We are in 'catch-22' situation, says skipper Dhoni

PERTH: Knocked out of the tri-series, Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Friday said the dilemma over settling down into the right bowling combination has put the team in a "catch-22 situation" ahead of the ODI World Cup.

India's winless tour Down Under ended today after they bowed out of the tri-series following a three-wicket defeat to England at the WACA here.

"We have to look at our attack keeping in mind the balance of the side. Two spinners suit us as (Ravichandran) Ashwin and (Ravindra) Jadeja, and Ashwin and Axar (Patel) can bat a bit, while three seamers and a spinner weakens our batting, it's a catch-22 situation," Dhoni said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

"Playing an extra seamer weakens the batting and even leads to a slow over rate. The lower order batsmen need to perform," Dhoni explained.

In a do-or-die game today against England, Indian batsmen let the team down as they frittered away a good start to be bundled out for 200 in 48.1 overs, losing as many as nine wickets for just 97 runs from a relatively comfortable 103 for one. And Dhoni was far from impressed with the batsmen's spineless showing.

"When we started batting I thought we performed decently with the new ball, and a bit more runs initially would have helped. Good bowling and poor selection of shots led to the low score and 40-50 more runs would have helped. I don't think the wicket played a factor but the English bowlers extract more from these conditions," Dhoni insisted.

England recovered from a top-order collapse to record a three-wicket victory and secure a place in the final, to be held on Sunday against hosts Australia. Tottering at 66 for five at one stage, England staged a gritty fightback through James Taylor (82) and Jos Buttler (67).

"We made it difficult for ourselves and both sides battled with the conditions. If guys got themselves then there was going to be an opportunity. The guys showed that they are ruthless once they set in, especially Buttler and Taylor," skipper Eoin Morgan said.

He added: "Buttler is excellent and there's more to come. We have gone from strength to strength and our bowling has done well, building blocks on our way to the World Cup."

Man of the Match Taylor was delighted with his effort and also praised the way Buttler batted.

"I am delighted with the win and to make the finals, but credit to Buttler as well. I was trying to concentrate when wickets fell, was struggling a bit and Buttler played an outstanding innings.

"I've been waiting to get some opportunities and trying to get my side over the line and managed to do that today. I knew if I was there till the end we were going to be around thereabouts."

Regarding the pitch, Taylor said, "It was a decent cricket wicket to be fair and the bounce was interesting."

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Hardik, Aditya shine in Vidarbha's win over MP

NAGPUR: Aditya Sable, Hardik Verma and Aniket Pande performed well to guide Vidarbha to win over Madhya Pradesh in the Central Zone U-14 Rajsingh Dungarpur Trophy match at Meerut on Friday.

Vidarbha won the two-day match on the basis of their first innings lead over MP.

Vidarbha will now take on Rajasthan in their next match on Jan 31 and Feb 1.

Brief Scores

MPCA 186 in 72.2 overs (Sagar Solanki 42, Devesh Dhing 33, Safal Sood 23, Aman Yadav 23; Aditya Sable 3 wkts, Hardik Verma 2 wkts) lost to Vidarbha 193 in 79.3 overs (Aniket Pande 38, Aditya Sable 29, Aman Mokhade 24, Hardik Verma 22) on first innings lead.

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India knocked out of tri-series after losing to England

PERTH: India were on Friday knocked out of the tri-series cricket tournament after yet another spineless display as England recovered from a top-order collapse to record a three-wicket victory and secure a place in the final.

In a do-or-die game, India's batsmen let the team down badly as they frittered away a good start to be bundled out for 200 in 48.1 overs, losing as many as nine wickets for 97 runs from a relatively comfortable 103 for one.

England were tottering at 66 for five at one stage but staged a gritty fightback through James Taylor (82) and Jos Buttler (67) as their stand steered the team home with 19 balls to spare at the WACA ground. England will now take on Australia in the final on Sunday.

It was yet another disappointing show by the Indians, who have now failed to win a single international match during their ongoing tour of Australia.

The tournament, which served as a dress rehearsal for the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup, has shown that there are lot of chinks in defending champions' armoury as they lost three out of the four matches while one was abandoned.

While it a mixture of variable bounce and poor application which resulted in India's batting downfall, it was Ajinkya Rahane, who some what proved to be a saving grace with a patient knock of 73 as his teammates did not show the stomach for a fight.

On the otherhand, it was diminutive Taylor alongwith the flashy wicketkeeper batsman Buttler, who showed a lot of resolve despite losing the top five as their 125-run partnership guided Eoin Morgan's team home.

Taylor hit only four boundaries in his 122 ball innings but played the role of a sheet anchor to perfection. Buttler had seven fours in 77 balls to his credit.

While Stuart Binny (3/33) is slowly making a case for himself in the starting XI with three top-order wickets, India's bowling line-up is yet to bear a settled look and inspire confidence as they are set to begin the Cup defence in hardly two weeks' time.

Earlier, India's uninspiring batting show continued as save Rahane, none of the other batsmen were able to sciore a half-century with England's seamers doing a good job to make a comeback after a decent opening stand.

Steven Finn (3/36) was the pick of the bowlers while Chris Woakes (2/47), Stuart Broad (2/56) and spinner Moeen Ali (2/35) claimed two scalps each after inviting India to bat.

Out-of-form Shikhar Dhawan (38) and Rahane got off to a slow start but they batted to a plan, rotating the strike to good effect and slowly the runs started coming, albeit in a tickle as the first 10 overs yielded only 34 runs.

Thereafter Rahane looked in good touch, as the openers brought up their 50-run stand in the 14th over. Even Dhawan play some good shots after spending time at the crease, cutting and driving with much more ease.

But he couldn't go on, and edged one to Jos Buttler behind the stumps off Woakes in the 21st over. The scorecard read 83 for one at that time.

Rahane got to his eighth ODI fifty in the 25th over and though he tried to play some expansive strokes, he realised the need to hold one end up soon enough.

England tightened up their bowling and their good fielding started paying dividends. Virat Kohli (8), who had come in to bat at number three, was the next to depart as he attemped a big shot off Ali only for Root to take a good running catch at long off.

Ali returned for his next over and got rid of Suresh Raina (1), who played a horrendous stroke. The left-hander danced down the track, going for a big shot, only to be caught at backward point.

Ambati Rayudu (12) added 27 runs for the fourth wicket with Rahane but he never looked settled at the crease. He was out just before the batting powerplay was due, in the 35th over, caught behind off Broad.

The big blow came when Rahane was dismissed in the very first powerplay over, trying to work Finn down to third man, but ended up caught behind.

India also lost Stuart Binny (7) in the powerplay's final over, caught brilliantly at first slip by a diving Ian Bell off Finn again. Those five overs yielded only 23 runs.

Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (17) tried to stay at the wicket for the final 10 overs but he was finally out LBW to James Anderson (1-24) in the 43rd over.

Ravindra Jadeja (5) played a rash stroke while Axar Patel (1) is still yet to come to terms with conditions in Australia as far as his batting is concerned.

India only managed to cross the 150-mark in the 39th over and were struggling at 165/9 before a 35-run partnership for the final wicket between Mohammad Shami (25) and Mohit Sharma (7) helped gain a little respectability to the total.

Shami threw his bat around and was the last to be dismissed in the 49th over, caught behind off a slower delivery by Woakes.

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IPL 8 auction on February 16

NEW DELHI: The auction for the eighth edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) will be held on February 16 in Bangalore, where some of the world's leading cricketers will converge to go under the hammer.

The auction will be conducted by Richard Madley, a professional auctioneer from England, who has conducted each of the previous IPL player auctions.

"The 2015 Pepsi IPL Player Auction will mark the beginning of the countdown to the eighth season of one of the most popular sporting events on the planet. The auction promises to be eventful," Ranjib Biswal, chairman, IPL Governing Council, said today.

He added: "The franchises have returned to the drawing board, reworked plans and devised new strategies, over the previous few months. They will have the opportunity to bid for some of the biggest names in the game."

The proceedings will be telecast live on the Sony SIX HD and Sony SIX channels. It will also be streamed live on www.iplt20.com.

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Surya ends his Mumbai captaincy stint, Tare to lead

MUMBAI: Less than three months after he was named as Mumbai skipper with an eye on the future, Suryakumar Yadav submitted his resignation, ending his controversial stint in the post. Stung already by a humiliating innings defeat against Tamil Nadu in the last game, the selectors promptly replaced him at the top with wicketkeeper Aditya Tare, who accepted the offer after having declined it last year, as the new captain. Mumbai are down in the dumps at this stage of their Ranji Trophy campaign (11 points in six games), and need to win both their remaining matches (against heavyweights Baroda and Karnataka) on an outright basis to harbour any hopes of making it to the quarters.

Tare was aware of the massive task his team faces now, but sounded positive. "In every challenge lies an opportunity. We are looking to grab this chance. There is still a lot of positivity in our camp," Tare told TOI from Baroda, where Mumbai will play their next match from Thursday.

Worryingly, the 27-year-old himself hasn't been in great form, managing just 199 runs in nine innings so far this season. "For me, the primary concern right now is that the team must win. Having said that, I have set certain standards for myself, which I haven't lived up to so far this season. However, I am confident of finding my touch again," he said. Tare was confident Yadav would still be able to produce his best. "His form has been one of the positives for us, and I hope he keeps playing like that," the skipper said.

Although Yadav had a successful time with the bat (485 runs at an average of 53.88, including two centuries) as a captain, adverse reports about his behaviour, and Mumbai's free fall this season seem to have convinced the youngster to give away the responsibility. "I don't think captaincy affected my batting. I was batting well and as freely as I have done. I was enjoying my game too.

It's just that something or the other was missing," Yadav said.

The 24-year-old termed the whole episode as a 'learning process' for him. "I'm trying to take the positives out of this. People do make mistakes and I'm willing to learn from mine," he said. Yadav felt that the incident has made him more 'determined and responsible.' "It won't stop me from scoring runs and realizing my big dream of playing for India," he stressed. Meanwhile, left-arm spinner Harmeet Singh, who was embroiled in the IPL fixing scandal in 2013 before being cleared by the BCCI, has made a return to the Mumbai side. The selectors have made three changes. Both the left-arm spinners, Iqbal Abdulla and Vishal Dabholkar have been dropped after having failed to create any impact on a turning track in Chennai.

Team: Aditya Tare (Captain), Wasim Jaffer, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Siddhesh Lad, Sufiyan Shaikh, Shardul Thakur, Nikhil Patil, Akhil Herwadkar, Shrideep Mangela, Badre Alam, Tushar Deshpande, Akshay Girap, Harmeet Singh, Balwinder Singh Sandhu.

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'Dad's army' UAE hope for a moment or two

Life as an associate-nation cricketer is not easy. Unlike some other countries where cricketers are treated like demigods and earn millions, cricketers from associate member nations have to earn their bread and butter first, and only then can they think about the cricket. The UAE are no different.

Almost all the players in the UAE squad - appearing for only the second time in a World Cup after 1996 - work at other jobs. However, they are passionate about the game, and the Cup platform - where they will get to rub shoulders with star teams like India, Pakistan, South Africa and West Indies - can make it all seem worthwhile. UAE, placed in Group 'B', earned their berth after finishing second to Scotland in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers. Their performance also gave them ODI status until 2018.

However, the journey from here will only get tougher. They might have the best infrastructure among associate nations but infrastructure among associate nations but their players hardly get enough time to practice due to their regular jobs.

Their star player, vice-captain Khurram Khan, 43, is a flight purser. Khurram became the oldest player to score an ODI hundred when he hit an unbeaten 132 against Afghanistan last year. Incidentally, Khurram had taken the field just hours after a long flight from San Francisco.

Khurram will be the backbone of the side, to be led by offspinner Mohammad Tauqir, who is also 43. Their batting will rely more on Khurram and the Thane-born Swapnil Patil, who played some crucial knocks for the team in the qualifiers.

Shaman Anwar and Krishna Chandar are the other batting hopes. Except for Khurram, they don't have batsmen who can play long innings. However, the side did well in the last series against Afghanistan, winning 4-0. UAE's bowling is a concern, with only one genuine fast bowler in Mohammad Naveed. However, Manjula Guruge has the ability to swing the new ball and bowl well at the death. Amjad Javed's role as the third medium pacer will also be crucial in the middle overs.

It will be interesting to see how left-arm spinner Rohan Mustafa bowls. His role in the non-Powerplay overs will decide UAE's fate. Another concern is the fielding. With so many veterans in the side, they will be short of legs in the field. Against Afghanistan, they dropped a dozen catches in four matches.

The positive for UAE is that they are under the guidance of former Pakistan speedster Aquib Javed. Javed has played enough in Australia and New Zealand, so knows what has to be done in those conditions. Probably that's the reason they played against Afghanistan on bouncy tracks and managed put up decent totals against a good attack. The world doesn't know much about UAE, and this is their chance to show they belong.

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Super Smith dominates Cricket Australia awards

SYDNEY: Australia's rising batting star and captain Steven Smith dominated the Cricket Australia Awards on Tuesday night. The 25-year-old New South Wales all-rounder became the 10th player to receive Australian cricket's greatest individual honour, the Allan Border Medal, for 2014.

He secured a hat-trick of prizes by also collecting the Test and ODI player of the year awards, becoming only the third man after Ricky Ponting in 2007 and Shane Watson four years later to achieve this feat.

The only other award went to allrounder Glenn Maxwell, who was named T20 player of the year.

Later in the night, former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist and late Aussie captain Jack Ryder were also formally inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame.

Smith, who captained Australia to a 2-0 Test series win over India — in the absence of the injured Michael Clarke — to regain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, said: "I am surprised to win the three awards. I have had an amazing year. I am joining an illustrious group... and to win these awards is a dream come true," he added.

Smith was the top run-scorer across the three formats of Tests, ODIs and T20Is with 1756 runs at 67.54 during the voting period that started with the ODI against England in Perth on January 24, 2014 and ran through to the fourth Test against India at SCG that ended on January 10 this year.

Paceman Sean Abbott, who was at the heart of the Phil Hughes tragedy, was named Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year.

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Can New Zealand seize the moment?

New Zealand is a team that has always flattered to deceive. Over the years they have always come across as a very good fielding unit bolstered by some great individual talents, but never a world-beating force. So despite making it to the semifinals six out of 10 times, New Zealand have never entered a World Cup as favourites. Not even when they hosted the event along with Australia in 1992.

They actually created a storm in the preliminary stages of that 1992 tournament, winning eight out of the nine matches, thanks in part to Mark Greatbatch's pinch-hitting at the top of the order. Even skipper Martin Crowe was in ominous form. So were Ken Rutherford, John Wright and Danny Morrison.

New Zealand also introduced an element of surprise as they got off-spinner Dipak Patel to open the bowling. But as luck would have it, everything fell apart in the semifinal and Crowe, who pulled his hamstring while batting, watched with a strapped thigh from the sidelines as Pakistan stormed into the final. This current side has some exciting talent, including captain Brendon McCullum. On his day, he can take any attack to the cleaners. Then there is the explosive Corey Anderson, who has the second-fastest ODI hundred, off just 36 balls, to his name. Then there is Luke Ronchi, who recently smashed 170 off 99 balls against Sri Lanka while batting at No. 7 to lift New Zealand from 93-5 to a total of 3605. Ronchi and Grant Elliot, who made 104 not out, added 267 runs for the unbroken record sixthwicket partnership.

And don't forget Kane Williamson, who is supremely talented and technically sound.

In Tim Southee, Kyle Mills, Mitchell McClenaghan and Corey Anderson, they have a very good seam attack.

Elliot, Trent Boult, Tom Latham and Adam Milne can wheel their arms t good effect whenever the need occurs. And then there are Ross Taylor and Daniel Vettori, the two key spokes in the New Zealand wheel and the elder statesmen. New Zealand are a very likely semifinal candidate in this edition too. But don't forget, like in 1992, they are playing at home, and it won't be surprising if McCullum's team outdo Crowe's and succeed in pushing their team to the final. If they do, it will be a turning point.

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Adam Gilchrist walks into Hall of Fame

SYDNEY: Former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist and the late former Australian captain and selector Jack Ryder will be inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame at the 2015 Allan Border Medal in Sydney on Tuesday.

Hall of Fame (ACHoF) chairman David Crow on Sunday announced that Gilchrist and Ryder were the selection committee's choice this year. "Adam Gilchrist and Jack Ryder made enormous contributions to Australian cricket," Crow said. Gilchrist played a lot of his cricket in India in the later stage of this career, first leading Deccan Chargers and then Kings XI Punjab in the IPL. He ended his career two seasons ago.

"'Gilly' epitomized the cricketer we all loved to go and watch. He lightened up the game. We all wanted to go to see Gilly because he was such a high-quali ty entertainer. He was able to combine his explosive batting with brilliant wicketkeeping."

The ACHoF recently expanded its criteria to include a player's impact off the field following his playing career. "That's where Jack excelled," Crow said. "He made a great contribution over seven decades at national, state and club level." Gilchrist was humbled by his nomination alongside many of the greatest players to represent Australia. "It's a tremendous honour. I'm thrilled to be given the opportunity to join such illustrious company, childhood heroes and icons of the game from previous eras which you grow up hearing about.

"No one sets out to earn these accolades. You play the game because you love it."

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Tri-series: India-Australia ODI abandoned due to rain

SYDNEY: Rain played spoilsport as the tri-series match between India and Australia was abandoned with the two teams sharing the points, which left the visiting side in with a chance to make it to the final.

After being put into bat, India were 69 for two after 16 overs when play was stopped due to rain at 5pm local time (11:30 IST) and after a wait of three hours the umpires decided to call off the match.

The two teams take two points each from Sunday's match, which means that the final league game between India and England on January 30 at the WACA in Perth will be a straight knockout for a chance to play Australia in the final on February 1 at the same venue.

Unbeaten Australia, who have 15 points after Sunday's no result, have already qualified for the final while winless India and England have two and five points respectively. A team gets four points for a win.

India had lost to Australia and England in their first-leg matches of the double round robin format tournament.

The start of the match was delayed by 40 minutes due to drizzle since morning and there was first rain interruption at 3:30 pm local time (10 am IST) when India were six for no loss in 2.4 overs.

Play resumed with India losing the struggling Shikhar Dhawan for eight in the seventh over and then Ambati Rayudu for 23 in the 13th over.

Dhawan was caught by Aaron Finch at slips off the bowling of Mitchell Starc as the Indian opener dabbed at a delivery that bounced a bit extra from a good length just outside the off-stump without any movement of his feet.

Rayudu was dismissed off the bowling of Marsh with David Warner taking a sensational catch. The Indian batsman had charged and slashed at the ball, carving it high over the infield on the off side and Warner ran from the cover to take a well-judged catch.

Rayudu faced 24 balls from which he hit two boundaries and one six.

India were 62 for two when Rayudu was out and they slowed down, scoring just seven runs from the next 3.1 overs before rain stopped play.

Ajinkya Rahane was batting on 28 while Virat Kohli was giving him company on three when rain stopped play. Rahane had faced 50 deliveries from which he hit two fours.

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Teenage cricketer dies in Pakistan after hit on chest

KARACHI: In another tragic incident on the field, 18-year-old Zeeshan Mohammed died after being struck in the chest by the cricket ball.

Doctors at the Orangi Town general hospital said that Mohammed died from a heart seizure after he was struck by the cricket ball during a club match in Orangi town on Sunday.

"He was brought to the hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival," Doctor Samad at the hospital said.

"We have been told he was hit in the chest by a fast bowler while batting and collapsed on the pitch," he said.

The incident comes few months after Australian batsman, Phil Hughes died in a hospital after being hit on the head by a short pitched ball during a Sheffield Shield match by pacer Sean Abbot.

An officer at the local police station said the body had been buried by the parents as there was no case registered and it was an accidental death.

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Tri-series: Rain gifts India lifeline

SYDNEY: Monday was a special day in both India and Australia and crowds came in hordes to watch the tri-series match between the two teams at the SCG. But the weather played spoilsport and ruined what could have been a memorable day.

After India were made to bat first in gloomy conditions, whatever game was possible was held in fits and starts following innumerable stoppages for rain. But after the third intervention, when India were 692 in 16 overs, the rain took over and the game was finally called off at 8 pm local time.

India, however, would not have been too disappointed by the abandonment as it has given them a lifeline in this tournament. The two points they got from this rain-ruined match gets them on to the points table in the tri-series and makes things a bit easier - India now simply have to defeat England in their last league match in Perth on January 30 to make it to the final.

Had India lost Monday's game, they would have had to improve their net-run rate substantially while beating England by a bonus point. That would have been a much difficult proposition. Now, though, the game in Perth has virtually become a semifinal.

The winners will take on Australia in the final, also in Perth, on February 1.

From the morning it was overcast in Sydney and rain was forecast for the day .At one time there was doubt if the game would start at all, since it rained in the Moore Park area quite heavily in the morning. The weather let up in the afternoon for the match to make a 45-minute delayed start.

If India were disappointed at all by the events of the day, it was that they could not test out Ishant Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja. Sharma was to play his first game since the third Test and Jadeja would have got his first game on the tour. The Indian think-tank is desperate to test their form and fitness.

The two will now have to wait till the Perth game against England to finally step on to the field. For Monday's game, India dropped Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Akshar Patel for Ishant and Jadeja. For Australia, David Warner and skipper George Bailey, who was suspended for slow over-rate for the Hobart match, returned to the squad. There was not much at stake for Australia as they are already in the final. Bailey, though, was planning to bat higher up the order to get among the runs. Warner, who has played just one good innings - a century against India in the opening game in Melbourne - too would have been eager to spend some time in the middle.

In the 16 overs possible, struggling India opener Shikhar Dhawan again failed to make it count, falling cheaply to Mitchell Starc. For the third time in the tri-series, he was caught in the slips cordon without getting into double-figures. Ambati Rayudu played a neat little innings of 29 in which he clobbered a six, but failed to capitalize on the start he got.

Virat Kohli had just joined Ajinkya Rahane in the middle when rain interrupted play for the third time. The only bright spot for India was Rahane's batting, as he seemed quite secure in the middle despite the Australian pace bowlers getting a lot of bounce on a pitch that was supposed to help the spinners.

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This World Cup, have a ball

For a generation that has grown up watching the lacquered leather disappear into the sea of screaming fans, the 2015 World Cup promises to be refreshingly different in terms of qualitative balance between bat and ball.

Not that the ICC's commercial arm will be in favour of rolling out the green given the tastes of an average Indian fan but there are compelling factors and statistics which indicate that the fast bowlers will play an instrumental role in shaping the destiny of the current event.

What will make this competition different from the preceding ones is the fact that most top teams have bowlers who can consistently bowl over 140 clicks. Add to that the new fielding restrictions, bigger boundaries, two new balls and relatively livelier tracks than the ones in the subcontinent - the captains have little option but to rely more on their specialists.

If hosts Australia have the Mitchells (Johnson and Starc) in their ranks, then co-hosts New Zealand have the likes of Trent Boult and Adam Milne who can give the speed gun a busy time.

Then there's the lethal South African combination of Dale Steyn & Morne Morkel where one relies on sheer pace and swing while the other is only too happy to bounce people out. The duo feed off each other and have accounted for over 200 wickets bowling in tandem. England have done well to preserve James Anderson and the athletic Lancastrian has looked sharp in the ongoing tri-series Down Under. The 6 ft 7 in frame of Steve Finn invokes images of batsmen negotiating disconcerting bounce from back of the length and India have already got the taste of it at the Gabba recently were he nabbed five. The West Indian side may be in complete shambles following the latest revolt but they have in their ranks a decent pace battery led by captain Jason Holder. It's another story if they will be able to fire as a cohesive unit given the reported acrimony in the camp.

When it comes to the pace department, Pakistan have always managed to keep their noses ahead. But this time though they don't seem to have bowlers like Imran Khan had at his disposal in 1992. Neither do they have game-breakers like Wasim Akram who changed the course of the 1992 final with one magical spell at the MCG. They do have Mohammad Irfan, the supposedly tallest cricketer (7 ft 1 in) in world cricket, who has suffered more breakdowns in his short career than Indo-Pak relations. If the let-arm seamer gets going, he's likely to extract more juice from the Aussie tracks than any other medium-pacer.

Sri Lanka have relied heavily on Lasith Malinga, but the 31-year-old has just come off an ankle surgery and still has to bowl at full throttle.

India are looking at the possibility of opening the bowling with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Stuart Binny. It doesn't really inspire confidence as they function at harmless speeds. Umesh Yadav does bowl at a brisk pace but he does travel far when attacked. Mohammad Shami and Ishant Sharma have had issues with their form and fitness and the duo has struggled to move the ball on or off the pitch.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

In recent times, Australia and New Zealand haven't been happy hunting grounds for spinners and statistics confirm this. A recent survey says that in Australia slower bowlers average 55 balls per wicket while the quicks who concede 35 since 2009. But the spinners do enjoy a better economy rate (4.86) as opposed to fast bowlers (5.21).

The current tri-series backs this with fast men like Starc (11 wickets) accounting for 49 wickets in four matches while the spinners have only 8 wickets to show for their efforts.

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South Africa: Perennial contenders

South Africa's re-entry into world cricket in 1991 had raised hopes of the Proteas dominating the game as they had an abundance of talent but unfortunately they failed to make a mark in global tournaments. Since their debut in the 1991-92 World Cup in Australasia, the South Africans, who have earned the 'Chokers' tag because of their inability to pull off key matches, had failed to make it to summit clash. Their best show was a third place in the 1999 edition of the tournament.

Even though they are perennial favourites in every World Cup, the South Africans don't seem to have luck on their side. Come February, the Proteas will be keen to redeem their honour and beak the jinx as they take guard Down Under. The 2015 squad may not be the best-ever team to leave the African shores to compete in a World Cup, they, however, have two weapons of mass destruction - captain AB de Villiers and Dale Steyn.

The 30-year-old de Villiers, who is the most destructive bats man in all formats of the game, showed that he is in the pink of form as he blasted a century against the West Indies last week. The South African was on a record breaking spree as he struck a 44-ball 149. AB's ability to turn the game on its head in quick time makes him a very dangerous customer.

The South Africans have a couple of other proven performers in the form of Faf du Plessis, big hitting David Miller, Quinton de Kock and Rilee Rossouw. However, Hashim Amla and JP Duminy will have to play a massive role if the Proteas fancy their chances of winning the maiden Cup. Duminy is the leader in the lower order who has successfully shepherded the batting tail over the years. He has the ability to assess conditions expertly and knows when to start adventurously or to play "test cricket" according to the requirements of the game.

Steyn is a lethal weapon which is wild and untamed. The 31-year-old speedster is a pure delight to watch and a batsman's nightmare. The aggressive Steyn never lets his guard down and therefore the rivals cannot afford to let their guard down.

However, there are one or two question marks hovering over the team. In terms of the lower order, the South Africans have not have contributed as consistently as they would have liked.

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This World Cup, have a ball

For a generation that has grown up watching the lacquered leather disappear into the sea of screaming fans, the 2015 World Cup promises to be refreshingly different in terms of qualitative balance between bat and ball.

Not that the ICC's commercial arm will be in favour of rolling out the green given the tastes of an average Indian fan but there are compelling factors and statistics which indicate that the fast bowlers will play an instrumental role in shaping the destiny of the current event.

What will make this competition different from the preceding ones is the fact that most top teams have bowlers who can consistently bowl over 140 clicks. Add to that the new fielding restrictions, bigger boundaries, two new balls and relatively livelier tracks than the ones in the subcontinent - the captains have little option but to rely more on their specialists.

If hosts Australia have the Mitchells (Johnson and Starc) in their ranks, then co-hosts New Zealand have the likes of Trent Boult and Adam Milne who can give the speed gun a busy time.

Then there's the lethal South African combination of Dale Steyn & Morne Morkel where one relies on sheer pace and swing while the other is only too happy to bounce people out. The duo feed off each other and have accounted for over 200 wickets bowling in tandem. England have done well to preserve James Anderson and the athletic Lancastrian has looked sharp in the ongoing tri-series Down Under. The 6 ft 7 in frame of Steve Finn invokes images of batsmen negotiating disconcerting bounce from back of the length and India have already got the taste of it at the Gabba recently were he nabbed five. The West Indian side may be in complete shambles following the latest revolt but they have in their ranks a decent pace battery led by captain Jason Holder. It's another story if they will be able to fire as a cohesive unit given the reported acrimony in the camp.

When it comes to the pace department, Pakistan have always managed to keep their noses ahead. But this time though they don't seem to have bowlers like Imran Khan had at his disposal in 1992. Neither do they have game-breakers like Wasim Akram who changed the course of the 1992 final with one magical spell at the MCG. They do have Mohammad Irfan, the supposedly tallest cricketer (7 ft 1 in) in world cricket, who has suffered more breakdowns in his short career than Indo-Pak relations. If the let-arm seamer gets going, he's likely to extract more juice from the Aussie tracks than any other medium-pacer.

Sri Lanka have relied heavily on Lasith Malinga, but the 31-year-old has just come off an ankle surgery and still has to bowl at full throttle.

India are looking at the possibility of opening the bowling with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Stuart Binny. It doesn't really inspire confidence as they function at harmless speeds. Umesh Yadav does bowl at a brisk pace but he does travel far when attacked. Mohammad Shami and Ishant Sharma have had issues with their form and fitness and the duo has struggled to move the ball on or off the pitch.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

In recent times, Australia and New Zealand haven't been happy hunting grounds for spinners and statistics confirm this. A recent survey says that in Australia slower bowlers average 55 balls per wicket while the quicks who concede 35 since 2009. But the spinners do enjoy a better economy rate (4.86) as opposed to fast bowlers (5.21).

The current tri-series backs this with fast men like Starc (11 wickets) accounting for 49 wickets in four matches while the spinners have only 8 wickets to show for their efforts.

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Tri-series: India-Australia ODI abandoned due to rain

SYDNEY: Rain played spoilsport as the tri-series match between India and Australia was abandoned with the two teams sharing the points, which left the visiting side in with a chance to make it to the final.

After being put into bat, India were 69 for two after 16 overs when play was stopped due to rain at 5pm local time (11:30 IST) and after a wait of three hours the umpires decided to call off the match.

The two teams take two points each from Sunday's match, which means that the final league game between India and England on January 30 at the WACA in Perth will be a straight knockout for a chance to play Australia in the final on February 1 at the same venue.

Unbeaten Australia, who have 15 points after Sunday's no result, have already qualified for the final while winless India and England have two and five points respectively. A team gets four points for a win.

India had lost to Australia and England in their first-leg matches of the double round robin format tournament.

The start of the match was delayed by 40 minutes due to drizzle since morning and there was first rain interruption at 3:30 pm local time (10 am IST) when India were six for no loss in 2.4 overs.

Play resumed with India losing the struggling Shikhar Dhawan for eight in the seventh over and then Ambati Rayudu for 23 in the 13th over.

Dhawan was caught by Aaron Finch at slips off the bowling of Mitchell Starc as the Indian opener dabbed at a delivery that bounced a bit extra from a good length just outside the off-stump without any movement of his feet.

Rayudu was dismissed off the bowling of Marsh with David Warner taking a sensational catch. The Indian batsman had charged and slashed at the ball, carving it high over the infield on the off side and Warner ran from the cover to take a well-judged catch.

Rayudu faced 24 balls from which he hit two boundaries and one six.

India were 62 for two when Rayudu was out and they slowed down, scoring just seven runs from the next 3.1 overs before rain stopped play.

Ajinkya Rahane was batting on 28 while Virat Kohli was giving him company on three when rain stopped play. Rahane had faced 50 deliveries from which he hit two fours.

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Dhoni speaks on IPL scam, doesn't expect speculation to stop

SYDNEY: Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni finally broke his stoic silence over the IPL spot-fixing scandal on Sunday, saying that he does not expect the speculation around his name to stop anytime soon despite nothing concrete coming up against him.

Dhoni, who captains Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League, has been remarkably calm in the last couple of years despite his name regularly cropping up in cases pertaining to conflict of interest.

There was wild speculation about his name being among the yet-to-be-released list of 13 players, who have been indicted by the Justice Mukul Mudgal Committee in the IPL spot-fixing and betting scandal.

"I know one thing, irrespective of what is there, when it comes to Indian cricket, my name keeps popping up. Now that this has been settled, something new will pop up. It keeps popping up. I am quite used to it," Dhoni said ahead of the tri-series match against Australia.

"If there is nothing, some speculative story comes up, big or small. I have to keep dealing with all these things. It is the end of one story, something else may start in a couple of days' time," Dhoni said.

Delivering its long-awaited verdict, the Supreme Court barred BCCI president-in-exile N Srinivasan from contesting the Board's Presidential elections.

The Court also declared that the allegation of betting against Gurunath Meiyappan, a CSK team official and son-in-law of Srinivasan, and Rajasthan Royals co-owner Raj Kundra stands proved while the charge of cover up against Srinivasan was "not proved".

Striking down rules that permitted BCCI office bearers to have a commercial interest by owning teams in the hugely-popular Indian Premier League and Champions League, a two-member bench of Justices T S Thakur and F M I Khalifulla, said, "Amendment in the BCCI rules allowing Srinivasan to own IPL team is bad as conflict of interest in cricket leads to great confusion."

While he has refused to comment on the issue in the past, this time around Dhoni was asked a different question, if the final ruling in the matter has come as a relief since the matter is now coming to a near-end pending a three-judge tribunal making a final judgement.

There has been wild, mischievous and obviously unsubstantiated speculation that his was among 13 names presented in a sealed envelope by the Justice Mudgal panel to the Supreme Court.

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Australia to try out bench against India

SYDNEY: Having qualified for the final, Australia will utilize their last league match against India in the tri-series on Monday to try out some untested players. Coach Darren Lehmann, talking to the media at the Sydney airport on arrival from Hobart, said some batsmen could be tried out at different positions.

"Since we have qualified for the final, it gives us a chance to do something different. We want some players ready to take over in case of injuries," Lehmann said. "There will be some more changes, and we could also bat a few guys at different positions. However, since it's a big game on Australia Day, we will make sure we are up there."

Lehmann confirmed the return of David Warner who sat out the last game. However, he wasn't sure about the availability of injured Shane Watson and Mitchell Johnson yet. "Warner will come back and with Watson we will see how it goes for him tomorrow.

"Johnson is close to getting fully fit.He has been bowling in the nets and hopefully he will have full training session tomorrow and be available for the match and then the final in Perth. He should be fine after a long break and should be at his full fitness and pace," he said.

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2015 ODI World Cup: Big test for IPL stars Down Under

India's premier T20 league has created quite a few heroes who have gone on to play prominent roles for their national sides. Can they adapt to the pitches, pressure and format in Australia and New Zealand?

Every time an Indian team struggles in Test cricket away from home, there's invariably a finger of accusation pointed towards the big, bad Indian Premier League. There's some truth to the story, too, since the skill-set required to excel in IPL is significantly different to those needed to survive in the longer version. Young players growing up with the ambition of fitting into the 20-over format often find it difficult to adjust to the necessities.

But ODIs are much closer to T20s in terms of skill and when India won the 2011 World Cup in the subcontinent, skipper MS Dhoni was prompt to point out that IPL had played its part in developing the side. He argued that the fear of chasing down any target had come down significantly - after all, nine runs an over is par for the course in the slam-bang version. Similarly, slow bowlers who learn to push in four quick overs amidst all the carnage with the bat find it easy to translate that success on the tracks in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the 50-over format.

But things are a bit different this time around. The tournament will be played on pitches which will have bounce and pace, unlike those in the subcontinent. The nature of the pitches won't exactly be suitable for spinners like Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel or Sunil Narine, who have been such huge successes in IPL.

The Indian team, of course, has gambled with Jadeja, despite the left-arm all-rounder being unfit in the run-up to the tournament. Dhoni believes that Jadeja will do the job with the ball that Yuvraj Singh did so successfully in the last World Cup. It's easier said than done, though, and that's true for Jadeja's back-up Axar as well. The Kings XI all-rounder found out very quickly in the first two games of the tri-series that batting in Australia is a completely different kettle of fish.Unless pushed to the brink, it's unlikely that Axar, who has already got a couple of ducks, will be asked to bat as high as No. 7, something that he does so effectively for Kings XI.

Much like India, the success of the West Indies team is heavily dependent on IPL stars. They have of course overlooked the best of the lot - Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard - but Narine remains a key component. Before the 2012 IPL, not too many people knew about the right-arm mystery spinner, but since then he has become a household name. It's his bag of tricks in a four-over spell, generally broken down into one in the beginning of the innings, two in the middle, and one in the end, that mesmerizes batsmen.

But in the World Cup, it's about 10 overs and batsmen get the time to read him. Moreover, he was barred from bowling in the Champions League final due to suspect action, and one has to see if his doosra carries the same venom in the 50-over format with a re-modelled action.

Dwayne Smith, another IPL superhero, too may find it tough to be as consistent as he is for Chennai Super Kings up the order. That, however, won't be the case for David Miller. The South African middle-order batsman, a great success for Kings XI Punjab in the last two editions, is good at playing in all conditions. Pace and bounce are nothing new to him and at No. 6, he will be a huge force for South Africa, just as his Kings XI teammate Glenn Maxwell be for Australia.

The Oz team management is building on Maxwell's T20 skills and making him bat at No. 6 in the team, which means the swashbuckler will get about 15 overs to showcase his skills. Conditions are not a problem for him and Maxwell can truly set the World Cup stage alight.

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Bangladesh - Forever struggling to impress

It was supposed to be a normal league game. Bangladesh were not expected to be a match for the experienced Indian side in the 2007 World Cup, but their young players created history. They bowled India out for under 200 and then 17-year-old Tamim Iqbal took the experienced Indian attack to the sword. Mushfiqur Rahim played sensibly to guide his team home. It was one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history. Since then, though, it has been back to mediocrity for Bangladesh.

Inconsistency has been a feature of Bangladesh cricket ever since they were given Test status 15 years ago. There was always a question mark on their temperament. Some days they played like millionaires, on most other days they were poor. Most of their players have been playing at the international level for some time now but the improvement isn't up to expected standards.

The likes of Anamul Haque, Nasir Hossain and Mahmudullah haven't done justice to their talent. Except for Shakib al-Hasan, skipper Mashrafe Mortaza, Iqbal and Rahim, no other player has established himself at the top level and that is the biggest reason Bangladesh cricket is still struggling to make a mark. The onus will be on this quartet to show the way, since Bangladesh have nine World Cup first timers. They haven't come up with any noticeable performance in the last two years, except for that 3-0 New Zealand rout when conditions suited spinners. The 5-0 win in ODIs over Zimbabwe in the last series came after Bangladesh had lost 12 out of 13 ODIs.

Inconsistent performances have left selectors with no options but to play a rotating cast of players. Just before the World Cup, Mortaza took over from Rahim. Even coach Chandika Hathurusinghe is new to the set up. If that's not enough, the conditions and wickets will challenge their skills.

Bangladesh rely more on spin and they don't have world-class fast bowlers. Mortaza and Rubel Hossain have formed a good pair but they haven't set the stage on fire. Hossain has some off field issues too. Al-Amin Hossain has so far done well in the limited opportunities he has got.

The 19-year old Taskin Ahmad might have played just three ODIs but he can surprise the opposition with his lively pace. Bangladesh have some experience in the spin department with the presence of Shakib.They will only come in handy if their batsmen post a big total on the board. For the last couple years, though, it has been a constant struggle.

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I stand vindicated: Lalit Modi

NEW DELHI: Claiming to have been vindicated after the Supreme Court barred N Srinivsan from contesting BCCI Presidential elections owing to conflict of interest, sacked IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi on Thursday said the verdict will clean up corruption in the game.

"Extremely happy with the Hon. Supreme Court judgement on #srinivasan ..always believed that I would be vindicated #IPLVerdict," Modi said in a series of tweets after the apex court disallowed Srinivasan from fighting the BCCI Presidential election due to his stake in IPL team Chennai Super Kings.

"Decision by Hon. SC to disallow any administrator from having any commercial interest in cricket is bang on #IPLVerdict #SriniGameOver," he added.

Delivering its long-awaited verdict, the Supreme Court held that the allegation of betting against Gurunath Meiyappan, a CSK team official and son-in-law of the BCCI President-in-exile, and Rajasthan Royals co-owner Raj Kundra stands proved while the charge of cover up against Srinivasan "is not proved".

Striking down rules that permitted BCCI office bearers to have a commercial interest by owning teams in the hugely-popular Indian Premier League and Champions League, a two-member bench of Justices T S Thakur and F M I Khalifulla, said, "Amendment in the BCCI rules allowing Srinivasan to own IPL team is bad as conflict of interest in cricket leads to great confusion."

Modi said his position on conflict of interest has been proved right by the apex court.

"#Srinivasan knew all along that Rule 6.2.4 is unsustainable & illegal. #IPLVerdict now ensures a new @BCCI chief in 6 weeks. Time 4 cleanup," he said.

"Cannot agree more on SC's observation: "Game is a game only if it is pristine and free from any sporting fraud" #IPLVerdict is watershed!" he added.

The future of CSK and IPL could be in danger as IPL rules provide for cancellation of the franchise for misconduct by players, owners and officials of a team.

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England captain Eoin Morgan victim of attempted blackmail

LONDON: England one-day captain Eoin Morgan was recently the target of a blackmail attempt by an Australian man, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) revealed in a statement on Thursday.

The ECB said it had received an email from the man demanding a "five-figure sum" to prevent him revealing details of a relationship that Morgan had with a woman five years ago to the British and Australian press.

Following discussions with British police, the ECB approached the man, who "admitted and apologised for his actions, blaming jealousy". The ECB said the man is currently in a relationship with the woman in question.

"We will not allow anyone to disrupt our team's preparation or performance in the Tri Series and as we build up to the World Cup," said ECB managing director Paul Downton.

"I am pleased that this issue has now been brought to a swift conclusion. At this point we'd like to thank the Metropolitan Police for their advice, which assisted us in dealing with this in the swiftest possible manner."

England are currently halfway through a Tri-Series with Australia and India as they build up to the World Cup, which begins on February 14.

Morgan replaced Alastair Cook as England's one-day captain in December and scored 121 against Australia last week.

England lost that match, but bounced back to beat India by nine wickets on Tuesday. They face a second match against Australia in Hobart on Friday.

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Justice Mukul Mudgal welcomes SC verdict

NEW DELHI: Justice Mukul Mudgal on Thursday welcomed the Supreme Court verdict in the IPL spot-fixing case.

"SC has given a very important verdict which describes what the public functions of BCCI are," Justice Mugdal said, adding, "the judgment will have far reaching consequences."

Justice Mukul Mudgal headed the panel that probed spot-fixing in IPL.

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I am happy that Srinivasan is out, Sharad Pawar says

NEW DELHI: Reacting to the Supreme Court's verdict that N Srinivasan can't contest BCCI polls till he gives up commercial interest in CSK, former BCCI chief Sharad Pawar said, "I am happy that Srinivasan is out."

READ ALSO: I stand vindicated: Lalit Modi

Former BCCI chief AC Muthiah said, "Srinivasan got a bit cocky, he thought nobody could bring him down. He must be angry with judgement. Srinivasan should honorably exit the board and let BCCI function."

READ ALSO: IPL verdict: Key observations made by SC

In a setback to Srinivasan, the Supreme Court on Thursday barred him from contesting any BCCI election on grounds of conflict of interest and set up a judges committee under a former Chief Justice of India to decide on the punishment in the IPL scam that can threaten the future of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals (RR).

Delivering its long-awaited verdict, the court held that the allegation of betting against Gurunath Meiyappan, a CSK team official and son in law of the BCCI President-in-exile and Rajasthan Royals co-owner Raj Kundra stands proved while the charge of cover up against Srinivasan "is not proved".

Striking down rules that permitted BCCI office bearers to have a commercial interest by owning teams in the hugely-popular Indian Premier League and Champions League, a two-member bench of Justices T S Thakur and F M I Khalifulla, said, "Amendment in the BCCI rules allowing Srinivasan to own IPL team is bad as conflict of interest in cricket leads to great confusion."

"No one who has commercial interest including N Srinivasan shall be eligible for any post in the BCCI and this disqualification on ground of commercial interest shall continue till such commercial interest will exist," the bench said while asking BCCI to hold its AGM for electing office bearers within six weeks.

Reading out from the judgement, Justice Thakur said the "allegation of cover up" in the probe of IPL spot fixing and betting against Srinivasan over the involvement of Meiyappan are "not proved" and "at best there's only a case of suspicion against Srinivasan of cover up"

It said not only players and team officials but "franchisees will also be punished for misconduct".

The future of CSK and IPL could be in danger as IPL rules provide for cancellation of the franchise for misconduct by players, owners and officials of a team.

Setting up a committee of judges headed by former CJI R M Lodha, the bench said "to remove bias" and to have a process which will be "objective and transparent" there was a need for an independent committee to decide the quantum of punishment likely to be awarded to Meiyappan and Kundra and to decide the fate of the teams.

The committee, also comprising Justices Ashok Bhan and R V Raveendran, both retired judges of the apex court, will further probe the allegation of betting against BCCI chief operating officer Sunder Raman and if found guilty will award the punishment.

The bench asked the committee to issue notices to Meiyappan, Kundra and others, complete its work in six months and place a report before it. Further the panel will make recommendations for bringing out reforms in the BCCI.

The apex court said the amendment 6.2.4 brought in the BCCI rules in February 2008 to permit cricket administrators of having commercial interest by owing teams for IPL and Champions League was "unsustainable", impermissible" and bad in law and has to be struck down as it is void.

It said Srinivasan being BCCI chief and as Managing Director of India Cements Ltd, which owned the Chennai Super Kings created a situation of conflict of interest.

The contention that Srinivasan held a Small share in India Cements Limited, owners of CSK, was misleading since his family directly or indirectly holds much more control in the company.

The bench said the amendment to BCCI rules permitting an administrator to have commercial interest in the game was in "breach of duty" and coming in the way of "purity of the game".

"The amendment 6.2.4 is a true villain of the situation," the bench said and added that while appointing the panel to probe the IPL scandal the BCCI did not adhere to prescribed procedures".

While pronouncing the verdict, the bench said it has framed seven questions on issues like whether BCCI was a "State" or not.

The court held that though the BCCI is not a "State" in the constitutional framework, BCCI's functions are "public functions" and as such it is "amenable" to the writ jurisdiction of the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution.

Accepting the findings of the three-member committee headed Justice Mukul Mudgal, which probed the IPL-6 spot fixing and betting scandal, the bench said "it has no reason to differ with the findings of the court-appointed committee that Meiyappan and Kundra were team officials indulging in betting".

The bench said though both state governments and union government gave full autonomy to the BCCI which selects the national team and have complete sway over the game of cricket, "it (State) chose not to bring law to challenge the powers of cricket board".

To explain how the Board performed public functions, the apex court gave the example of how civilian awards like Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Shri and also Arujna awards were given on the recommendation of the BCCI and players who bring laurels to the country are felicitated by the highest dignitaries.

It brushed aside the contention of Kundra that he was not issued notice by the Mudgal Committee saying that he was heard by the panel. So "issue of notice is of little consequence" as the committee followed all rules and proved all charges against him requiring no review if its findings.

The bench also said that BCCI cannot afford to lose its credibility because of sporting frauds and "all cricket matches must be played on level playing field".

"What goes in the name of game is farce and the game is a game only if it is pristine and free from any sporting fraud," the bench observed.

"There is need to establish institutional integrity within BCCI," the bench said.

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Hot-headed David Warner made to cool off

BRISBANE: Opener David Warner has been 'rested' for Australia's game against England in Hobart on Friday. The official reason given by Cricket Australia is that he needs to rest a sore hamstring which he has been carrying since the start of the tri-series.

But after his spat with Rohit Sharma at the MCG on Sunday night, which led to a fine by the ICC and a stern warning by CA officials, it seems more like a cooling-off period. It remains to be seen if he will be on the pitch for the Australia Day clash against India in Sydney on January 26.

Warner has had on-field problems galore, the most notorious being a punch in the face of young England batsman Joe Root in England a year ago. He has been known to pick fights on the field with such frequency that CA have had to put him under probation. The latest incident has also not gone down well with the CA officials and they have given him a stern warning. Besides Warner, regular skipper George Bailey, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Johnson will also not make the trip to Hobart. Bailey was suspended for one match by the ICC for slow over-rate, while Hazlewood is resting minor soreness in his left heel. Mitchell Johnson, who is yet to play a game, will miss the trip due to personal reasons. A squad of 12 players will be on duty for the match.

CA selectors have named Steve Smith as the captain for the Hobart game, and have included Shaun Marsh and Cameron White in the squad in place of Bailey and Warner. Bailey was suspended for Friday's match as punishment for the team maintaining a slow over-rate during Australia's four-wicket victory against India at the MCG on Sunday . Smith will become Australia's 22nd ODI captain, although he led the side in three of the four Test matches against India in December and January. Selector Rodney Marsh said: "Steven's appointment was a straightforward decision given the excellent impression he made in charge of the side during the Test series when he stepped in for the injured Michael Clarke.

"It is unfortunate for George Bailey that he will miss the match in his home state but in Steven we have a dynamic player who leads from the front, by example, and we look forward to him doing so again on Friday."

While there was a detailed statement on Smith's appointment, there was just a brief mention of Warner. "He is rested, following the hamstring soreness he reported at the start of the series," was a curt one-liner on his unavailability. Australia Coach Darren Lehmann emphasized the need for the team to improve its over-rate in the wake of Bailey's suspension."We have bowled too many wides and we have been too slow between the overs," he said. "We have got to get better at that."

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Time to strike right balance, says Dhoni

BRISBANE: Skipper MS Dhoni's formula for India to overcome their poor run is the three Rs: Recreation, relaxation and reflection. Talking to the media after the team's second defeat in the tri-series here at the Gabba, he said that when the team is not doing well, there is bound to be a lot of criticism. As a result, he said, there is a lot of pressure on players like Shikhar Dhawan who are out of form. This is the time to strike a right balance between work and rest. Dhoni feels the break of five days before the next game in Sydney gives the team opportunity to be away from cricket for a while and come back fresh. Excerpts...

On batting line-up

When we don't do well, there is a lot of criticism. We should not forget it was the same batting line-up that won us the Champions Trophy in England.The same players put in a lot of effort in the Test series. It doesn't really matter whether you have scored runs or not, the preparation is the same. A long Test series takes a lot out of you. When you score runs, you put in a lot of effort and when you don't score runs, you actually put in even more effort than the guys who are scoring runs. It drains you out.

Fatigue factor on a long tour

So far it's not there. But what is important is that before you see the symptoms, you cope. From now on, with a bit more gap between the ODIs and between the tri-series and the World Cup, we will have to use it very wisely. No doubt a four-and-a-half month tour is very long. Whatever said and done, staying away (from home), we have seen cricketers feeling homesick within 15 days. Four-and-a-half months away from everything is tough. But at the same time we have the preparation in mind. We knew this was going to happen and we have planned for it. There have not been many cases of Indian cricketers saying "we are homesick". We will have a bit more of team activities, we will have a bit more fun, maybe have paintball with the media people one day, and that will be fun.

On bad starts

Getting off to a good start is important. That doesn't mean that the openers will always have to perform. We have to repose faith in batsmen like Shikhar Dhawan as they are important to our gameplan. He is not coming good at the moment. He should go out their and express himself like Adam Gilchrist used to do. Sometimes, it helps to get out of a bad patch.

On Virat Kohli batting at No. 4

We have to make the middle order strong, the middle and the lower middle order. Jadeja was also not there.

On Binny with the new ball

We have to see the best possible way to use him. He is definitely someone who can swing the ball. We wanted to see what he can do with the new ball, because that opens up options. At least now, we know what he will do with the new ball.

Axar Patel as lead spinner

We have to give him games. Ashwin has had a lot of games outside the subcontinent. Axar will only get better and better. You will also see him improve his batting.

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Tri-series 3rd ODI: Bonus point for England as Finn, Anderson destroy India

BRISBANE: India flunked the English test so poorly that the day-night game at the Gabba finished even before the sun could set on this beautiful city. The pace duo of Steven Finn and James Anderson cleaned up the Indians in under 40 overs and the English batsmen got to the lowly target of 154 with 22.3 overs and nine wicket to spare. Like Australia, England too lodged a bonus point and now travel to Hobart to take on the hosts on Friday.

India, on the other hand, have ample time to reflect on their con tinuous poor performances as they move to Sydney and await their Australia Day match against the hosts. India are without a point and have two tough games which they have to win handsomely to have any hope of qualifying for the February 1 final in Perth.

After heavy overnight rains, it was a bit of surprise that skipper MS Dhoni opted to bat first, especially as they were without Rohit Sharma, who was rested due to a sore hamstring. The England bowlers excelled in helpful conditions, putting the Indians on the back foot straightaway. Once Anderson got rid of the struggling Shikhar Dhawan as early as the third over, it was an uphill battle.

Anderson kept up the pressure at one end, while the lanky Finn made the most of the opportunities. The disconcerting bounce he generated flummoxed the batsmen so much that half the team was in the pavilion by the 19th over with very little on the board. Though Stuart Binny and Dhoni kept up the fight, it was too little too late.

The form of the top-order batsmen is becoming an embarrassment and until they are able to pick their game up, India will continue to struggle. They have two more opportunities in the tri-series. The Sydney game against a rampaging Australia is not go ing to be easy, despite the expected presence of a large contingent of Indian fans. They then run into Finn and Anderson again on a bouncy track in Perth on Janu ary 30 in their last league match. The Indian think-tank has giv en Dhawan a long rope. But his early dismissal is putting a lot of pressure on the other batsmen.

With Rohit unavailable for this match, it was important to get off a decent start to counter the sharp England attack. But with Ajinkya Rahane and and Virat Kohli too failing yet again and Suresh Raina committing hara-kiri by stepping out to the wily off-spinner Moeen Ali too early in his innings, it was all over for India when they slumped to 655.

The only bright spot for India was the batting of Stuart Binny, who would have impressed his father and national selector Roger, who is here with another selector Vikram Rathour. But both must be scratching their heads and wondering how to go about lifting the Indians from the dumps. Hopefully, things will change when team director Ravi Shastri joins the team in Sydney in a couple of days.

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BCCI objects to Mumbai U-19 player before relenting

MUMBAI: Thanks to petty officialdom, a Mumbai under-19 player, Aditya Shinde, almost missed the team's Cooch Behar Trophy match against Uttar Pradesh, which began in Meerut on Tuesday.

Apparently, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had refused to register Shinde's name in the Mumbai U-19 side on the grounds of domicile.

"On January 9, we received a mail from the BCCI that Shinde wasn't eligible to play for Mumbai since he wasn't born in Mumbai, and also passed his SSC (secondary school) and HSC (Higher secondary) from an institute outside Mumbai," a top MCA official told TOI.

"Curiously , the mail had come from the BCCI's age verification department, which has nothing to do with domicile issues. We wrote back to the BCCI saying that this particular player has been a MCA-registered player in Mumbai for the last couple of years, attaching the re lated documents along with the response. We said that unless another association claims that this player's domicile came in their jurisdiction, there was no reason to deny him registration for Mumbai," said the official.

"However, we received no response from the BCCI for the next few days.

Eventually, we spoke to BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel on Monday night about it, who agreed to register the player. We had to rush this youngster to Meerut on a short notice, which wasn't easy on him," rued the official.

The official claimed that as per the rules, for a player to represent Mumbai, 1) he must have been born in areas in jurisdiction of the MCA, or 2) he must have a domicile of the area under the jurisdiction of the MCA for a minimum of six months. Shinde was born in Ratnagiri, but has played in Mumbai's local cricket for the last two years.

When contacted, BCCI game game development officer, Ratnakar Shetty, denied knowledge of the incident.

Shinde, meanwhile, failed to make it to the Mumbai XI on Tuesday. After being put in, Mumbai were 19 for no loss before bad weather ruined play for the day.

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Tri-series 3rd ODI: England crush India by 9 wickets in Brisbane

BRISBANE: A spineless India suffered their second consecutive defeat as England crushed them by nine wickets with a bonus point, throwing their cricket tri-series campaign in jeopardy here on Tuesday.

Electing to bat, India were bundled out for 153 in 39.3 overs with the top-five batsmen returning to the dressing room with just 67 runs on board by the 19th over on a lively Gabba track.

Steven Finn (5/33) and his pace colleague James Anderson (4/18) exploited the pacer-friendly deck to the hilt by extracting extra bounce as the Indians, barring Roger Binny (44), struggled to come to terms.

Binny was the lone Indian batsman to show some resilience on a day when the others got out due to poor shot selection.

Opener Ajinkya Rahane (33), Virat Kohli (4), Ambati Rayudu (23) and Suresh Raina (1) were out playing poor shots, while Shikhar Dhawan (1) fell to a beauty from Anderson in the third over of the India innings.

England chased down the easy target with more than 22 overs to spare to collect five points, including a bonus point, from the comprehensive win.

Opener Ian Bell led the England run chase with a 91-ball unbeaten 88 while James Taylor also scored an unbeaten half century (56 not out from 63 balls) to take their side home.

The duo stitched 131 runs for the unconquered second wicket stand as they negotiated the Indian bowlers without much difficulty on a pitch that seemed to have demons while the Indians were batting.

Taylor hit the winning runs, a four, as England reached 156 for one in 27.3 overs to wrap up the match.

The other English opener, Moeen Ali (8), was dismissed cheaply off the bowling of Binny, who opened the Indian bowling during the first session as England batted before the break after India folded early.

Australia are now on top of table with nine points from two matches while England have five points from two games.

India will now have to win both their remaining matches if they are to qualify for the final.

England started their chase before the schedule innings' break and were placed at 41/1 from six overs with Bell and Taylor batting on 28 and three respectively.

After the resumption of play, India did not show any urgency or energy in the field as Bell and Taylor went about accumulating runs without any worries. They brought up the 50-mark in the eighth over as runs flowed easily enough with the Indian bowlers not making an impression after a listless batting performance.

Thereafter, Bell brought up his 32nd ODI fifty off 50 balls as the 100-mark came up in the 19th over. The duo also celebrated their 100-run partnership for the second wicket, off just 111 balls, in the 22nd over.

Shortly after, Taylor too celebrated his third ODI half-century off 58 balls as they completed India's ruinous day. Bell finished at 88 not out (91 balls, 8 fours) and Taylor was unbeaten on 56 (63 balls, 4 fours) as England won in a canter.

The only bright spark for India was Binny's all-round performance. He scored 44 runs (55 balls, 3x4, 2x6) earlier and was the only Indian batsman to show some resilience amid some poor shot selection by the rest of the line-up.

This was after India had won the toss and elected to bat first once again. They made two changes with Rohit Sharma missing out due to a sore hamstring and Rayudu coming into the side as his replacement. R Ashwin was also left out for Binny. England made one change from their opening match against Australia, with Anderson coming in for Chris Jordan.

Rahane opened the innings with Dhawan who once again did not last long at the crease. At least he was not guilty of a poor shot-making as Anderson had him caught behind, in the third over, off one that neatly moved away. The fast bowler bowled a stifling opening spell even as Rahane and Rayudu stayed together long enough to get a start.

Only 36 runs came in the first 10 overs but that did not matter as long as the Indian batsmen made the latter half of the innings count. Instead they decided to throw their wickets away, starting with Rahane who advanced against Finn in the 15th over of the innings, only to lob a simple catch to mid-on.

It opened the floodgates with Kohli trying to run the ball past slips two overs later, but no width from Finn meant he was caught behind. In the very next over, Raina foolishly charged Moeen Ali (1/31) and was stumped, comprehensively beaten by his turn and bounce. It got worse with Rayudu getting in the same manner as Kohli, off Finn in the 19th over, as India collapsed to 67/5.

Binny then arrived at the crease and together with skipper Dhoni (34, 61 balls, 1x4) put on the only fruitful partnership of the innings for his team. Together, they batted for 17.1 overs and put on 70 runs for the sixth wicket taking the score past the 100-mark in the 29th over.

It came in good time for India had crossed the 50-mark in only the 13th over after which the batting order had completely collapsed.

England feared that the settled partnership might take the batting powerplay early. That did not happen and when the powerplay was taken as scheduled, Dhoni was dropped by Anderson off his own bowling in the 36th over.

The captain was on 33 then but could not capitalize as Finn struck immediately to remove him in the next over, the batsman caught behind going for a hook shot. He then bowled Akshar Patel (0) first ball, for his first five-wicket haul in ODI cricket, but the hat-trick was avoided by Bhuvneshwar Kumar (5).

Anderson then removed Binny, Kumar and Mohammad Shami (1) in the space of 13 balls to end the miserable Indian innings in the 40th over itself. Stuart Broad (0/33) and Chris Woakes (0/35) were the other bowlers deployed.

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Tri-series 3rd ODI: Finn takes five wickets as England bundle out India for 153

BRISBANE: Fast bowler Steven Finn claimed his first five-wicket haul in a One Day International as England destroyed India's batting lineup at the Gabba in Brisbane on Tuesday.

Finn took 5-33 from eight overs while Jimmy Anderson picked up four wickets as the pair skittled the reigning world champions for just 153 in less than 40 overs.

The towering Finn, who stands 2.01 metres (6ft 7in) tall, tore through the fragile Indian middle order with his pace and extra bounce, with three of his wickets coming through catches to wicketkeeper Jos Buttler.

Finn got the prized wickets of Virat Kohli and Mahendra Singh Dhoni and was on a hat-trick after he clean bowled Axar Patel, who made his second golden duck of the tri-series, which also involves Australia.

Anderson gave England the perfect start when he removed Shikhar Dhawan for one in the third over and returned to mop up the tail and finish with 4-18 in a timely boost to England's World Cup preparations.

With India's world record holder Rohit Sharma skipping the match because of a minor hamstring complaint after cracking a century in the loss to Australia on Sunday, the tourists needed someone else to make a big contribution but no-one did.

All-rounder Stuart Binny, who came in for Ravichandran Ashwin, top scored for India with 44 off 55 balls, featuring two sixes, while Dhoni made a patient 34 and opener Ajinkya Rahane 33 after replacing Sharma.

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Indian media slams 'motormouth' David Warner

NEW DELHI: India's media on Tuesday lashed out at David Warner over his repeated verbal clashes with Mahendra Singh Dhoni's touring team, demanding the aggressive Australian opener be reined in.

"Brakes on motormouth Warner" and "Talkative Warner crosses the line" read two headlines in Indian newspapers after Warner was fined 50 percent of his match fee for demanding Rohit Sharma "speak English" during Sunday's one-dayer in Melbourne.

"Warner has a knack of getting into trouble. Despite warnings in the past he does not seem to learn," the Times of India wrote, referring to his constant run-ins with the Indians during the preceding Test series.

The Hindustan Times said Indian team managers had decided to ignore Warner rather than react to the sledging.

"The Indian team management, despite all the verbal volleys that flew from the Aussie camp, confirmed that the team had decided to not react and concentrate in getting back to winning ways," the paper wrote.

The Australian fielders had taken offence when the Indians went for a single off an overthrow which they wrongly believed was in breach of cricket etiquette.

The reporter for the Wisden India website covering the series said Warner's behaviour was unwarranted and would one day "come back to bite him very badly where it hurts".

"Warner is also the perfect example of a man fighting for all the wrong causes, however strong his conviction might be that he is doing the right thing," the website wrote.

"He does not suffer from white line fever so much as define it. One day, it will come back to bite him very badly where it hurts.

"Australia have made 'playing hard but fair' one of the most laughable cliches in the cricket world. By their estimation, everything they do is 'hard but fair', but everything the opposition does is unfair."

Warner admitted he should not have confronted Sharma but said the pair had been engaging in "friendly banter" during the match, which Australia won with six balls to spare despite a century by Sharma, and he didn't feel the need to apologise

India, who lost the four-Test series 2-0, are currently engaged with England and hosts Australia in a tri-series to prepare for the World Cup starting Down Under on February 14.

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Root backs Crowe's call for soccer-like card system

England batsman Joe Root is in support of New Zealand great Martin Crowe's call for a football-like card system to curb misbehaviour in cricket on field.

Root has been on the receiving end of Australian opener David Warner's fiery temper. Warner's growing reputation as a hard-hitting batsman has coincided with his increasing fondness to get involved in on-field spats, making him a regular visitor to the match referee's room.

Warner's latest spat with India's Rohit Sharma in Sunday's tri-series contest, cost him half his match fee and a reprimand from his own board, who have asked the opener to stop looking for trouble, Sport24 reported.

Crowe had stated that there is a growing concern that Warner's thuggish behaviour has gone too far. He added that soon one day, it would lead to an incident that would sully the game for good.

Crowe had claimed that one has to take the offenders out of the game for extended periods, adding that two yellow cards should result in a red card, which should ban any player for six months.

Root felt Crowe's suggestion made a lot of sense. He said that at the minute, people aren't happy with the way people are holding themselves on the field and questioned that if that is going to sort it out then why should they not do it.

Root, who was famously punched by Warner in a bar in 2013, said that one is out there to either score runs or take wickets, adding that if that is not a player's main focus then one is not doing their team a full service. He added that it's about mutual respect for each other.

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George Bailey suspended for one ODI

DUBAI: Australia captain George Bailey on Monday was suspended for one ODI and fined 20 percent of his match fee while his players were fined 10 percent of their match fees for maintaining a slow over-rate during their match against India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground Sunday.

Match referee Andy Pycroft imposed the suspension on Bailey after Australia were ruled to be one over short of their target at the end of the match after time allowances were taken into consideration.

As Bailey had previously been found guilty of a minor over rate offence in ODIs in the last one year, this offence constituted his second minor over rate offence for the purposes of the ICC Code of Conduct. Bailey pleaded guilty and accepted the proposed sanction so there was no need for a formal hearing.

As such, Bailey will not play Australia's next ODI against England in Hobart Friday.

In another incident, opening batsman David Warner has been fined 50 percent of his match fee after committing a Level 1 breach of the ICC Code of Conduct.

Warner admitted to a breach of Article 2.1.8 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel which provides that an offence will be committed where a player engages in "A... conduct that either : (a) is contrary to the spirit of the game; or (b) brings the game into disrepute".

The incident happened on the last ball of the 22nd over when Warner approached India batsman Rohit Sharma and confronted him aggressively after the batsmen had taken a run from an overthrow. The Australian had to be withdrawn from the confrontation by both the umpires.

Warner accepted the offence and the proposed sanction and a hearing was not required. Both the charges were laid by umpires Kumar Dharmasena and John Ward, third umpire Mick Martell and fourth official Simon Fry.

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Stuart MacGill sues Cricket Australia for $2.6 million

MELBOURNE: Former Test spin bowler Stuart MacGill is suing Cricket Australia for $1.6 million Australian dollars ($1.3 million) he claims he is owed in unpaid match payments and prizemoney.

MacGill filed a writ in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Monday seeking $1,640,890 in match payments and prizes he says he was entitled to but didn't receive after injury ended his international career in May, 2008.

The right-arm legspinner is also seeking almost a million dollars in costs, bringing his total claim to $2.6 million.

He alleges he was not paid match fees and prizemoney accruing from 15 away Tests and 11 home Tests in the two years after his injury and which he was entitled to under Cricket Australia's player insurance policy.

MacGill played 44 Tests, taking 208 Test wickets.

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Warner fined for spat with Rohit but defends 'speak English' call

MELBOURNE: Australian opener David Warner has been fined 50 per cent of his match fee for a verbal spat with Indian batsman Rohit Sharma during an ODI tri-series cricket match here but defended himself by insisting that he was merely asking his rival to "speak English".

READ ALSO: Rohit Sharma comes into his own at the MCG

Warner revealed that he has been fined during a radio interview after yesterday's match which Australia won by four wickets.

The swashbuckling opener said although getting involved in the altercation was not right but maintained that he did nothing wrong by asking Rohit to speak in English.

READ ALSO: Rohit's century goes in vain as Australia beat India

The showdown took place at the end of the 23rd over of India's innings when Rohit charged for a single on an overthrow, much to the displeasure of the Australians.

"On the cricket etiquette side of things when you throw a ball to the keeper and it hits a player you don't run," Warner said on 'Sky Sports Radio'.

READ ALSO: Root backs call for yellow cards to curb misbehaviour

"A few of the boys said something to him and when I went over to say something he sort of said something in their language and I said 'speak English', because if you're going to say something for me to understand theoretically, I cannot speak Hindi.

"So I did the polite thing and asked him to speak English, therefore he did, and I can't repeat what he said. I thought I was okay by asking him to speak English and I'm going to say it a couple of times if he keeps saying it in Hindi. I got slapped on the wrist yesterday by the ICC, I shouldn't have engaged him and should have went to the other side to my fielding position, but I didn't," he recalled.

Warner said Rohit should have desisted from taking the single as the ball had ricocheted off his legs.

Umpires intervene as David Warner (L) argues with Rohit Sharma (R) during their match at the MCG. (Reuters Photo)

"The guys behind the wicket said it hit him. I walked in because I presumed it hit him as well. I was in the wrong. What he was saying to me I asked him to speak English," he said.

"I got in trouble for engaging the player, which technically you're not allowed to do that now ... You're not supposed to walk at the player. It was between overs and I should have walked around to my fielding position," Warner said.

The Aussies were also guilty of being slow with their over-rate which resulted in a shorter mid-innings break.

"If he (Australian captain George Bailey) ... gets banned for a game, the coach will be very, very unimpressed," Warner said.

"Some of us dawdled between overs here and there. Yeah you do get some credit with time noted about MS Dhoni taking his shoe off. The umpires go through that with a fine toothed comb and they've still done us.

"We've got to be better than that. No way in the world should a guy who's captaining his country be suspended for a game. It's our fault."

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Root backs call for yellow cards to curb misbehaviour

BRISBANE: Having been on the receiving end of Australian opener David Warner's fiery temper, England batsman Joe Root sees logic in Kiwi great Martin Crowe's call for a soccer-like card system to curb player misbehaviour.

Warner's growing reputation as a hard-hitting batsman has coincided with the pugnacious southpaw's increasing fondness to get involved in on-field spats, making him a regular visitor to the match referee's room.

The latest, against India's Rohit Sharma in Sunday's tri-series contest, cost him half his match fee and a reprimand from his own board, who have asked the 28-year-old "to stop looking for trouble".

"...there is a growing concern that David Warner's thuggish behaviour has gone too far," former New Zealand captain Crowe wrote in his ESPNCricinfo column.

"Soon one day, it will lead to an incident that will sully the game for good," added Crowe, convinced fines can no longer act as a deterrent.

"You have to take them out of the game for extended periods. Two yellow cards should result in a red card, which should ban any player for six months," he added.

The confrontation with Rohit follows Warner's spat with another Indian, Shikhar Dhawan, in the Adelaide test last month, after which both players were fined.

Root felt Crowe's suggestion made a lot of sense.

"At the minute, people aren't happy with the way people are holding themselves on the field and if that is going to sort it out then why not?" asked Root, famously punched by Warner in a bar in 2013.

"You are out there to either score runs or take wickets, if that is not your main focus then you are not doing your team a full service," Root said ahead of Tuesday's tri-series one-day international against India.

"It's about mutual respect for each other."

Crowe said players such as Warner risked getting punched by opponents but Root felt that was a mark no one was prepared to overstep.

"I can't (foresee such a situation), to be honest. Someone would have to be in a really bad place to do that," the 24-year-old added.

"There have been a few things that have happened over the last six months and that is not good for the game.

"But I can't really see it going that far to lead to a punch-up... it's not ice hockey."

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Rohit's century goes in vain as Australia beat India

MELBOURNE: Rohit Sharma's rollicking century went in vain as Australia survived a few anxious moments before pulling off a tense four-wicket win over India in a tri-series ODI match on Sunday.

After opener Aaron Finch's confident 96-run knock, Australia were placed comfortably at 216 for two in a chase of 268 but India staged a late comeback by taking three quick wickets.

India dismissed Steve Smith (47), Finch and George Bailey (5) in a gap of 23 balls to raise hopes of a turnaround but Brad Haddin (13) and James Faulkner (9) batted sensibly to deny India a dramatic finish.

The hosts ended at 269 for six in exactly 49 overs with Faulknar dispatching a Bhuvneshwar Kumar full-toss to boundary ropes for winning runs.

Electing to bat, India had posted 267 for eight, built around Sharma's 138-run knock, his sixth one-day hundred. He blasted nine boundaries and four sixes in 139 balls to score his third century against Australia.

The Mumbaikar put on 126 runs for the fourth wicket with Suresh Raina (51) even as Australian paceman Mitchell Starc produced a fine bowling display to pick 6-43 in his 10 overs.

Australia began their chase in a confident manner with Finch and David Warner (24) putting on 51 for the first wicket. Umesh Yadav broke the stand by dismissing Warner but seasoned Shane Watson lent solidity to the Australian innings with his 41.

Yadav denied Finch his sixth ODI hundred by having the batsman caught behind but at that time Australia were only 49 runs away from the victory target.

Finch controlled his 127-ball innings well, hitting five shots to the fence and two over the ropes.

Smith (47), Watson and Glenn Maxwell (20) did not score big but their contributions proved crucial for Australia, who had also beaten England in the tri-series opener on Friday.

India will take on England in their second match on Tuesday and again square off against Australia on January 26.

Australia's chase looked on course but things went awry in the 40th over with the loss of Smith, who swatted a slower short-delivery from Mohammed Shami straight to R Ashwin at mid-wicket.

It sparked a mini-collapse as Finch was dismissed by Yadav in the very next over and Ashwin had Bailey stumped.

Shami hobbled off with a possible knee-injury in the 47th over and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1-44) gleefully accepted a lobbed up return catch to dismiss Glenn Maxwell (20).

It looked like a closer finish than expected but Faulkner and Haddin held their nerves to romp home.

Earlier, India had a horrendous start as they were reduced to 59 for three in 12.5 overs. Opener Shikhar Dhawan (2) was removed in the first over of the innings itself, caught at second slip off Starc.

Ajinkya Rahane (12) had been listed to bat at number four in the team-sheets but he came out at the fall of the first wicket. He put on 30 runs for the 2nd wicket with Rohit.

Just as they were beginning to look comfortable at the crease, debutant Gurinder Sandhu (1-58) got Rahane to attempt a high cut and instead was caught behind by keeper Brad Haddin. That brought Virat Kohli (9) to the crease but the star batsman was off-colour today.

He miscued a pull-shot off Faulkner (1/63) and was caught by skipper George Bailey at mid-on, shortly after India had crossed the 50-mark in the 11th over.

Raina then joined Rohit at the crease and two played sensibly to dig their side out of the rot. The left-hander was dismissed in the 35th over. The opener along with captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni brought up the 200-mark in the 40th over.

But Starc returned to the attack and removed three Indian batsmen -- captain Dhoni (19), Axar Patel (0) and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (0).

The fourth wicket stand between Rohit and Raina formed the bedrock of the Indian innings as the duo stabilized the visitors after being pushed on the back foot.

Rohit rotated strike as much as he could, early on in their partnership, while the left-hander took his time to find comfort at the crease.

By the time their 50-run partnership came up in the 23rd over, runs had started to flow with ease. There was a small confrontation between David Warner and Rohit with an overthrow the topic of discussion. But the batsman took it in his stride to reach his fifty off 68 balls.

Thanks to the big ground, the two batsmen were made to run hard and they did so well enough, chancing their luck against the Australian fielders on many occasions. They brought up their 100-partnership in the 31st over and this prompted them to take the batting power-play in the 34th over itself.

In the next over, Raina reached his 33rd ODI half-century off 61 balls but was also dismissed, hitting Starc straight to Glenn Maxwell at mid-on.

The fall of a wicket early in the powerplay meant only 19 runs came off it, even as Dhoni (19) and Rohit looked to up the scoring rate.

Rohit got to his hundred off 109 balls in the 37th over, his eventual score the highest in an ODI at this ground by an Indian batsman against Australia. The previous best was 100 runs by Sourav Ganguly way back in January 2000.

Dhoni and Rohit brought up the 200-mark in the 40th over, but then Starc returned to the attack to remove the Indian captain and Patel with a double-blow in the 44th over.

The latter was unlucky to be given out LBW by umpire John Ward as the ball was clearly missing leg-stump.

R Ashwin (14*) who had been surprisingly held back then arrived in the middle to help add 25 runs for the 7th wicket as the 250-mark came up in the 47th over.

Ashwin was dropped by Pat Cummins (0-52) in the next over but Starc still managed to get his 5th wicket as Rohit was out caught at mid-wicket. He then bowled Kumar who missed a simple full-toss first ball.

The hat-trick was avoided by Mohammad Shami (2*) as the last ten overs yielded just 61 runs for the loss of four wickets.

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