Aaron Finch
Aaron Finch (Credits: Twitter)

India, on Friday, beat Australia by 11 runs in the first T20I at the Manuka Oval to take the lead in the three-match series. After scoring 161 for 7, the Virat Kohli led side restricted the hosts to 150 for 7.

Chasing 162, Australia were off to a good start as Aaron Finch and D’Arcy Short added 56 runs for the first wicket. Yuzvendra Chahal, who was brought in the team as a concussion substitute, turned the game on its head by dismissing Finch and Steve Smith in quick time.

Three runs later, debutant T Natarajan sent back Glenn Maxwell to leave Australia reeling at 75 for 3. Moises Henriques and Short then steadied the ship with a 38-run stand before Natarajan accounted for the latter and Chahal dismissed Matthew Wade cheaply to put India on top. Australia eventually finished 11 runs short of the target.

Earlier in the game, India finished their innings on a competitive total of 161 for 7 thanks to Ravindra Jadeja’s fine unbeaten knock of 44. KL Rahul also played a fine knock of 51 but returned back to the pavilion at a precarious time to leave India reeling at 92 for 5.

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Ravindra Jadeja
Ravindra Jadeja (Credits: Twitter)

At one stage, India were reeling on 114 for 6 in the 17th over before Jadeja shifted gears. In his last ten balls, he slammed 30 runs as he took the likes of Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc to the cleaners.

Here is what Aaron Finch said after the match:

Speaking at the end of the match, Aaron Finch started by talking about the dramatic concussion substitute. Finch and Justin Langer were seen having a heated discussion with Match Referee David Boon after he gave India the green light to replace Jadeja with Chahal.

But at the end of the game, Finch admitted that one cannot challenge a doctor’s opinion. He also rued his team’s bowling performance in the death overs and batting performance in the powerplay.

“Their doctor had ruled Jadeja out due to concussion. You can’t be challenging a medical expert’s opinion. We probably leaked too may runs at the death. Then while chasing, we didn’t hit too many boundaries in the 6-over period,” said Aaron Finch .

Also Read: Yuzvendra Chahal Replaces Ravindra Jadeja As Concussion Substitute

Also Read: Twitter Hails Ravindra Jadeja After His Onslaught Powers India To Competitive Total Against Australia

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