Aus v Ind 4th ODI review: India humiliated in the Australian capital city

India produced the kind of performance that should embarrass them to no end. In a mammoth run chase, the visitors were in a very comfortable position and yet lost the match in a bizarre display of mindless batting. The team lost 9 for 46 after centuries from Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan had taken India to a mere 72 runs shy of victory with 75 balls remaining.

Earlier, Australia hammered 348/8 after batting first for the first time this series, in the fourth ODI at Manuka Oval in Canberra. The hosts included Nathan Lyon for his first ODI appearance since he faced Pakistan in Dubai in late 2014 while Warner returned in place of Shaun Marsh at the top of the order. R Ashwin was again left out while Bhuvneshwar Kumar was included at the expense of Barinder Sran.

In front of a sold-out crowd in the region of 12,500 as Canberra tries for an inaugural Test match next summer, David Warner and Aaron Finch added 187 to set the perfect platform before Steven Smith and Glenn Maxwell improvised brilliantly to pile up 111 from the last 10 overs of the innings.

Warner in the fourth over of the afternoon launched into Bhuvneshwar and smashed 3 fours to get going. The next over brought three more balls sent to the fence, this time off Umesh Yadav, and the tone of the innings had been set. In the meanwhile, Umpire Richard Kettleborough limped from the field after a heavy blow to the leg, before Bhuvneshwar needed treatment for a finger stung by Warner’s straight drive in a day that also witnessed Ajinkya Rahane suffering split webbing in his right hand while fielding.

Warner was in complete command while Finch batted steadily. Their partnership was broken when the Australian vice-captain took a big swing at Ishant and dragged on, for 93. Mitchell Marsh, promoted to number 3 looked tentative even as Finch accelerated to his second century in successive ODI innings on this ground. Finch’s increasing sense of urgency resulted in a skied pull shot well held by Ishant, to bring Smith to the middle with 12.3 overs remaining.

Steve Smith took no time at all to get into stride while Marsh eventually mistimed a high ball to long-on, prompting another batting order tweak as Maxwell joined Smith. Smith skipped to his fifty from 27 balls before falling to another skier. The last four overs reaped 47 even as regular wickets fell, the last over conceding 18 before Maxwell was out to the final ball but not before smashing a 20-ball 41. Ishant bowled a tight first spell however leaked runs at the back end of the innings and finished with 4/77. Ravindra Jadeja and Rishi Dhawan bowled well going under 6 an over however Bhuvneshwar had a miserable outing conceding 69 off his 8. Umesh Yadav took 3 wickets and conceded 67 off his 10.

Lyon opened the bowling for his team in what could be an experiment ahead of the T20Is. The Indian openers Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma looked in ominous mood taking the bowlers on from the outset. Sharma was dismissed for 41 off 28 trying to ball that drifted down the leg side. In a half-hearted poke, he ended up guiding a loose delivery in the safe hands of Matthew Wade.

Virat Kohli walked in and looked in a murderous mood. He smashed James Faulkner to get going and continued his splendid form on the tour. Dhawan also looked in fluent touch and kept the run-rate high. India was comfortably placed at 277-1 with 72 needed when the match turned on its head.

With both batsmen having gone past their hundreds and a much-awaited win seemingly in sights, the batsmen did the unthinkable and threw the match in an appalling manner. John Hastings’s last over saw the tide turn as the bowler struck twice to send back Dhawan for 126 off 113 and Dhoni for a duck. The Indian skipper charged down the track unnecessarily and gave a catching practice behind. Kohli had to be the man taking India across the line but he too fell soon after, chipping one to mid-off, again by charging down the track, to leave India in disarray. He made 106 off 92 in a classy knock that didn’t prove enough.

The new comers, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, and Rishi Dhawan threw their wickets away that put the game firmly in the home side’s grasp. Mann hit a boundary off Lyon over mid-off but tried to slog the next delivery and perished. Dhawan did the same in his 8-ball 9 that included a boundary. The injured Rahane came to bat, however, gave another catching practice in the slip which was replicated by Bhuvneshwar.

Yadav’s horrible knock of 11-ball 2 included many swings and misses. Jadeja batted poorly and kept taking singles instead of keeping the strike. He struggled to find a boundary himself dragged the match in Australia’s favour. Marsh finished the match with 2 wickets, however, the star of the match was Kane Richardson who took 5/68. Jadeja remained unbeaten on 24 off 27 that included just one boundary in a knock that showcased his immaturity and inability in assessing a match situation.

Brief Scores:

Australia: 348/8 in 50 overs (A Finch 107; I Sharma 4/77)

India: 323/10 in 49.2 (S Dhawan 126; K Richardson 5/68)

Man of the Match: Kane Richardson (Australia)