Aussies to bat first against India

Australian captain Ricky Ponting has won the toss and chose to bat first against India in the fifth limited overs match at Hyderabad.

The tourists have elected to rest a flagging Mitchell Johnson, who has been carrying an ankle problem through the tour, meaning a total of three changes from the XI that won game four by 24 runs at Mohali.

Victorian paceman and lower order batsman Clint McKay was chosen for his debut, while Ben Hilfenhaus and Adam Voges were recalled in place of Peter Siddle and Moises Henriques.

India dropped Ishant Sharma after his poor display (0-42 from five overs) at Mohali, replacing him with fellow right-arm quick Munaf Patel.

No.3 batsman Gautam Gambhir has also returned in place of Virat Kohli.

This match shapes as a pivotal point of the series, as the sides are locked at two matches apiece with three to play.

Ground staff have prepared what appears an ideal limited overs wicket, leaving open the prospect of a free-scoring contest.

Squads:

INDIA: MS Dhoni (capt), Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Dinesh Karthik, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Munaf Patel, Sudeep Tyagi, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Amit Mishra.

AUSTRALIA: Ricky Ponting (capt), Shaun Marsh, Shane Watson, Michael Hussey, Adam Voges, Cameron White, Graham Manou, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz, Clint McKay, Jon Holland, Ben Hilfenhaus, Doug Bollinger.