India's predicted playing XI for the 3rd T20I vs Australia ft. Kuldeep Yadav & Shubman Gill

India are all set to face off against Australia in the third T20I of the five-match series on Sunday, November 2. The encounter will be contested at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart.

The Men in Blue are currently 1-0 down in the series, having lost the previous match in Melbourne after the opener in Canberra was washed out. They are unlikely to consider too many changes to their side, given how limited their involvement in the rubber has been so far.

India’s T20I squad for the Australia tour: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar.

On that note, here is India's predicted playing XI for the third T20I against Australia.

Openers: Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma

India v New Zealand: Final - ICC Champions Trophy 2025 - Source: Getty

Shubman Gill played an enterprising hand in the opening T20I but failed to deliver in Melbourne. India will want their vice-captain to return to his consistent best soon. At the other end, Abhishek Sharma has been simply sensational.

Middle Order: Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Sanju Samson (wk)

Asia Cup Cricket - Source: Getty

India's middle order is certainly short of runs. Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube and Sanju Samson must deliver soon, since their form wasn't all too convincing in the Asia Cup either. Axar Patel has been fairly assured against pace, but his exact role in the team remains unclear in away conditions.

Could India consider replacing Dube with Rinku Singh? The latter is clearly a better player of pace, and the side don't seem like they'll get many overs out of Dube. The tall southpaw has been a consistent feature of the side, though, and could be given another chance or two.

Lower Order: Harshit Rana, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy

India v Pakistan - Asia Cup Final - Source: Getty

Harshit Rana and Jasprit Bumrah are currently forming India's first-choice pace attack, with Varun Chakaravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav forming a dangerous spin tandem through the middle overs. Picking Arshdeep Singh instead of Kuldeep is an option, but that might leave India will too little firepower through the middle overs against Australia's big hitters. A change is possible, but perhaps not probable.

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Edited by Sai Krishna