India vs Australia, 1st T20I: Toss, preview, playing XIs and prediction

Virat Kohli won the toss and elected to bat first India to bowl first in the first of three T20 internationals in Brisbane on Wednesday.

Virat Kohli-led Team India will be looking start with a win on their tour of Australia as they meet the hosts in the first of three T20Is. 

India will be looking to their top three batsmen in Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to guide them against a good-looking Aussie attack. However, the middle order still needs some fine-tuning and it will great chance for some batsmen to stake a claim for a permanent spot.

In bowling the pace pair of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah will lead the attack while Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav will helm the spin department. 

Australia, on the other hand, will heavily rely on captain Aaron Finch. Glenn Maxwell will be another key player. Australia's tall pace attack will look to expose Indian batting.

Toss: Team to win the toss was expected to bowl first and that's what Virat Kohli did. 

Australia playing XI: Finch (c), Short, Lynn, Maxwell, Stoinis, McDermott Carey (wk), Tye, Behrendorff, Zampa, Stanlake

India likely XI: Rohit, Dhawan, Kohli (c), Rahul, Pant, Karthik, Pandya, Bhuvneshwar, Yadav, Khaleel, Bumrah

Pitch and conditions: The bouncy Gabba surface traditionally supports pace but spinners are also likely to play a part in this game. The weather forecast is for a sunny day with a high of 31 degrees.

Prediction: India start favourites for the series. Virat Kohli’s team is more settled than the hosts.