India vs Australia 4th ODI preview: 4 changes in Kohli's 11 for Mohali ODI?

What will keep the Indian cricket team worried is the batting form of the top-order going in the fourth ODI at Mohali

Indian cricket team will look to overcome their top-order woes, when they play against Australia in the fourth One Day International (ODI) of 5-match series at IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali, Chandigarh on Sunday. Providing opportunities to all World Cup hopefuls would be on Virat Kohli's mind and the team management is expected to ring in a few changes in the playing 11 for the remaining two matches of the series. With Mahendra Singh Dhoni rested, Rishabh Pant is an obvious change while K L Rahul can be brought in place of out of form Shikhar Dhawan. "We will have a few changes in the next couple of games but the idea is to tell the boys to put in match-winning performances and the boys will be looking to be in top form before the flight to England," Kohli said after the third ODI.

Catch 4th ODI LIVE SCORE and MATCH COMMENTARY HERE

Bhuvneshwar Kumar to replace Shami?

The Indian playing 11 will also have Bhuvneshwar Kumar as he replaces Mohammed Shami, who was hit on the leg in his follow through during the third match. Shami completed his spell but since he is expected to share the new ball with Jasprit Bumrah in England, it is natural to give him precautionary rest.

Top-order conundrum worries Indian Team management

However, what will keep the Indian team worried is the batting form of the top-order, other than skipper Kohli. He has amassed 283 runs in three games with two hundred and the next best in the Indian team is Kedar Jadhav with 118 runs. 
 

Rohit Sharma is undergoing a rare slump in ODIs, having scored only 51 runs in three innings. Even worse is Ambati Rayudu's performance at No 4 with aggregate of 33 runs in three games. Shikhar Dhawan's struggles are well-documented and he has scored only 22 runs in three games. Dhawan and Rayudu's form should be a cause of concern even though both are certainties as far as the place in the World Cup squad is concerned. There are certain problems in both Dhawan and Rayudu's games but they won't get adequate time to correct those follies with just two games to be played in five days and the IPL 2019 to follow soon. 

Adam Zampa emerges as a major threat for India
 

India will be worried about Aussie leg-spinner Adam Zampa, who despite conceding lot of runs, has managed to get Kohli and Dhoni on multiple occasions. "That's the sign of a good player. You're not at your best, not having your best day and still taking those important wickets. Batsmen pride themselves on the same thing - when you don't feel like you are hitting the ball well, you try to get runs on those days," Usman Khawaja said

Here is the playing 11 probables of both the teams:

India playing 11: Rohit Sharma, K L Rahul, Virat Kohli, Vijay Shankar, Rishabh Pant, Kedar Jadhav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ravindra Jadeja/ Ambati Rayudu, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzuvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah

Australia playing 11: Usman Khawaja, Aaron Finch, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Peter Handscomb, Alex Carey, Nathon Lyon/ Nathan Coulter-Nile, Adam Zampa, Pat Cummins, Jhye Richardson

Key Stats at Mohali (last 5 matches)

• Teams have 4 out of 5 matches while chasing
• Average score batting first is 307
• Pacers average 50.1 vs Spinners average 46.61

India vs Australia 4th ODI: Pitch and weather prediction

The Mohali pitch is likely to be flat and dew could play a part. While the weather is expected to be pleasant with no sign of rain.

India vs Australia 4th ODI Live streaming details

Date and Day: March 10, 2019, and Sunday

Place: PCA IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali

Time: 1:30 pm IST

India vs Australia 4th ODI live streaming will be available live on Star Sports 1 HD, Star Sports 1 in English Commentary and Star Sports Hindi HD in Hindi Commentary. One can also live stream the 4th ODI on Hotstar app and website.

Here are the squads of both the teams:

India: Virat Kohli (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni (wk), Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rishabh Pant.

Australia: Aaron Finch, Usman Khawaja, Peter Handscomb, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Ashton Turner, Jhye Richardson, Adam Zampa, Andrew Tye, Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Alex Carey, Nathan Lyon, Jason Behrendorff