Twitter Reacts After Australia Beat India By 66 Runs At The SCG
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Twitter Reacts After Australia Beat India By 66 Runs At The SCG

Hardik Pandya and Shikhar Dhawan tried their level-best but in the end, it proved to be a bridge too for India as Australia consigned the visitors to their 4th consecutive defeat in ODI cricket courtesy a 66-run win at the SCG.

Chasing 375, the Indian opening duo of Shikhar Dhawan and Mayank Agarwal got the tourists off to a rollicking start. The duo took the attack to Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, and Pat Cummins

India rocketed their way to 0-53 in just 5.2 overs. But just as it looked like the duo, just like David Warner and Aaron Finch- will stitch a big opening stand, Mayank Agarwal, in an attempt to hit Hazlewood over covers, mistimed it straight in the air with Glenn Maxwell taking an easy catch.

Virat Kohli got a lucky reprieve when he stroked a pull-shot against Pat Cummins, only for Adam Zampa to drop it at short fine-leg. Kohli played some audacious strokes against Cummins, the best of them being the nonchalant flick towards backward square-leg.

Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli [Photo-Twitter]
But, once again, Josh Hazlewood proved to be the partnership-breaker as he knocked over Virat (21) and Shreyas Iyer (2) with short-pitch deliveries in the same over.

KL Rahul threw his wicket away courtesy of a loose drive off Adam Zampa, one that was safely gobbled by Steve Smith at short-cover.

At 4-101 in 13.3 overs, India looked like staring at a heavy defeat. But Hardik Pandya and Shikhar Dhawan’s brilliant partnership ensured that the Men in Blue stay afloat.

India, Australia
Shikhar Dhawan and Hardik Pandya [Photo-Twitter]
Pandya looked in supreme touch against pace and especially spin bowling of Adam Zampa and Glenn Maxwell as he rollicked his way to a 31-ball half-century. In the process, the swashbuckler also went on to breach the 1000-run mark in ODI cricket- the fastest Indian to do so in terms of balls.

Dhawan got two lucky reprieves by Maxwell and Cummins before he compiled his 4th successive 50+ score against Australia. India reached the 200-run-mark in the 29th over as the duo bringing up their 100-run-stand in the process.

The duo continued to chip away at the target in the next few overs, reducing the equation to 148 of the last 16 overs. Adam Zampa eventually broke the partnership after Dhawan, in an attempt to hit the leggie over mid-off, chipped it straight to Pat Cummins.

Adam Zampa then proceeded to kill the game when he induced a false stroke from Hardik Pandya’s bat- who was forced to go for the big shot due to Jadeja’s defensive tactics- at the long-on boundary, ensuring that the last few overs of the Indian innings was all about ascertaining the margin of defeat.

 

Rampaging Australian batting smash listless India to the tune of 6/374

Earlier in the day, the Indian fast bowling duo of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami once again failed to provide their team with an early breakthrough. And, David Warner and Aaron Finch cashed-in big time!

The Australian opening pair laid the perfect platform for the likes of Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell to cash-in thanks to a 156-run-stand.

Mohammed Shami eventually got India their first breakthrough when David Warner edged one straight to KL Rahul.

India, Australia, Steve Smith
Steve Smith (Credits: Twitter)

But Steve Smith came out to bat as someone who was on a mission. He looked at ridiculous ease right from the outset and the one opportunity that he offered, India did not cash-in. Shikhar Dhawan made a mess of what would have been a straightforward catch at the long-on boundary had he not been so much inside the boundary line.

Smith survived and he did not look back from thereon. He smashed 5 boundaries in the next six balls and went on to smoke a 66-ball 105 to knock the stuffing out of the Indian attack.

Aaron Finch too complied a brilliant hundred before he was dismissed by Jasprit Bumrah. However, Glenn Maxwell’s whirlwind 19-ball 45 and Smith’s belligerence ensured that Australia complied the 3rd highest total against India in ODI history- 6/374.

Here’s how Twitter reacted-

 

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Yash Mittal

Just a student of this beautiful game called cricket. Writer. Storyteller.

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