Australia v India 1st ODI - 5 Talking Points

The series opener between India and Australia at Perth was a batsman dominated game in which Australia prevailed over India by a margin of five wickets. India’s hope of commencing the series on a winning note was fuelled by the remarkable performances of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. However, the Australian duo of captain Steve Smith and George Bailey gave a crispy reply to India’s first innings show. The duo scored runs at will and took Australia past the target almost on their own. The bowling attacks of both the teams were inefficient today and conceded runs in plenty. The Indian batsmen took advantage of the inexperienced and a relatively newer bowling attack while the Australian batsmen did not let the Indian spinners gain any momentum in the match and went on to chase the target of 310 runs set by the visitors. Here are the 5 talking points of the Australia v India 1st ODI.

1. Rohit Sharma’s new year special:

Rohit Sharma gave a perfect start to 2016 as he struck a fluent 171*. Rohit heaped runs without facing any considerable challenge from the toothless Australian bowling attack. Sharma was undefeated and carried his bat till the end of the innings, that helped India post a winnable total of 309 on the scoreboard. This knock was undoubtedly record-breaking and also added one more memorable innings to his monumental ODI career. Sharma became the first Indian centurion at Perth and also surpassed Sir Vivian Richards’ 36-year-old record (153*) for the highest ODI score against Australia in Australia. He also beat the Indian best of Sourav Ganguly (141 at Adelaide), who previously held the record for top score by an Indian in Australia.

2. Rohit-Virat partnership enthralls Indian fans:

Shikhar Dhawan once again disappointed the Indian fans after he got out in the seventh overs of the match. However, his departure was a boon for India as Rohit Sharma was joined by India’s superstar batsman Virat Kohli. Rohit was the dominant early on. He played with his natural elegance and was ideally supported by Virat Kohli. Both changed the course of the match in favor of India with a 207 runs partnership which propelled India to 309/3 after 50 overs. Kohli gave his fans a thrill with a 97-ball 91 runs innings. While Virat was dismissed in the 45th overs of the match, Sharma carried on till the end and remained unbeaten.

3. Barinder Sran’s perfect debut:

Debutant India fast bowler Barinder Sran also marked his debut in a memorable way. After impressing in the practice games against at the WACA XI, Sran showed his effectiveness immediately after opening the bowling. He removed the explosive pair of Aaron Finch and David Warner in a heated opening spell of back to back overs. Sran got his maiden international wicket in the just the second over of his career. He landed a full delivery which Aaron Finch hit straight back to him. Later, he made it two in two overs as he got the danger man David Warner caught by Virat Kohli at mid off. Sran showed off his range of deliveries with swift bouncers and back-of-the-hand slower balls. He finished with 3/56 in his 9.2 overs spell. His last wicket came in the form of Steve Smith whom he dismissed at 149 and denied a 150-run milestone.

4. Steven Smith and George Bailey flatten India:

India gained the upper hand early on after debutant Barinder Sran struck back to back blows, removing the explosive opening pair of David Warner and Aaron Finch. However, skipper Steven Smith (149 from 135 balls) and George Bailey (112 from 120 balls) gave no further opportunity for India to celebrate as both stitched a match-winning partnership of 242 runs. This partnership took Australia from 21/2 to 263 when George Bailey lost his wicket to Ravi Ashwin. Both Smith and Bailey batted with a similar approach, rotating strike to keep the scoreboard moving during the middle overs. As the game neared its decisive end, the pair then hit the accelerator and did not take the foot off the pedal on a batting-friendly pitch.

5. Captain Smith’s career-best innings:

It was another example of a captain leading from the front. Australia were in a slightly bothersome situation after two early blows. Another wicket would have put India on the driver’s seat but Steven Smith displayed a matured approach at the chase. His wonderful innings knocked out India smoothly out of the game. His knock bore a resemblance to Rohit Sharma’s innings. However, it overshadowed his counterparts performance. Smith batted risk-free and built his innings brick by brick to hit the first ever century by any Australian captain against India while chasing a target. However, he was unlucky to be dismissed by debutant Barinder Singh Sran while just one run short of his 150.