AUS vs SA: Sachin Tendulkar Believes Australia Missed A Left-Arm Spinner Against India On Chennai Surface

Former Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar opened up about the Australian team’s recent loss in the ongoing ICC ODI World Cup 2023. Sachin Tendulkar expressed surprise at Australia’s decision to bat first after winning the toss at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

The Pat Cummins-led team could only score 199 runs in their first match of the tournament on Sunday, October 8. None of the Australian batters managed to score a half-century in the match. Steve Smith was the top scorer with 46 runs, while David Warner managed to score 41 runs.

Surprised To See Australia Bat First – Sachin Tendulkar

Following the Rohit Sharma-led team’s six-wicket victory, Sachin Tendulkar took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to mention that Australia might have missed having a left-arm spinner in their lineup.

“I was surprised to see Australia bat first after winning the toss. Commendable performance by the Indian bowlers to restrict them to 199. Australia started well but I felt they missed a left-arm spinner on this surface,” Sachin Tendulkar said.

https://x.com/sachin_rt/status/1711063695344951530?s=20

Ashton Agar was part of Australia’s provisional squad for the showpiece tournament. However, the left-arm spinner failed to make it into the final squad as he failed to recover from the injury. Marnus Labuschagne replaced him in the 15-member squad.

Congratulations To Team India On A Good Start – Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar mentioned that the partnership between Virat Kohli and KL Rahul helped revive the team from an early collapse. Sachin said that the duo smartly paced their innings and played some excellent shots.

“The partnership between Virat and Rahul sealed the game for us. They very smartly took their time and were able to execute some superb shots. The ball surely came onto the bat much better in the second half of the game. Congratulations to #TeamIndia on a good start,” he added.

Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, and Shreyas Iyer were dismissed for ducks. Virat Kohli top-edged a short ball bowled by Josh Hazlewood, but Mitchell Marsh misjudged the catch, resulting in a missed opportunity for Australia. Kohli scored 85 runs off 116 balls in the chase.

Also read: IND vs AFG: Virat Kohli Breaks Sachin Tendulkar’s All-Time Record To Become Leading Run Getter For India In ICC Tournaments