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          31/10 - 04:15 AM EDT
          2nd T20I (N), India tour of Australia at Melbourne, Oct 31 2025
          31/10 - 04:15 AM EDT
          2nd T20I (N), India tour of Australia at Melbourne, Oct 31 2025

          Crowd of 90,000 a chance for India's MCG return

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          'Baffling' - Chopra on Arshdeep's non-selection in the XI (1:53)

          Aakash Chopra on India opting for Harshit Rana over Arshdeep Singh for the T20I series opener against Australia in Adelaide (1:53)

          • Andrew McGlashanOct 30, 2025, 06:46 AM ET
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              Deputy Editor Andrew arrived at ESPNcricinfo via Manchester and Cape Town, after finding the assistant editor at a weak moment as he watched England's batting collapse in the Newlands Test. Andrew began his cricket writing as a freelance covering Lancashire during 2004 when they were relegated in the County Championship. In fact, they were top of the table when he began reporting on them but things went dramatically downhill. He likes to let people know that he is a supporter of county cricket, a fact his colleagues will testify to and bemoan in equal quantities.
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          Big picture: A potential World Cup final?

          It was a false start to the T20I series in Canberra as the rain swept in, but the second match in Melbourne has the makings of a memorable evening with the crowd approaching, or even surpassing, 90,000 as India return to a city where they attracted huge support both in last season's Test series and the 2022 T20 World Cup. That is, if the weather plays ball. It's a watching brief on that front.

          With these two teams likely to be among the favourites for next year's T20 World Cup, there is a chance they could meet in the final at the only cricket ground bigger than the MCG - the vast Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad where Australia toppled the home side in the 2023 ODI World Cup final. That, of course, is for another day, and there are plenty of things that could get in the way for both sides, so for now it's about continuing the build towards the tournament.

          However, the prospect of close to a full house at the MCG is exciting even for the Australia players. "It's an experience for the guys who haven't been there and done it," said Nathan Ellis, who has yet to play an international at the MCG, which hasn't hosted a T20I since the final of the last World Cup.

          "I was just talking [to Marcus Stoinis] about the early days [in the BBL] where the Melbourne Derby would get 90-odd thousand and he was saying how exciting it is and how cool it is, running us through his experiences there. So really excited to play in front of a huge crowd at MCG, it's an exciting prospect. A few of us have had that one in the calendar for a little bit."

          There wasn't too much to be gleaned from 9.4 overs in Canberra, but India's top order had made an early statement and they looked set for a hefty total as Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav motored at 10 an over. Not that this Australian side would have been overawed by that, given their own batting power which has shone across the last three series, although India's spin trio would have been a fascinating challenge to overcome and will likely remain so in Melbourne.

          Form guide

          Australia WWWLW (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)
          India WWWWW

          In the spotlight: Tim David and Varun Chakravarthy

          Like Ellis, Tim David has not played an international at the MCG. The one opportunity he has had so far was against England at the 2022 T20 World Cup but the game was abandoned without a ball being bowled. His BBL record at the ground is not too flash with 148 runs in nine innings. The average of 16.44 is his lowest at any venue he has batted more than five times in T20s. However, if there's ever a moment for that to change, it feels like now. David's move up the order - initially to No. 5 and now likely No. 4 in this series - has added a new level of dynamism to Australia's top order and allowed him to shape games over a longer period.

          Australia's play against spin has improved, but it still feels like an area they could potentially come unstuck. Varun Chakravarthy is the No. 1 T20I spinner in the world but has yet to send down a ball against this opposition in the format; Canberra was his first match against them, although there have been head-to-heads in the IPL. It will be very interesting if he is used early against Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head. Chakravarthy removed Head when he was threatening a big innings in the Champions Trophy final earlier this year.

          Team news: Both teams might be unchanged

          This is the last game Josh Hazlewood is available for before he switches to Ashes preparation. Australia could consider rotating in Sean Abbott, who is only around for the first three matches of this series.

          Australia (probable): 1 Travis Head, 2 Mitchell Marsh (capt), 3 Josh Inglis (wk), 4 Tim David, 5 Mitch Owen, 6 Marcus Stoinis, 7 Josh Philippe, 8 Xavier Bartlett/Sean Abbott, 9 Nathan Ellis, 10 Matt Kuhnemann, 11 Josh Hazlewood

          Given the lack of cricket in the first game, an unchanged team could be on the cards for India unless conditions persuade them to play Arshdeep Singh as an extra quick. Nitish Kumar Reddy is out for at least the first three matches of the series.

          India (probable): 1 Abhishek Sharma, 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Tilak Varma, 4 Suryakumar Yadav (capt), 5 Sanju Samson (wk), 6 Shivam Dube, 7 Axar Patel, 8 Harshit Rana, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Varun Chakravarthy, 11 Jasprit Bumrah

          Pitch and conditions

          This will be the first match the MCG has hosted for the season. "I feel like every Big Bash game has been 180-plus [totals] there and you had good value for runs, whilst being a little bit in it for the bowlers," Ellis said. The bowlers will need to adjust to some different dimensions. "It's bigger square, shorter straight, [Canberra] was longer straight, shorter square," he said.

          Frustratingly, it may be another evening of looking skywards with a chance of showers through the day and a possible thunderstorm. October may not have finished gifting its rain-affected matches just yet.

          Stats and trivia

          • India have won four of their six T20Is at the MCG.

          • Marsh needs four runs to reach 2000 in T20Is; Sanju Samson needs seven for 1000 runs and Tilak Varma needs 38 for 1000.

          • Jasprit Bumrah needs four wickets to reach 100 in T20Is.

          Quotes

          "T20 cricket now, the bowling side of things, you're going to have a lot more bad days than good days. So [it's about] being able to not ride the highs and not ride the lows too much, but just learning and trying to do it better the next time you are put in that scenario."
          Nathan Ellis on the challenges of being a T20 bowler