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Afghanistan allrounder Mohammad Nabi may not retire from ODIs after the upcoming Champions Trophy as previously planned and harbours hopes of playing international cricket along with his son Hassan Eisakhil.In November last year Nabi, 40, said he would quit ODIs at the end of the Champions Trophy but is now “still thinking” about his future.”These might not be my last ODIs, I will probably play less ODIs and give chances to the youngsters to build experience,” Nabi told the ICC. “I’ve discussed with the senior players and in the high-level games, maybe or maybe not, we’ll see. It will depend on my fitness.”Nabi’s 18-year old son, Eisakhil, is a batter who represented Afghanistan at the Under-19 World Cup in 2024 and his father hopes they will play together for the country soon. “It’s my dream. Hopefully we can do it. He is doing very well … he is a hard worker and I’m also pushing him to do work.”I want him to make his own goals, if you want to get to be a high-level cricketer, you have to work hard. It’s not enough to make 50 or 60, you have to score 100-plus. He’s listening and pushing all the time. When he can talk to me, I try to give him advice to give him confidence for the game.”Related

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Afghanistan are in Group B in the Champions Trophy along with England, Australia and South Africa. It is their first appearance in the tournament after finishing among the top-eight teams (sixth place) at the 2023 ODI World Cup. They were semi-finalists at the 2024 T20 World Cup too.”The preparations for the Champions Trophy have been good,” Nabi said. “I’ve been busy playing in the Bangladesh Premier League, was a champion over there. I did three sessions with the national team in Abu Dhabi so I’m in good shape.”Winning the BPL gave me more confidence, from a tough position in the final. In the whole tournament, we did really well and my performances were good as well, bowling and also batting, I helped finish the job in four or five matches.”Afghanistan had to make one change to their 15-man squad for the tournament, replacing the injured AM Ghazanfar with left-arm spinner Nangeyalia Kharote. “He’s a youngster, who has been doing really well over the last two years,” Nabi said. “He’s a very good spinner but he’s a good fielder as well. He bowled really well against South Africa and Ireland in Sharjah.”Afghanistan begin their Champions Trophy campaign against South Africa in Karachi on February 21 before travelling to Lahore to play England and Australia on February 26 and 28.

Pakistan incurred an over-rate offence for a second game in a row against New Zealand after they were found one over short in the second ODI in Hamilton. The players were fined 5% of their match fees after captain Mohammad Rizwan pleaded guilty to the offence.Match referee Jeff Crowe imposed the sanction as per Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which governs over-rate offences. Players are fined 5% of their match fees for each over the team falls short of bowling in the given time. On-field umpires Michael Gough and Wayne Knights, third umpire Paul Reiffel, and fourth umpire Chris Brown levelled the charge.Pakistan were found two overs short in the opening ODI of the three-game series in Napier, where they lost by 73 runs. They went down in the second ODI by 84 runs to concede the series with a match to spare. Pakistan slipped to 72 for 7 in their chase of 293 and only managed to get to 208 because of fifties from No. 7 Faheem Ashraf and No. 10 Naseem Shah. This was after New Zealand wicketkeeper Mitchell Hay scored an unbeaten 99 to help them post 292, and that was followed by fast bowler Ben Sears registering his ODI-best figures of 5 for 59.Pakistan were also fined for a slow over-rate in the opening match of the 2025 Champions Trophy, which was also against New Zealand. Thus, this is the third successive match against New Zealand – and third in four completed ODIs – in which Pakistan have been docked for an over-rate offence.

Into the third round of Surrey’s putative tilt at a fourth consecutive County Championship title and it is clear they are not going to have it all their way. After opening with two draws – behind the game against Essex at Chelmsford, ahead but unable to finish the job against Hampshire – they were stuck into the field at Hove and subjected to some seaside roistering by the early pacesetters in Division One.Surrey had not played a Championship fixture at Sussex’s HQ since 2010, when Gareth Batty was just starting his second spell on the playing staff. The primary reason for that hiatus was Sussex’s lengthy internment in Division Two, but they have hit the ground running on their return to the top tier – and were off at a canter on the first morning of this match, the scoreboard rattling at almost six an over before Surrey managed to pull things back.When the players were taken off by the early arrival of forecast squally showers shortly before tea, Sussex were still handsomely placed, Tom Haines closing in on a second hundred is as many innings as he and Tom Alsop assembled an unbroken century stand in the face of some hostile bowling from Surrey’s seam attack. As Rory Burns stalked from the field, having been deep in discussions with the umpires – seemingly about his bowlers’ tactics – it was clear which side would have been happier with the opening skirmishes.After a lengthy delay during which the entire square was covered in the expectation of further rain, it was eventually decided that play could resume at 5.40pm – only for the officials to then deem that the light was too bad after 11 balls had been bowled. There was to be no improvement, despite a trenchant cry of “Get on with it!” from the stands.It may be that the weather dictates the prospects of this game delivering a positive result for either side, but Sussex, having taken 35 points from their opening two fixtures to sit joint top alongside Warwickshire and Nottinghamshire, will be looking to land a few more punches on the champions before the Bank Holiday weekend is out.The players had been given a minor serve by Sussex’s head coach, Paul Farbrace, after a sloppy finish to their 260-run win over Somerset in the previous fixture, but they made a purposeful start after winning the toss here, Haines and his opening partner Daniel Hughes taking apart Surrey’s vaunted pace quartet in conditions that offered little margin for error.Gus Atkinson was making his first appearance of the season, as England look to manage his run into next month’s Test against Zimbabwe, but was treated brusquely on the way to figures of 12-1-57-0 that included seven no-balls. He looked reasonably sharp and did hit Haines on the helmet during a spell of sustained short-pitched bowling, during which the opener also spooned a pull into the leg side that fell short of deep backward square; Haines buckled down to tough it out and went to his fifty with a more authoritative pull when Dan Worrall again tried to stick it up his jumper.Worrall had been dispatched for five fours in his opening three-over spell by Hughes, who repeatedly snapped on to the drive during a 47-ball half-century that allowed Haines to bed in at the other end. Sussex had raised 50 within the first 10 overs and were cruising at 89 without loss after 16, with Surrey already shuffling through five different bowlers.The combination of Matthew Fisher coming down the slope from the Cromwell Road End and Dan Lawrence purveying his twirly stuff from the other helped Surrey to get a handle on the scoring. Fisher gave Hughes a couple of uncomfortable moments with his probing line in the channel outside off, then stooped for an athletic two-handed take in his follow-through to end the Australian’s sprightly innings. Lawrence then found a modicum of turn to trap Tom Clark on the crease playing across the line.Sussex had a more than serviceable base at 126 for 2 at lunch, and set about plotting a course through the afternoon with their TomTom navigation system (with three Toms in the top four, it’s a reliable set-up). Both Haines and Alsop had their difficulties against the short ball on an otherwise benign surface, with the latter lucky not to play the ball on when being sat down by a Worrall bouncer.Surrey bowled better during the post-lunch exchanges, though Fisher was limited to a second spell that lasted a single over and could be seen stretching gingerly on the boundary thereafter. Lawrence, meanwhile, was convinced that he should have removed Haines on 61, when the left-hander played back to one that flicked him above the knee roll in front of off stump – but even a theatrical mid-pitch star jump was not enough to win a decision. Surrey are going to have to do it the hard way.

Kent 208 for 3 (Bell-Drummond 60, Denly 48*, 2-39) beat Gloucestershire 204 for 7 (Price 51, Rogers 2-22, Gilchrist 2-46) by four runsDaniel Bell-Drummond top-scored with 60 as Kent Spitfires began their Vitality Blast campaign with an exciting four-run win over reigning champions Gloucestershire at the Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol.The visitors posted an impressive 208 for three after losing the toss, Bell-Drummond and Tawanda Muyeye (42) sharing an opening stand of 98 before Zak Crawley (37) and Joe Denly (48 not out) accelerated the scoring in the second half of the innings.In reply, the Gloucestershire managed 204 for 7, Ollie Price blasting a rapid 51, while Miles Hammond and Ben Charlesworth both made 38. Tom Rogers took 2 for 22 from four overs.A light coloured pitch promised big totals and it proved a tough baptism for Gloucestershire’s 20-year-old Aman Rao, signed from the South Asian Cricket Academy. The 6ft 6ins seamer’s two overs at the start of the Kent innings went for 21, but were not without promise.Bell-Drummond pulled an early six off Matt Taylor as he and Muyeye took the score to 94 off ten overs. They were parted when Gloucestershire skipper Jack Taylor bowled Bell-Drummond with a leg-spinner after the opener had hit six fours and two sixes.Tom Smith’s left arm spin accounted for Muyeye, caught at deep cover having faced 33 balls, and at 109 for 2 in the 13th over, Kent needed to rebuild. Crawley and Denley did so effectively, the former taking 26 off five balls sent down by Charlesworth in the 16th over, including four sixes.When Crawley fell to Smith, having faced just 17 deliveries, Denley went on the attack, launching four sixes and three fours in his 24-ball blitz to take the Spitfires beyond 200.Gloucestershire’s reply had reached 34 in the fifth over when Cameron Bancroft drove a catch to mid-on off Fred Klaassen. It was 37 for two when James Bracey top-edged a delivery from Rogers and skyed to wicketkeeper Billings.Hammond hit three defiant sixes in an innings of 38 off 25 balls, but when he holed out to mid-on off Nathan Gilchrist in the ninth over Gloucestershire were 61 for 3 and well behind the required run-rate. Price did his best to rectify matters, launching four sixes in an over from leg spinner Matt Parkinson.Jack Taylor brought the hundred up by smashing Grant Stewart over wide long-on and followed up with another maximum in the same over, narrowly avoiding falling to a boundary catch. He and Price had added 56 in just 3.5 overs when Denly broke the stand, Taylor pulling a catch to deep mid-wicket.Price went to a 25-ball half-century with a six off Gilchrist, but drove a catch to mid-off from the next delivery to leave his side 127 for 5 in the 14th over, still requiring 82.Charlesworth and overseas recruit D’Arcy Short both hit sixes off Denly, but Short skied a catch off fellow Aussie Rogers to make it 160 for six and when the gallant Charlesworth was run out off the fourth ball of the final over Gloucestershire’s race was run.

Warwickshire and Somerset harvested the predictable Rothesay County Championship draw as a forgettable match finally petered out on the final day at Edgbaston.Set a notional victory target of 377 in 69 overs, Warwickshire plodded to 161 for four as Tom Latham (52 from 103 balls) and Sam Hain (68 not out, 157) escorted their team to safety and the match to stalemate.Somerset had extended their second innings in the morning to 229 for eight (James Rew 61, 81) but not as quickly as they hoped due to interference from Australian off-spinner Corey Rocchiccioli who took five for 67 on debut.It had always appeared that a bland pitch would blunt the victory aspirations of either side and so it proved. Both shored up their positions in the middle of Division One with a solid points haul from a match which offered less than vivid entertainment. The deployment of two short mid-wickets and two short extras for Latham off Migael Pretorius was about as exciting as it got for the slumbering Edgbaston faithful.Somerset resumed on the final morning on 116 for three, 283 ahead overall, and started purposefully. Rew completed a 66-ball half-century but two wickets for Rocchoccioli slowed the momentum and changed the plan. The spinner unfurled a lovely turning delivery which Rew edged to wicketkeeper Kai Smith. Tom Banton missed a sweep and was lbw.Bowling coach Steve Kirby had suggested after day three that Somerset would need 80 overs to try to bowl Warwickshire out, but that point arrived with the lead only 317. That would have been a very attractive target on a pitch still good for batting.Tom Abell (42, 63) and Archie Vaughan (38 not out, 59) batted watchfully to prevent a collapse then expanded to add 65 in 14 overs before Abell charged and missed at Rocchoccioli. Pretorious had his off-stump rendered askew by Ethan Bamber and Rocchoccioli’s five-for was complete when Craig Overton missed a reverse sweep and was lbw, triggering lunch and the declaration.To challenge the target – 377 in two sessions – Warwickshire needed a strong platform but they lost soon both openers. Alex Davies fell to the fourth ball, lbw, trapped in the crease by Matt Henry. Rob Yates left a gap between bat and pad and Jack Leach, who opened the bowling, turned the ball through it.That scuppered any chance of a Warwickshire win. Somerset’s hopes were ground away over the next two hours by Latham and Hain. There are few batters better-equipped than those to steer a side to safety and they duly quietened the excited fielding side with resolute, solid and watchful work.They declined to pursue a target of 276 from 34 overs after tea. Latham drove a return catch to Overton and Jacob Bethell top-edged a pull at Pretorius but the implacable Hain reached 50 for the 58th time in first-class cricket to see the job through in a soporific, slumbering, sparsely-populated stadium as far-removed as can be from the passionate cauldron it will be when England meet India there next week.

Half-centuries from Ishan Kishan, Liam Patterson-White and Dillon Pennington put Division One leaders Nottinghamshire in control as they totalled 487 on day two of their Rothesay County Championship match against Yorkshire.Indian wicketkeeper-batter Kishan’s 87 came in his debut innings for the county, Patterson-White posting the same score and fast-bowler Pennington entertaining the Trent Bridge crowd with a career-best 61.Left-arm spinner Dan Moriarty took four for 91 – but a poor innings in the field for the visitors was at least followed by a better performance with the bat, Yorkshire recovering from the loss of a wicket first ball to close on 154 for 3, with Finlay Bean 86 not out, albeit losing the experience of Dawid Malan in the penultimate over.Yorkshire would have seen a Nottinghamshire first-innings total below 350 as a half-decent outcome for their endeavours with the ball. In the event, they were unable even to keep them below 450 at lunch as Nottinghamshire piled 155 in the session on to their overnight 298 for 6 for the loss of only two more wickets.Kishan, dropped at midwicket off Jack White without addition to his 44 overnight – another costly error in the field after Ben Slater was put down on 11 on day one – advanced to 87 from 98 balls before being caught there off Dom Bess, having struck 12 fours and a six down the ground off George Hill in a thrilling first instalment of his two-match stay at Trent Bridge.Farhan Ahmed edged to first slip but if Yorkshire imagined things might get easier thereafter, they reckoned without Pennington, not a renowned batter, choosing the 80th first-class innings of his career to register his second fifty.The 26-year-old fast bowler had gone past 20 only nine times in his career yet was able to hammer 24 in a single over this time, and off Yorkshire’s overseas quick Will O’Rourke for good measure, the New Zealander finding his figures pounded by three exuberant carves for four and two mighty pulls for six, finishing with 2 for 113.Being dropped on 49 confirmed it was Pennington’s day as he went on to reach 50 from just 39 balls. The eighth of his nine boundaries took him past his previous best of 56 before he was caught and bowled by Moriarty.In 18.2 soul-destroying overs for Yorkshire, he and Patterson-White added 96 for the ninth wicket. Patterson-White, who had hammered two sixes down the ground off Bess, still had time for a couple more off Moriarty before top-edging to backward point, ending the Nottinghamshire 11 overs after lunch.It had been a chastening day for Yorkshire, whose mood would not have been helped by the sight of Mohammad Abbas removing their top run-scorer, Adam Lyth, with his first ball. The Test veteran found enough movement to clip the outside edge.Mercifully, from a Yorkshire point of view, the Pakistan international, who dismissed Lyth and Bean in his opening spell on the way to a first-innings 6 for 45 as Nottinghamshire defeated Yorkshire at Headingley in May, could not conjure a repeat.Indeed, Bean completed his first half-century of what has been a lean season to date soon after he and James Wharton had steered their side to 65 for 1 at tea, their cause helped to the tune of five penalty runs when Pennington, having fielded off his own bowling, was cautioned for throwing the ball aggressively in Wharton’s direction.In fairly benign conditions, the second-wicket pair were able to stretch their partnership to 99 before the home side made a second breakthrough, Pennington the bowler to induce it early in his second spell as Wharton failed to control his drive and was caught at mid-off.Bean and Malan chipped a further 55 off the deficit but Yorkshire suffered a setback they could have done without in the penultimate over when Malan, looking to drive Patterson-White’s left-arm spin, could only edge the ball behind, a deflection off Kishan dropping into the hands of slip Freddie McCann.

Veteran Tasmania opener Jake Weatherald thinks he’s ready to go if a Test call-up comes his way for the Ashes later this year while excitement is building around eighteen-year-old Victoria batter Oliver Peake after another impressive showing in his maiden red-ball appearance for Australia A.The pair starred for Australia A alongside skipper Jason Sangha as the home side racked up 558 for 4 declared in a batting dominated draw in the second four-day match against Sri Lanka A in Darwin.Their performances will come with the obvious caveat that runs were very easy to make at Marrara Cricket Ground with Sangha posting a career-best unbeaten 202 while Weatherald also made 183 and Peake posted 92 in just his second first-class game as only ten wickets fell across four full days of cricket. Sri Lanka A batters Nuwanidu Fernando and Pavan Rathnayake also scored centuries while four other half-centuries were scored in the game.Related

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• Jason Sangha pushes Test credentials with unbeaten double

Weatherald believes he is ready to play Test cricket if called upon by the selectors for the Ashes series later this year after continuing his outstanding form across the last 12 months. Having been the leading runscorer in the Shield last year with 905 runs at an average of 50.33 with three massive centuries, he added 54 and 183 in his two innings for Australia A in this series.”If you keep making runs, of course you’re going to get noticed more – and I’ve done that,” Weatherald said on Tuesday in Darwin after his innings of 183. “Obviously there’s some great candidates there as well, and they’ve earned their right to be there.”So to be amongst them is a pretty proud moment.”But I’m batting well, and I think I’m ready to go if it comes to that moment.”Weatherald, 30, has long been one of the most talented ball-strikers in Australian domestic cricket but this is the first time he has averaged more than 41 over a 12-month stretch in his decade-long career. He said his cumulative experience is the reason for his consistent run.”Just age, getting used to what I’m doing, understanding my game, understanding what I need to do to make runs and bat [for] long periods of time,” Weatherald said.”And just being confident I can do it in any conditions, just believing that I’ve got the right method and sticking to it throughout my innings and not being taken away by the wicket or the situation.”Just being able to lock in and do my thing.”Sangha, 25, was impressed by Weatherald’s preparation and mindset after playing with him for the first time in this series.”He just looks so clear when he’s batting,” Sangha said after the match on Wednesday. “He’s obviously been a strong player and a very talented player for a long time.”He’s well renowned as a guy who really pounces on width and picks up length quite early, and it just looks like he’s made his strengths even stronger, and he’s able to rectify maybe some areas in his game that maybe would have cost him a few more dismissals.”He’s been great to share the change room with and talk about what he’s been doing the last 12 months, and how he’s been going about it. And I think for young guys like an Ollie Peake and even myself, who are always striving for that consistency, to see how diligent he is with his routines, how diligent he is with his preparation.”He just seems like he’s in a really clear space and knows his game so well, and it’s been a pleasure to watch him go about his business this week.”Oliver Peake made his mark in the 50-over and four-day games for Australia A•Getty Images

Meanwhile, there is some excitement building around Peake given he was playing just his second first-class match after making 52 on debut for Victoria in March. He also made 55 not out off 38 balls on List A debut for Australia A in the first 50-over match of Sri Lanka A’s tour in Darwin.Sangha, who himself has experienced the challenge of transitioning from being an Under-19 prodigy to becoming a consistent first-class player, marveled at how well Peake handled himself.”He played really well,” Sangha said after the match. “He’s got so much maturity for a young player, and even just talking to him out in the middle about his plans and how he was approaching his innings, he’s such an exciting talent, and he’s got a really good head on his shoulders.”I think even just off the field, just the way he sort of carries himself, credit to him.”I look back when I was 18, and I was probably nowhere near as emotionally intelligent or mature as he is.”It’s a really, really cool thing to see, and he’s obviously got some really good support around him, and such a down to earth, humble kid.”Peake’s selection for Australia A alongside a group of batters who had earned their call-up through outstanding Shield performances last summer is proof of how highly he is rated by Australia’s selectors. Peake was also taken on the recent Test tour of Sri Lanka as a development player to train with the Test squad.He looms as a likely tourist on Australia A’s tour of India later this year as Australia looks to give some younger players experience in spinning conditions with an eye towards the 2027 Test tour.

Southern Brave 106 for 8 (Adams 30*, Matthews 2-16) beat Welsh Fire 77 for 9 (Beaumont 28, Bell 4-6) by 29 runsIn the final match before The Hundred Eliminator on Saturday – and with the teams already inked in for that game, which will decide who takes on the Southern Brave in Sunday’s final – this top versus bottom clash was a chance for the home side to maintain their unbeaten record, a feat never before achieved in The Hundred, or for the Fire to find a spark from the dying embers of their campaign.And it looked for all the world like the visitors would do just that, a disciplined bowling performance restricting an experimental Brave batting line-up to just 106 for 8. It took skipper Georgia Adams’ resolute unbeaten innings (30 off 26) to get them up to that mark, with no batter able to break the shackles imposed by Hayley Matthews and Katie Levick.The Fire, low on confidence as they doubtless were, will have gone in at the break believing they could chalk up a statement victory.For the home side, Danni Wyatt-Hodge (24 off 23) and Freya Kemp (18 off 19) were the only other batters to manage double figures, while Sophie Devine’s appearance at No.8 showed that the Brave were looking to give some other batters time at the crease before Sunday’s high-stakes final.A sprightly start by Sophia Dunkley and Tammy Beaumont (28 off 29) did nothing to dispel the Fire’s belief but slowly, surely, the Brave’s superb and well-marshalled bowling attack started to turn the screw. 50 for 1 in 56 balls became 56 for 5 in 68 and the Fire had lost four wickets for six runs in 13 deliveries as a slow and low pitch made strokeplay difficult. The Brave, brimming with confidence, took full toll.Freya Kemp’s brilliant run out of Georgia Elwiss, who had just hit the Fire’s first boundary for 40 balls, was the icing on the cake and Fire’s race was run shortly after.Lauren Bell continued an outstanding tournament by finishing with the stunning figures of 4 for 6 off her full allocation – becoming this year’s leading wicket-taker in the process – as the Fire limped to 77 for 9, having lost eight wickets for 27, to lose by 29 runs.Meerkat Match Hero Lauren Bell said: “It’s been a really good tournament and I feel in a good place. We bowled exceptionally as a unit; we talk about how dots are really important and we fielded great – we are an unbelievable fielding unit.”It’s massive to get eight from eight and we can take that momentum into the final now. We didn’t want to slip up here, and at Lord’s on Sunday we’ll keep our plans really clear, keep doing the basics and enjoy the day.”

Temba Bavuma has suffered a left calf strain in the field in the third ODI against England and will only bat if required. The severity of the injury is yet to be determined but the niggle may cause some alarm bells for South African cricket. There are five weeks until they begin their World Test Championship title defence in Pakistan.This is Bavuma’s second in-match injury this year, after he strained his hamstring early in his innings during the World Test Championship final in June. On that occasion, he continued batting and made 66 in a match-winning 147 run third-wicket partnership with Aiden Markram. However, he missed South Africa’s Tests in ZImbabwe in July as he recovered from the injury.”It is a little bit sore now. I will know properly when I get home,” Bavuma said, when asked about the seriousness of his injury.Bavuma returned to action in the ODI series against Australia last month, where he played two of the three matches as his workload was managed. That was due to continue in this series but Bavuma has started all three matches. He is not part of the T20 squad and will next be in action in the Tests in mid-October.The latest setback will also be a concern for Bavuma as he looks to build towards the 2027 home ODI World Cup, where he hopes to lead South Africa. Bavuma will be 37 at the time of the tournament and, given his history of injury, may not be fit enough to play through the event. Bavuma had a hamstring injury at the 2023 World Cup and again in Tests against India later that year. He also has a long-standing elbow injury and bats with heavy strapping.In his absence, South Africa collapsed to 72 all out and a record 342-run loss in the third ODI, with Wiaan Mulder – Bavuma’s replacement at No.3 – falling for a duck.

Big picture: India will want to show their versatility

Relax, India. Your most relentless tormentor has left the building. Josh Hazlewood, perhaps the most influential player on either side during the ODI series and the first two T20Is, has turned his attention to preparing for the Ashes.Australia are 1-0 up with three games to go, but they suddenly don’t look like the same bowling team anymore.They will, however, welcome back Glenn Maxwell, who joins the T20I squad after recovering from the fractured wrist that has kept him out of action since mid-September. His return brings a new dimension to Australia’s line-up, particularly with the bat, and particularly against India’s spinners.It’s hard to say how much learning either of these teams can take from this series with the T20 World Cup in February-March in mind. That tournament will be played in India and Sri Lanka; conditions will be entirely different to those we’ve seen in the early part of this Australian summer, with levels of seam movement and bounce that are seldom to be found anywhere in the world in white-ball cricket.For all that, though, India want to be an all-weather T20 team; on the evidence of the second T20I on Friday, there are still gaps to plug, with bat as well as ball. There were times at the MCG where they looked, both on paper and in the field, like an XI assembled with Asian conditions in mind.Over the next three matches, India will want to show they have the versatility to win consistently even in these conditions — no matter how similar or dissimilar they may be to what they get at the World Cup.

Form guide

Australia WWWWL (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)
India LWWWWSanju Samson has been trying to adapt to an unfamiliar role, batting down the order•Associated Press

In the spotlight: Maxwell and Samson

The last time he played for Australia, Glenn Maxwell won them a T20I against South Africa in a manner only he and a handful of others can, from 122 for 6 in a chase of 173. That, though, was his first half-century in 11 T20I innings. That’s what you get from a player of Maxwell’s high-wire game. His T20 numbers against India’s wristspinners show a similar boom-or-bust tendency: a strike rate of 165.30 against Kuldeep Yadav, but also five dismissals in 49 balls, and a strike rate of 151.51 against Varun Chakravarthy while being dismissed five times in 33 balls. Whatever happens in this contest, you can be sure it will entertain. Maxwell will have a role to play with the ball too, possibly even with the new ball against Abhishek Sharma, even if teams are quickly finding out that a number of left-hand batters, Abhishek among them, are getting increasingly adept at taking offspin apart.Sanju Samson has been trying to adapt to an unfamiliar role at No. 5 or 6 in India’s T20I line-up ever since Shubman Gill’s return squeezed him out of the opening slot. He got the opportunity at the MCG to bat in the more familiar environs of No. 3, but his innings was shortlived, undone by a Nathan Ellis in-ducker that exploited his tendency to hang back and get stuck on the crease even against fullish lengths. If India have continued to back him ahead of Jitesh Sharma, it’s partly because of his strong record against pace. Samson has certainly got the attacking game when he’s in; he will, however, have to bat on pitches where sometimes he’ll have to survive one or two overs before he gets to unleash.

Team news: Will India bring in pace-bowling support?

Who replaces Hazlewood in Australia’s attack? Sean Abbott, who will himself leave the squad after the third T20I, seems the likeliest candidate, although Australia could potentially throw a surprise at India by handing the West Australian tearaway Mahli Beardman (who has, along with Maxwell, joined the squad) an international debut. Maxwell, who has recovered from his wrist fracture, will likely replace either Mitchell Owen or Matthew Short in the middle order.Australia (probable): 1 Mitchell Marsh (capt), 2 Travis Head, 3 Josh Inglis (wk), 4 Tim David, 5 Glenn Maxwell, 6 Mitchell Owen/Matthew Short, 7 Marcus Stoinis, 8 Xavier Bartlett, 9 Nathan Ellis, 10 Sean Abbott/Mahli Beardman, 11 Matt Kuhnemann.Mahli Beardman was an Under-19 World Cup winner in 2024•Gallo Images

India tend not to make too many changes to their T20I XI when series are still alive, but they might be having discussions around the balance of their team after how Friday’s game went. Do they view Shivam Dube as a viable bowling option in these conditions, and if not, could a specialist finisher in Rinku Singh, a batter with more pace-hitting pedigree, serve them better? And are two frontline seamers enough on these early-season Australian pitches, with or without Dube chipping in with a few overs?India (probable): 1 Shubman Gill, 2 Abhishek Sharma, 3 Suryakumar Yadav (capt), 4 Tilak Varma, 5 Sanju Samson (wk), 6 Axar Patel, 7 Shivam Dube/Rinku Singh, 8 Harshit Rana, 9 Kuldeep Yadav/Arshdeep Singh, 10 Varun Chakravarthy, 11 Jasprit Bumrah.

Pitch and conditions: Early season, lower totals

Hobart can produce high-scoring games as well as low-scoring games, as its last two T20Is suggest. In February 2024, Australia beat West Indies in a match where both teams passed 200. Then, in November, Australia bowled Pakistan out for 117 and romped to victory in 11.2 overs.The timing of those matches may have had something to do with how they panned out. Four T20Is played in Hobart in January and February have produced an average first-innings total of 190, while nine completed T20Is in October and November have produced an average first-innings total of 148. Could these lower totals be down to early-summer juice in the pitches? Or do they just reflect the quality of the teams that batted in those games? Or is it all just randomness? And will it have any bearing on Sunday?A mostly clear day is expected, with evening temperatures cooling from the mid 20s to the low 20s.

Stats and trivia: Samson, Tilak, Abhishek and David near 1000 T20I runs

• Sanju Samson needs five runs to become the 12th India batter with 1000 T20I runs. Tilak Varma and Abhishek Sharma, who have played 31 and 25 T20I innings to Samson’s 43, need 38 and 64 runs to get there respectively.
• Tim David is 50 runs away from the same landmark
• Glenn Maxwell is one wicket away from 50 in T20Is, and Marcus Stoinis is three wickets away ().
• Jasprit Bumrah is two wickets away from 100 in T20Is. Arshdeep Singh (101) is the only India bowler to have got to that mark so far.
• India have a positive win-loss record against all T20I oppositions. Against Australia so far, they’ve won 20 and lost 12.
• India have never played a T20I in Hobart.