaptable enough for all phases of the game and any pitch presented to him.
India and Australia predicted XI for 2nd T20I
India (IND): Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Rinku Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar.
Australia (AUS)Matthew Short, Steven Smith, Josh Inglis, Aaron Hardie, Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, Matthew Wade (c & wk), Sean Abbott, Kane Richardson, Jason Behrendorff, Tanveer Sangha