India vs Australia, 5th ODI: 5 Talking Points

#1 Uncomfortable questions pop up for India before the World Cup

Kohli and India have several new questions to answer

The series against Australia was always looked upon as one where India would flex its muscles in the beginning, pocket the series and then experiment in the final dress rehearsal before the World Cup.

However, as the series progressed, a can of worms was opened and now India are in the unenviable position of having to search for elusive answers.

The middle order puzzle seems to be getting trickier by the game with each of Pant, Rahul, Rayudu and Shankar failing to make the spot their own. On the other hand, the poor form of India’s openers has been an unwelcome guest with neither Rohit nor Dhawan setting the world ablaze consistently.

Moreover, the Indians were given a rude reminder of how dull life without Hardik Pandya really is. With the all-rounder not in the mix, the hosts were unable to zero in on a decent combination and seemed to get it wrong every time.

For the World Cup, Kohli’s men are considered favourites and rightly so. However, the five games against Australia certainly did expose a few of their weaknesses. And a series which was earmarked as one for providing answers has ended up posing more questions for India.