3 things India need to do in second T20I against Australia

“Underestimate an opponent like Australia at your own peril” was one of the statements that was floating around before India’s first match of the tour down under.

With so many things going from bad to worse in the Australian cricketing fraternity in 2018, both on and off the field, India which is ranked second in the ICC T20 rankings was expected to take the lead in the first of three-match T20I series at the Gabba.

But Aaron Finch’s men held on to a narrow 4-run victory, which has given India the much-needed wake-up call and also set up the whole series (Tests and ODIs) nicely.

Apart from a few in the Indian team, most of them looked a bit jaded and rusty on the field. Yes, India need not panic at this stage as this was the first match on the tour but they need to buckle up quickly and come back strong in the next game in order to keep the series alive.

The turnaround time for the visitors is very little as they have only a couple of days left before the second T20I at Melbourne on Friday. So what can India do better than the first match?

#1 Use the wrist spin option of Chahal

Over the years, Australia have always struggled against wrist spin irrespective of any format and it was very evident from the way left-arm chinaman Kuldeep Yadav was successful at the Gabba. Almost all the Aussie batsmen were struggling to read the hand and were playing Kuldeep off the pitch and that's always a risky proposition.

It was therefore very surprising to see India leave out leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal to accommodate Krunal Pandya, who is more of a batting all-rounder. When there is hardly any turn in the surface, like in the case at the Gabba, it's easy for batsmen to line up against a finger spinner and deposit them into the stands.

It was even more puzzling and risky to include Pandya when India opted to go with only 5 bowling options. India have been doing well with this combination in white ball cricket in recent times but the attacking option of Chahal would have been a better choice.

#2 Virat Kohli should bat at No 3

If dropping Chahal was a surprise ahead of the game, the crowd at the ground and Indian fans across the globe were in for a shock when the first Indian wicket fell. It was a given that Indian captain Virat Kohli would walk out to bat at his customary No 3 position, instead it was Rahul who walked out after Rohit Sharma was dismissed.

Virat Kohli has earned the tag of best chaser in limited overs cricket by batting at No 3, from where he takes control and guides the innings right through.

One of the most technical batsmen going around in world cricket, Kohli usually takes his time while judging the nature of the surface and then goes hammer and tongs later and that has been his successful mantra over the years.

It would have been ideal if Kohli had walked out to bat at one down, especially with Shikhar Dhawan in imperious touch at the other end. Rahul took some time to get used to the conditions and once again missed another opportunity to seal his place in the Indian side.

Virat Kohli, who is the best batsman in the team has no other options but to bat at his favourite position and all the floating should happen with other batsmen in the side.

#3 Not being predictable in the field

With Virat Kohli as captain, there seems to be a sense of predictability in the way he uses his bowlers in limited overs cricket. One could tell from a distance that he is going to use Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar at the start and during the death and not bring either of them much earlier.

After a cautious start, Australia planned their counter-attack with the bat to perfection. Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell almost knew that weaker bowlers would bowl the overs 11-16 and that was when they cleared the ropes easily and injected momentum into Australia’s innings.

It was here that Kohli could have brought Bumrah for one over during this period when the onslaught was on from two big hitters. Bumrah has quite a lot of success against Maxwell in limited overs and that could have played on the minds of the latter.

Kohli is someone who doesn't believe in match-ups unlike Rohit Sharma, who juggles his bowlers according to the batsmen and match situation.

Maybe Virat Kohli needs to give importance to this because it can have a huge impact in the shortest form of the game because each and every over could decide the eventual outcome of the game.