India bid to keep series alive

After the first match was washed out, Australia have dominated the next two contests to lead the seven-game one-day series 2-0 with three to play. India have disappointed throughout and they will need a big improvement on Monday if they are to keep the series alive.

Predictably, bet365 make Australia favourites to clinch the match, installing them as a 4/9 chance, while India are 13/8 to get back into the series with their first win.

The good news for India is that former captain Sourav Ganguly is back in the side and his presence should boost their chances of making a good score, as he and Sachin Tendulkar make a formidable partnership at the top of the order.

In fact, though Matt Hayden and Adam Gilchrist are seasoned competitors, it might be worth backing India to have the better opening partnership. There is very little between the two on paper, and if India bat first, I would fancy their chances, so even money is a decent price.

India have won two of their three matches at the Sector 16 Stadium in Chandigarh though they haven't played there for well over a decade so it will not be of much importance to the outcome.

Tendulkar to score big
After his century in the last match, Yuvraj Singh is shorter than usual to top-score for India, with bet365 making the in-form middle-order batsman just 4/1 to come out on top. The market, as usual, is led by Tendulkar, who is 3/1, with Ganguly 7/2.

It's time Tendulkar came good, high time in fact since it's 21 matches since he scored the last of his record 41 one-day hundreds. He was in good form in the series in England that ended in September but he needs runs in this series, so now would be the time to hit form.

Behind Yuvraj, another former skipper, Rahul Dravid, who also needs some runs, is 9/2, the same price as Gautam Gambhir. Robin Uthappa is 6/1 while captain Mahendra Dhoni is 7/1 and Dinesh Karthik is 17/2.

Matt Hayden tops the betting for Australia at 11/4, while captain Ricky Ponting is 3/1, just ahead of Adam Gilchrist, a 7/2 shot. Michael Clarke is 5/1, Andrew Symonds, star of the show in the last match, is 11/2, with Brad Hodge and Brad Haddin both 8/1.