India opt to bowl first in crucial T20 in Hobart

Australia have brought in Sean Abbott
Australia have brought in Sean Abbott for the T20 match against India in Hobart. -AAP Image

India have made three changes and opted to bowl first in the third game of their Twenty20 series against Australia in Hobart.

The hosts, who lost the toss at Ninja Stadium on Sunday night, lead the five-match series 1-0 after success in Melbourne following an opening-game washout.

India have included wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma at the expense of Sanju Samson, while quick Arshdeep Singh and spinning allrounder Washington Sundar are in.

The bowling pair replace Harshit Rana, who hit a valuable 35 last game, and wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav.

For Australia, quick Sean Abbott has been included for Josh Hazlewood who is sitting out the remainder of the series to prepare for the Ashes.

Glenn Maxwell has been given slightly longer to recover from a wrist injury after joining the squad for games three to five.

AUSTRALIA: Mitchell Marsh (capt), Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Tim David, Mitchell Owen, Marcus Stoinis, Matt Short, Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis, Sean Abbott, Matt Kuhnemann

INDIA: Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Tilak Varma, Axar Patel, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah