IND vs AUS 1st T20I: Cameron Green and Matthew Wade spoil Hardik Pandya’s party
IND vs AUS 1st T20I: Cameron Green and Matthew Wade spoil Hardik Pandya’s party: Before the game, both Rohit Sharma and Aaron Finch guaranteed spectators a good time and a physical contest.
Both were on display for the sold-out crowd at IS Bindra PCA Stadium as Australia beat India by four wickets with four balls to spare in the opening of three Twenty20 Internationals.
By helping his team to victory over Pakistan in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup last year in Dubai, Matthew Wade proved once again why he is such an important player for his side in the shortest version of the game.
A 62-run sixth-wicket stand between Wade and debutant Tim David swung the match in favor of the visitors after Australia needed 64 runs in 35 balls to win.
With 45 not out off 21 balls, Wade remained unbeaten.
Australia’s captain, Aaron Finch, had previously pulled a rabbit out of his hat by moving all-rounder Cameron Green to the top of the order as his partner despite Green’s lack of opening experience at the senior level.
Including only two T20 Internationals under his belt, Green blasted 61 off of 30 balls, with eight fours and four sixes.
The kid set the Australians on the path to chasing down the imposing target, and while he did get a reprieve on 42 when Axar Patel dropped an easy catch, he ultimately set the team on the wrong track.
Green and Steve Smith put up 70 runs for the second wicket, which kept Australia in the game. However, Australia lost steam after Green was dismissed by Axar (who had a tremendous night with the ball), but Wade picked up the slack and led his team to victory.
Belligerent Pandya
Even though Dinesh Karthik, not Rishabh Pant, was chosen as India’s finisher, Hardik Pandya’s brilliant knock was the highlight of the match. He hit fifty off just 25 balls, only his second in T20Is, and he did it with a beautiful late cut.
Pandya displayed an array of shots from his arsenal.
At his most devastaing, he pulled, cut, drove, and played strokes from both ends of the wicket. The final over of the innings was a drubbing for Green, who was hit for 21 runs, with the final three balls being sent over the boundary.
Pandya was still batting after hitting 71 off 30 balls (7 fours, 5 sixes). While India was bleeding wickets at the other end, he never let up on the gas.
His high-octane innings helped India reach 208 for 6 after 20 overs.
KL Rahul shown determination on a belter of a track in Mohali the day after brushing off the strike rate controversy. Amid his 32-ball fifty, he lost his senior companions (Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli) at the other end but shed the accumulator label.
Rahul began slowly when Josh Hazlewood hit him with a jaffa, but he quickly picked up the pace. In fairness, the Australian did aid his case by bowling on his pads, and the Indian opener made the most of the assistance he was given.
Eventually, Hazlewood caught Rahul when he holed out to Nathan Ellis in deep square. He collapsed in on himself, misread the knuckle ball, and whiffed the ball right to the fielder.
Surya — all swag, no sweat
Suryakumar Yadav, once again demonstrating why he will be one of India’s trump cards at the T20 World Cup, fell short of a well-deserved half-century.
In his 25-ball-46, he pounded the Australian bowlers like a tonne of bricks. India’s “Mr. 360 degrees” went all out right from the first ball. First, he hit Pat Cummins for a beautiful cover drive, and then he swung deliberately over fine leg for six.
If his casual six over mid-wicket off Hazelwood was regal, his back-to-back sixes over long-on and deep mid-wicket off leggie Adam Zampa were nothing short of magnificent. However, just as Yadav was picking up the pace, he left to take a cheeky shot.
Axar proves his worth
India’s captain, Rohit Sharma, must be relieved by Axar’s contribution, as he remarked a few days ago that the loss of Ravindra Jadeja is a major setback.
One of the reserves, Axar was brought in as a sub but ended up capturing three wickets, proving his worth. With the third delivery of his spell, he got India on the board by dismissing Finch for 22.
However, in their twelve overs of bowling, India’s pacers allowed 150 runs.
Umesh Yadav, at age 34 and with almost a decade of expertise, looked like a rookie. He is dangerous because he can take wickets with his speed and unpredictable swing. Even more surprising than his selection to the Indian squad after Mohammed Shami’s positive Covid test was his selection ahead of Deepak Chahar, a reserve player for the Twenty20 World Cup.
Umesh, in his first Twenty20 International in three years, helped India win by dismissing the dangerous-looking Smith (35) and Glenn Maxwell (1) within a span of three deliveries. In spite of this, it was not enough.
Harshal Patel, returning from injury, was annihilated by the Australian batting lineup. His 18th over, in which the visitors scored 22 runs, proved crucial in the outcome of the game. With little to work with, Bhuvneshwar Kumar appeared exhausted. In just four overs, the seasoned pacer let up 52 runs.
Brief Scores
Australia beat India by four wickets, 211 for 6 in 19.2 overs to India’s 208 for 6 in 20 overs (Green 61, Wade 45 not out, Steve Smith 35; Axar Patel 3/17). India’s Hardik Pandya not out (71 not out), Rahul (55 not out), Suryakumar Yadav (46 not out), and Suryakumar Yadav (46 not out) batted for India.