AUSTRALIA might have a reason to feel buoyed by their dominance over India in the tri-series which preceded the World Cup, but they’d be the first to acknowledge that a totally different Indian side awaits them at the SCG today.

With every match in this tournament, the current champions have increasingly distanced themselves from the side we saw in the tri-series.

That was a team playing without much confidence, their bowling was a mess, though you have to wonder if their focus was already on the World Cup judging by the way they switched on as soon as the big one got under way.

In their seven outings so far, they’re firing in all three departments, which in a large way explains their undefeated streak heading into this massive clash.

It’s the Indian bowlers who have impressed me the most when you think back to the tri-series when most of us would have had this department down as a weakness which, over the course of this Cup, has turned into a key strength.

Mohammed Shami has been hitting the high 140s consistently and bowled with purpose while enjoying good support from Umesh Yadav and Mohit Sharma. Their early strikes have allowed the spinners, Ashwin and Jadeja to be at their effective best in the middle overs.

I can imagine how satisfying it must be for skipper M.S. Dhoni to see his bowlers performing as a unit.

Though today’s toss won’t necessarily be decisive, either side wouldn’t hesitate to bat first. The wicket has generated plenty of intrigue with some suggesting spin could come into play. It certainly didn’t spin much during the Australia-Sri Lanka pool match.

I’m actually expecting the pace bowlers to have more of a say. Any hint of swing would surely delight someone like Mitchell Starc or even Mitchell Johnson who gradually appears to be finding his best rhythm. Of course, if it does begin to aid turn as the game wears on, then Ashwin and Jadeja would be well poised to capitalise.

Make no mistake, though. There will be loads of runs in this strip, but the pressure of a World Cup semi-final could well be the key dictator of how high scoring a game it turns out to be. Both sides possess tremendous depth and quality in their batting and the key to a 300-plus total lies in ensuring you haven’t lost more than two or three wickets by the 30th over.

The New Zealand-South Africa semi-final was a perfect illustration of how the pressure of a big occasion can get to you. South Africa were surely a bit hard done by the weather which intervened at a horrible time but they did squander some great chances in the final stages of winning the game. The outpouring of emotions from the South African players at the end told you just how badly they wanted it.

Unfortunately sometimes, the desire to go all out can backfire as we saw it happen with the Proteas.

That said, full credit to Grant Elliott and Daniel Vettori for holding their nerve which earned the Kiwis a maiden appearance in a World Cup final. Australia are my favourites to join them, but by the tiniest of margins!

By Special Arrangement for Dawn

Published in Dawn, March 26th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play