 
 |  | Weather Adelaide, | | AM Showers, High 30 °C | |  |
| |  |  |  | | | Australia: (probable) 1 Phil Jaques, 2 Matthew Hayden, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Hussey, 5 Michael Clarke, 6 Andrew Symonds, 7 Adam Gilchrist (wk), 8 Brad Hogg, 9 Brett Lee, 10 Mitchell Johnson, 11 Stuart Clark.
India: (probable) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Irfan Pathan, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 Sourav Ganguly, 6 VVS Laxman, 7 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 8 Anil Kumble (capt), 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 RP Singh.
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 |  |  | | | | Your guide to who's hot and who's not in the India tour to Australia 2007-08. | | | |  |  |  | | |  Sachin Tendulkar With 327 runs in six innings, Tendulkar is enjoying his final tour Down Under. His century in Sydney was greeted with such a tremendous response that it often appeared he was the home batsman and was robbed of a second in the first innings in Perth. The timing's good, the head's still, and he's shown, at 34, that he can play cheeky shots against top-notch fast bowling. The stage is set for one last masterpiece in Australia, with India searching for a win to level the series. Tendulkar loves the big stage, and this is massive.
| | | | Brett Lee Lee has big boots to fill, but he's improving in each series he shepherds Australia's attack. Looking the only bowler to always come on and get a wicket or four, Lee bowled an outstanding spell to bring Australia back, momentarily, on day one in Perth. Sprinting in from the Lillee-Marsh End on a hot day, he consistently struck a rhythm and had India hopping. He leads the bowling tally with 19 wickets at 19.31 and with his side hoping to seal the series in Adelaide, there's no better man to do lead the charge than Lee. An outstanding ambassador for fast bowling all series.
| | | |  | |  | | |  |  |  | | |  Ricky Ponting Australia's captain has had a rough series, averaging just 21.33 with one half-century in three Tests. He didn't have Harbhajan Singh to torment him in Perth, but was tormented by a rookie 19-year-old fast bowler, Ishant Sharma. Sharma got Ponting in both innings, poking catches to Rahul Dravid in the slips, and he looked all at sea against the youngster's sharp lift and carry. His footwork has been indecisive as well. It's unusual for Ponting not to dominate Australia's run tally but India have got his number, as they did in 2000-01, and he languishes near the bottom.
| | | Wasim Jaffer Fourty-nine runs, with a best of 16, at an average of 8.16 point to an axe for the Adelaide Test. Jaffer likes to play the ball late, getting high and working it to the on-side, but the extra bounce in Australia and the speed of the bowling has had him in trouble. His scratchy footwork and tendency to play away from the body hasn't helped. Jaffer has, during his career, come up with classy hundreds under pressure, but this time - despite a batting deck - he may not get a chance. India could open with Virender Sehwag and Irfan Pathan if he misses out.
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 |  |  | | | Irfan Pathan Pathan seized his first Test opportunity with both hands, scoring runs and taking wickets to deservedly pick up the Man-of-the-Match award and he was easily India's most impressive player of the Perth Test. He was called on to bat in the dying moments on consecutive days and then to take on fresh bowlers in the morning and he did the job with the calmness of an accomplished batsman. With the new ball, he removed the openers in both innings: not bad for a man who got his break because of an injury to a team-mate. Definitely one to look out for in Adelaide.
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 |  |  | | | Adelaide Oval
The Adelaide Oval remains one of cricket's most picturesque Test venues despite recent developments to increase the capacity and upgrade the facilities. Its position, situated amid gardens and trees and with the spire of St Peter's Cathedral as a backdrop, gives it a quintessentially English feel. The ground is a true oval, which makes straight sixes a rarity but ones square of the wicket more common. The western public and members grandstands and the famous scoreboard are all items listed on the City of Adelaide Heritage Register, and two news stands finished in 2003 have raised the capacity to 34,000 (for football) and 32,000 for cricket.
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