Mohammed Shami (5 for 51) and the batters made vital contributions as India registered a five-wicket win over Australia in Mohali, in the first ODI of the three-match series. India chased down the target of 277 with eight balls to spare. The bowling unit never allowed Australia to get away, and half-centuries from Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Suryakumar Yadav and KL Rahul – stepping in as captain in the absence of the rested Rohit Sharma – ensured that the pursuit of a challenging target was achieved without undue alarm.
In the second innings, with the ball skidding on a little more, India always seemed to have the upper hand. Gill (74 runs) and Gaikwad (71 runs) began on the right note with a volley of shots against Sean Abbott and Marcus Stoinis. A couple of punches and the drive were the highlights of the opening exchanges between the two sides. When Matthew Short was introduced into the attack, Gill used his reach to bring out the lofted strokes.
Meanwhile, Australia didn’t help their cause by fluffing a chance. In the eighth over, Abbott used the leg-cutter to force Gaikwad to edge one behind, but Josh Inglis put it down. Eventually, in the 22nd over, Gaikwad tried to sweep Adam Zampa but was trapped in front. Shreyas Iyer, making a comeback into the side, then was run out on the back of a mix-up.
The slide continued. Gill tried to cut a skidder from Zampa but could only hear the rattle of the timber. At that juncture, Australia had a window of opportunity to make a comeback. However, in a single over, Zampa dropped both Rahul and Ishan Kishan off his own bowling, though the chance offered by Kishan was a tough one.
Kishan hung around for a while before upper-cutting Cummins into the hands of the ‘keeper. Rahul and Suryakumar, however, ensured that there were no more hiccups as they stitched an alliance of 80. With India just needing 12 runs, Suryakumar struck one straight to Mitchell Marsh, but by then the result of the match was more or less a foregone conclusion. Rahul provided the finishing touches by smacking Abbott for a six.
It was an important innings for Suryakumar as, before this game, he was averaging just 25 in ODIs. Early on in the innings, he looked a bit tentative before essaying a few enterprising straight drives.
The foundations for Australia’s total were laid by David Warner (52), Steven Smith (41), Inglis (45) and Marnus Labuschagne (39). Pat Cummins also played his role with a breezy nine-ball 21. When the game started, the wicket seemed slightly two-paced, and the Australian batters struggled to some extent to land the big shots.
Meanwhile, for India, Shami found just enough swing and seam movement with the new ball. In the slog overs, he also found a hint of contrast swing, alongside mixing up his pace as he picked up a slew of wickets. Shami’s returns turned out to be his best figures in ODIs. Jasprit Bumrah (1 for 43) and R Ashwin (1 for 47) provided him with good support, with Ashwin bowling a controlled and tidy spell in his first ODI for India in 20 months.