Bharath Ramaraj
Virat Kohli (85) and KL Rahul (97 not out) shared a game-breaking alliance of 165 to help India wriggle out of early trouble and usurp Australia in their opening game of the 2023 World Cup in Chennai. India overhauled the target of 200 in the 42nd over for the loss of four wickets.
Looking at the final scorecard, it seems as if it was all smooth sailing for India. However, the home side had lost their first three wickets for just two runs. Ishan Kishan could survive just one ball as he edged an away-swinger to Cameron Green in the slip cordon. The back foot didn’t load up early enough. As a result, the front foot didn’t go to the pitch of the ball, with Kishan playing an airy-fairy drive.
The score soon became two for two as Hazlewood found appreciable swing and seam movement to trap Rohit leg-before. The India skipper placed his belief in the review but had to trudge back to the pavilion with a disappointed look on his face. Shreyas Iyer then drove one straight to the fielder at covers. At that crucial juncture, Rahul and Kohli joined forces and navigated through tricky spells.
On enough occasions, Kohli was beaten on the outside edge while facing the pace duo of Mitchell Starc and Hazlewood. With the pressure building, Kohli tried to take on Hazlewood’s well-directed short ball, but could only eke out a top-edge. Mitchell Marsh, positioned at mid-wicket, and Alex Carey, the wicketkeeper, both attempted to pouch the catch. Marsh got to the ball first but couldn’t grab the chance. Perhaps he hesitated a bit as he saw the ’keeper also running towards the ball. Whatever the reason, that dropped chance proved to be the turning point.
The Kohli-Rahul duet soon started to pierce the gaps with singles and twos. Rahul also played an exquisite checked drive off Pat Cummins — the back foot loaded up just enough and the front foot moved just enough — it was perfection in terms of technique. When Adam Zampa was introduced into the attack, Rahul used the depth of the crease to bring out the late cut. On the other hand, Kohli played some fine drives and flicks.
By the time Kohli got to his 50 with a double off Cummins, the shoulders of Australian fielders seemed to have dropped. In the very next over, Rahul too completed his 50. There was a little bit of action in the 34th over when Kohli missed a pull and was hit on the helmet by Starc. Just that the batter gave a fitting riposte by driving the next delivery to the boundary hoardings.
Finally, in the 38th over, Kohli was dismissed, pulling one to Marnus Labuschagne at mid-wicket. By then, the result was more or less a foregone conclusion. Kohli got a standing ovation from the Chennai crowd as he made his way back to the pavilion. Hardik Pandya and Rahul then played a flurry of shots to take India home.
Hazlewood was clearly the best bowler on the show. He hit the deck hard and extracted enough seam movement. Starc and Cummins bowled well in patches. Zampa, however, was below par. The dewy conditions didn’t help his cause. In fact, the ball was changed a couple of times.
India’s win was set up by the bowlers. Ravindra Jadeja bowled consistent lines and lengths and found enough purchase from the surface. The pick of his three wickets was the dismissal of Steven Smith. The right-handed batter, who has been bowled by Jadeja in the past, was cleaned up by a delivery that turned away considerably. It was yet another masterclass of side spin from Jadeja — land enough deliveries in the right areas and allow variation off the pitch to do the rest.
Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav also bowled incisive spells, bagging two wickets each. R Ashwin, Mohammed Siraj and Hardik Pandya were the other wicket-takers. Rahul also deserves some praise for showcasing fine wicket-keeping skills.
Smith top-scored for Australia with 46, while Warner played a fine hand of 41. Lower down the order, Starc landed a few powerful blows. Just that Australia were about 50 runs short of a competitive score. And the final hammer blow for Australia came when Marsh grassed the all-important chance.