India lost by seven wickets to Australia, in Sunday’s rain-affected first ODI in Perth, following a swift 22-ball finish to the great comeback party of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
India, asked to bat first, struggled to a poor 136 for 9. Due to multiple weather delays, the match was rescheduled to 26 overs for a side, allowing the hosts to chase a DLS target of 131, which they duly completed in 21.1 overs.
With India posting 136/9, the DLS method revised Australia’s target to 131. The adjustment accounted for India having enjoyed better batting conditions earlier — a dry outfield and an extended powerplay — leading to the target being reduced from 137 to 131 to ensure fairness.
Arshdeep Singh caught Travis Head early, cutting the left-arm pacer to Harshit Rana at deep third man. Matthew Short also walked back without making a big impact.
But with a vital 55-run partnership with Josh Philippe (37, 29b), captain and local man Mitchell Marsh (46 not out, 52 balls) used his strength to keep Australia ahead of the curve.
With plenty of freebies for the home team’s batters, the Indian pacers Arshdeep, Mohammad Siraj, and Harshit Rana were unable to match the Australians’ level of control.
Marsh crunched a six of all three as he feasted on the loose deliveries with delight. The high point was an inside-out smash off Siraj over covers.
Australia’s march, which ended with them taking a 1-0 lead in the three-match series, was slightly hampered by Philippe’s dismissal, who provided his captain with plenty of support with a brisk knock.
Earlier, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s spectacular comeback celebration lasted only 22 balls between them, and their performance was mirrored in India’s lackluster 136/9.
If the many rain delays, which reduced the match to only 26 overs a side, weren’t enough, India had trouble getting going, with the exception of KL Rahul’s innings in the middle (38 off 30 balls).
It made sense that Australia chose to bowl first in the overcast weather, and the Optus Stadium pitch’s added bounce greatly helped them.
The Perth crowd cheered loudly as Rohit, playing his 500th match for India, and new captain Shubman Gill entered the field, although the former Indian captain was only in the middle for 14 balls, scoring just 8 runs.
He unfurled a sumptuous straight drive off Mitchell Starc — a fleeting glimpse of his glorious past. But that was as good as it got, as Josh Hazlewood’s steep bounce from a back-of-a-length delivery soon ended his stay.
The constantly rising ball traveled to rookie Matthew Renshaw at second slip after kissing the sticker of his bat.
To a louder applause, Kohli entered the intimidating arena, but the recognizable ODI greatness was not there.
A routine prod outside the off-stump off Starc, if anything, showed that the old weakness was still there.
He was eventually devoured by it. Cooper Connolly, at backward point, made a fantastic catch to end Kohli’s torturous eight-ball stint after a drive on the up from Starc took the edge of his bat.
For Kohli, it was his first duck in Australia. For the veteran batsmen to demonstrate that they have what it takes to extend their international careers, they must produce something significant in the upcoming ODIs in Sydney and Adelaide.
Gill was confident, in contrast to his more experienced teammates, but a careless attempt to flick Nathan Ellis ended in a down-leg side catch to wicketkeeper Josh Philippe.
The same fate befell Shreyas Iyer, who played a wonderful square cut off Hazlewood to find the ropes. But the Aussie strangled him for space with another bouncer, which Philippe collected behind the wickets as India sank to 45 for four in the 14th over.
Before Rahul was dismissed by spinner Matthew Kuhnemann, Axar Patel (31) and Rahul formed a 39-run fifth-wicket partnership that finally got India going.
Rahul handled the bounce well and got over the ball with a knock that was really good. His straight drive and pull off consecutive balls for fours off Ellis were truly remarkable.
Against the spinners, Rahul went into overdrive and hit two consecutive sixes off Matthew Short.
Although Rahul and Washington Sundar added 30 runs for the sixth wicket, India’s backside acceleration was hampered by the short over count, even though Nitish Kumar Reddy hit Matthew Kuhnemann for 2 sixes in the last over.
