Having overcome problems of acclimatisation and inexperience to begin with, life Down Under for the young guns has come a full circle, and the retiring Australian veterans face the possibility of bowing out on a real low.

Adam Gilchrist could well be playing his last international match tomorrow, and chances are that Brad Hogg may have already played his last, given the preference for quick bowlers at this particular venue. Whatever the status of the two, Australia need to regroup urgently after two defeats in three days. Tomorrow’s second final will be their third match in five days.

And for once, the world champions are playing catch-up, and are seeming breathless.

The visitors have already turned on the pressure, and in this humid partly-cloudy Brisbane weather, it’s likely to be a huff-and-puff 100 overs for Ponting’s men.

They might get some respite in the unforeseen fluid-in-the-finger injury to Ishant Sharma that is likely to keep the beanpole in the dressing room. It should be a toss-up between Munaf Patel’s accuracy and Sreesanth’s swing, though the latter might have an edge.

The nature of the pitch should keep the luckless Piyush Chawla out, as India will look to play an extra batsman in slightly hostile conditions.

It could be Virender Sehwag earning a recall, or Suresh Raina, if Dhoni meant it when he said every player would get an opportunity.

Sachin Tendulkar is still grappling with his groin strain, but it’s highly unlikely that he’ll sit this one out.

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Harbhajan Singh, who seems to raise objections from the Australian media and fans for every raised arm, will roll them over in the middle-overs, along with Yuvraj Singh and, possibly, Sehwag.

Irfan Pathan, who got a bit of stick in the last game, will be looking to hit the correct areas and redeem himself on what has otherwise been a fabulous summer for him with the ball.

There were no practice sessions involved, but simple discussions towards evening on India’s plan of action — see off Brett Lee’s first spell and send the Australian top-order off with the new ball. In either situation, India expect to play on their opponents’ weakness, adding to their own strength.

The Australian batting has struggled with Matthew Hayden, Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Andrew Symonds doing well only in patches. An early slew of wickets against a consistent attack has put the middle-order under tremendous pressure

In comparison, India’s batting card has evoked confidence and has a more settled look. In-form Gautam Gambhir at one-drop will once again be crucial in shaping the innings on a wicket where scores of 240-250 will be highly competitive under lights.

Yuvraj Singh hasn’t made the most of his fresh lease of life, getting out to casual shots, while the onus is on Rohit Sharma to sustain his good form.

Irrespective of what happens from here on, that this is the team of the future is not a debate anymore.