Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir were injured in Saturday's One-dayer in Delhi and their availability to play in the fourth match of the seven-match series on Monday will be known only in the morning of the day-night game.
Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir were injured in Saturday's One-dayer in Delhi and their availability to play in the fourth match of the seven-match series on Monday will be known only in the morning of the day-night game.
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The injuries could not have come at a more inopportune time as India were looking to take a firm grip over the series by winning here at the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium and lead the series 3-1. Playing at their full strength they won at Nagpur and Delhi after losing the series opener at Vadodara.
Gambhir took a Ponting pull on his neck taking an evasive action, while Sehwag took a real snorter from Peter Siddle on the right foot, necessitating medical attention.
The selectors have rushed wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik here giving credence to the seriousness of injuries to Sehwag and Gambhir.
Left-handed Gambhir, in fact, did not travel with the team that reached Chandigarh in the evening.
If both the Delhi dashers fail fitness tests, Karthik and Kohli might replace them with the former opening the innings with Sachin Tendulkar.
The last time the two teams met here, India managed an eight-run win but went onto loose the seven-match series 4-2 in 2007. But this time, Indians are on a roll and back-to-back wins in Nagpur and Delhi have boosted their confidence despite starting the series with a loss in Vadodara.
At Nagpur skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni led the onslaught with a brilliant century and in Delhi he and his deputy Yuvraj Singh played some smart cricket on a slow track to lead India to victory.
India's strength in the series has been their middle-order and they will be tested on the lively Mohali track against the fierce Australian pace attack.
The opening pair has been India's worry in the series as Tendulkar and Sehwag have not been able to get cracking. The theory of averages points to a big one from Tendulkar who is 47 short of reaching 17,000 runs in ODIs.
Though Dhoni wouldn't like to change the winning combination, he might be tempted to add an extra seamer in Munaf Patel.
The Australians will also be encouraged by the look of the track with a tinge of grass, but the absence of Brett Lee will haunt them. Still, they hope to see Mitchell Johnson Doug Bollinger, who was impressive in Delhi, and Siddle to come good.
Ponting, who opened the innings in Delhi, might revert back to his familiar No 3 position bringing in Shaun Marsh at the top. Marsh, who plays for Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League, has the advantage of playing here.
Like in Delhi, the dew will be a major factor as the nights are a lot chillier here than in the national capital. Thus the toss will yet again be the key in determining the course of the game.
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