Two good (but not great) teams concurrently out of form makes for a riveting see-saw series that is likely to keep us on the edge of our seats into the new year. Whilst there isn’t much separating Australia and India, a few key fault lines might tip the scale one way or another, but India are by far the more vulnerable to the vagaries of fortune.

If Jasprit Bumrah gets injured, the impact of that on the series will be felt more keenly than if any of the Australian quicks go down in a heap. When you have the luxury of Scott Boland as your first reserve, it is clearly Advantage Australia. India can barely find other bowlers to support Bumrah, let alone replace him. In this key area, on a man-to-man comparison, Australia are much better placed on paper.