Abhishek Sharma-Sanju Samson to Open; Shubman Gill Likely to be Dropped - India's Predicted Playing XI For 5th T20I

Australia vs India: Now that India have taken an unassailable lead in the five-match T20I series, the question is - should India rest vice-captain Shubman Gill for the fifth and final game at the Gabba in Brisbane due to manage his workload better. Gill, who is one of India's all-format player, has been playing non-stop cricket and with another series coming up at home once the Australia tour ends - one feels it will be a wise call to give him some rest. Now, if he is rested - it is clear that Abhishek Sharma should open with Sanju Samson. 

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Grey Areas Exist

The Indian team would be brimming with confidence after taking a 2-1 lead in the ongoing five-match series versus Australia. Despite taking a lead, they would realise there are areas that need to be addressed before the T20 World Cup. A number of big names have not been in good form - be it captain Suryakumar Yadav or his deputy Gill. In the final game, Abhishek too would like to get among the runs and so would Samson, in case he gets picked. The rest of the XI is likely to remain the same. 

In the game in the Gold Coast Axar Patel came good with the bat and the ball and was one of the major reasons of the win. Thanks to his allround show, he also bagged the player of the match. It would be interesting to see the kind of strip that will host the two teams in the final game. 

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India's Likely XI For 4th T20I

Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav (C), Tilak Varma, Jitesh Sharma, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah

On Bench: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube