India v Australia, 1st ODI, Bangalore Australia win toss and bat

September 29 : Adam Gilchrist, standing in for Ricky Ponting, won the toss and had little hesitation in batting first on a Chinnaswamy stadium pitch that was the colour of beach sand. There was a smattering of grass on the surface, but it was hardly likely to resemble the Kingsmead surface on which India upset Australia in the World Twenty20 exactly a week ago.

This was the first game to be played under the ICC's new rules for ODIs, including the controversial free hit for front-foot no-balls. India's cause was undoubtedly helped by the fact that Australia were missing five first-choice personnel - Ponting, Michael Hussey, Nathan Bracken, Shane Watson and Shaun Tait.

Tait's absence was offset by the return of Brett Lee, who missed the World Cup through injury. Lee led an attack that was still formidable, with Mitchell Johnson and Stuart Clark providing the pace back-up and Brad Hogg the spin option.

For India, who won the World Twenty20 with a young and inexperienced side, the return to the 50-over format prompted a return to the old guard, with Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly all back in the side. Ramesh Powar kept his place ahead of Harbhajan Singh, and Dinesh Karthik and Robin Uthappa, one of the local heroes, had to sit out as Gautam Gambhir claimed a place on the strength of a stunning innings in the Twenty20 final.

India also welcomed back Zaheer Khan and Irfan Pathan, and the bowling array looked pretty threatening with RP Singh and Sreesanth also in the fold. The last time these two teams met at this venue, four years ago in the TVS Cup, Ponting led the onslaught as Australia piled up a mammoth 349 to embarrass India. This time, in his absence, it might not be quite so straightforward.

Teams:

India
Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt, wk), Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir, Irfan Pathan, Ramesh Powar, Zaheer Khan, RP Singh, Sreesanth

Australia
Adam Gilchrist (capt, wk), Matthew Hayden, Micheal Clarke, Andrew Symonds, Brad Haddin, Brad Hodge, James Hopes, Brad Hogg, Brett Lee, Stuart Clark, Mitchell Johnson

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