What happened the last time India played an ODI at Wankhede in Mumbai? 

Following India's 2-1 win in the recently concluded four-game Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023 against Australia, both teams are set to lock horns for a three-match ODI series. The opening match of the series is scheduled to be played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Friday, March 17.

So far, Team India have played a total of 19 ODIs at the said venue in Mumbai, winning 10 while losing nine of those encounters.

Situated in the western part of the country, the Wankhede Stadium is known as a batting paradise, especially in white-ball formats. The extra pace on the surface aids the batters to take a toll on the quicker bowlers, while spinners can also face difficulties due to some short boundaries.

The last time India played an ODI in Mumbai was in January 2020. The Wankhede Stadium hosted the opener of a three-match ODI series against Australia, which the hosts won by a scoreline of 2-1.

Australian skipper Aaron Finch opted to bowl first after winning the toss. India started their innings steadily.

Although they lost Rohit Sharma (10) cheaply, Shikhar Dhawan (74) and KL Rahul (47) took the innings forward and stitched a 121-run partnership for the second wicket. The scoreboard read 134-1 in 27 overs before Rahul departed.

David Warner celebrating his century against India [BCCI]

However, things soon turned ugly for India as they lost four wickets in a span of just 5.5 overs and the scoreboard read 164-5 in 32.5 overs.

Although Rishabh Pant (28 runs off 33 balls) and Ravindra Jadeja (25 runs off 32 balls) showed some resistance, that was never going to be enough to bring India back into the game. As a result, the hosts managed to post only 255 runs in their allotted 50 overs.

After reaching a modest first innings total, the Indian bowlers needed to step up with some brilliant performances to win the match.

However, the they had a forgettable outing against the Australian openers as they struggled to find the right line and length to trouble Aaron Finch and David Warner.

While Finch played aggressively initially, Warner took some time to settle. Once the southpaw got set, however, runs started to flow from both ends. The scoring rate was ultra rapid and the match virtually ended inside the first 20 overs itself.

Both Finch (110*) and Warner (128*) recorded their respective hundreds as Australia demolished India with a plain-sailing 10-wicket win in their last match in Wankhede.

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"Ishan & Shubman will be opening" - stand-in captain Hardik Pandya confirms India's openers ahead of the 1st ODI

With Rohit Sharma set to miss the opening ODI due to personal reasons, India's premier all-rounder Hardik Pandya will be the stand-in captain for the hosts on Friday.

Ahead of the first ODI against Australia, Pandya attended a press conference where he stated that the young Indian batting duo of Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan will open for the Men in Blue in Wankhede.

Replying to a query on Thursday (March 16), Pandya said:

"Ishan and Shubman will be opening. The wicket looks how it is throughout the year. I have played here for almost seven years and it is one of the finest grounds I have played on. It’s going to be challenging since this wicket will give equal opportunities to both sides."

While the pair of Gill and Kishan opening the innings was on expected lines, Pandya's revelation also certifies that KL Rahul is likely to continue to bat in the middle-order in ODIs.

India’s ODI squad against Australia: Rohit Sharma (Captain) (only available for 2nd & 3rd ODIs), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya (Vice-captain), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umran Malik, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Jaydev Unadkat.