Australia bracing for tough India series

Veteran batsman George Bailey predicts Australia's rivalry with India will be as strong as ever, despite the retirements of a host of key players since last year's World Cup.

Former captain Michael Clarke, paceman Mitchell Johnson, and wicketkeeper Brad Haddin have all retired from ODI cricket, while allrounder Shane Watson has fallen out of favour.

In contrast, none of the Indian XI who featured in the World Cup semi-final loss to Australia have retired and they boast three of the world's top 10 ranked ODI batsmen in Virat Kohli (2), MS Dhoni (6) and Shikhar Dhawan (7).

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Australia's only representative in the top 10 is allrounder Glenn Maxwell (10), while their top-ranked ODI bowler, Mitchell Starc, will be absent after undergoing ankle surgery.

The fierce rivals will face off in the five-match Victoria Bitter One-Day Series and three-game KFC Twenty20 International Series this summer, starting with an one-day international at the WACA Ground on Tuesday.

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Bailey, who was overlooked for selection for most of the World Cup after skipping the team in Michael Clarke's absence in the opening game against England, said Australia were keen to maintain their edge over India.

"We've got a really big rivalry with India and it's a big deal for us to try and beat them," Bailey said.

"We've had some fierce battles, both in India and here over the last few years.

"And they play a really strong, aggressive brand of one-day cricket, in much the same mould that we do.

"We've got a great record in one-day cricket over the last couple of years, but it's a huge amount of changes for us from that World Cup final nearly 12 months ago.

"It's a changing of the guard, a lot of guys trying to find their way in the team, and some of us older guys trying to make sure we can stay in the team for as long as we can."

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India kicked off their tour on a winning note at the WACA over the weekend, defeating a second-string Western Australia XI by 74 runs in a T20 on Friday before a 64-run 50-over victory on Saturday.

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Only 28 wickets fell across five days at the WACA during the drawn Test against New Zealand in November, with batsmen from both sides feasting on the flat deck to score a combined 1672 runs.

Bailey is confident the one-day WACA wicket won't be as one-sided.

"It might not be as bouncy as it used to be, but as far as other grounds in the country go, it's still pretty bouncy," Bailey said.

"We've had some really high-scoring games here over the last few years.

"But I always think the bowlers get pretty excited.

"They weren't much fun to face in the nets (on Sunday). I imagine they'll be licking their lips at the opportunity to get a bit of pace and bounce."