India v Australia World T20: Australia Player Ratings

India defeated Australia in what can be termed as one of the greatest chases in the history of World T20. Australia batted first on a pitch that was slowing down as the game went on. Australia batted well to make 160/6 in their 20 overs. But they had made 59 runs in their first 6 overs and looked set for at least a score of 180, but the Indian bowlers got the control back with some good overs in the middle and towards the end to restrict them to 160.

Here are the ratings for the Australian team players:

Aaron Finch – 6/10:

Aaron Finch went hard at Ravichandran Ashwin as he came onto bowl. He hit him for 2 sixes in an over and basically helped Usman Khawaja hit out in the first 6 overs. But his batting slowed in the latter part of his innings before getting out trying to force the pace on a difficult pitch.

Usman Khawaja – 6/10:

Khawaja went berserk in the first 6 overs scoring his first 24 runs in just boundaries. He hit Jasprit Bumrah for four boundaries in his first over. But a swish at a wide delivery bowled by the wily Ashish Nehra caught the nick of his bat and he was pouched by Dhoni for 26.

David Warner – 2.5/10:

David Warner tried to start from where Khawaja ended but wasn’t his usual self. He looked scratchy before he was brilliantly fooled into leaving the crease by Ashwin, only to be stumped by Dhoni for 6 runs.

Steven Smith – 2.5/10:

Steven Smith who has been in brilliant form against India since 2015 was just getting set, when Yuvraj Singh got a short ball to bounce a bit more and catch his edge, which was caught brilliantly by Dhoni. Though he was not sure about nicking that one, he had to go back to the pavilion for 2 runs.

Glenn Maxwell – 5/10:

Maxwell came in like a man possessed and started upping the tempo of the innings. His switch-hit six off Jadeja will be part of the World T20 2016 highlights package. But his innings of 31 was cut short by a Bumrah slower ball, which bowled him.

Shane Watson – 7/10:

Shane Watson who played his last match in international cricket tried to repeat what he did against Pakistan, but a different situation and a difficult pitch didn’t help his hitting abilities and he could only make 18 runs and stayed not out. But he was brilliant with the ball picking up Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina early on in the innings and giving his team an opening.

James Faulkner – 2.5/10:

James Faulkner couldn’t justify his finisher tag here and could end the innings on a big note and made 10 runs before holding out to Kohli off a Pandya short ball. He was also expensive while bowling with Kohli getting to him in the last few overs of a tense chase. Faulkner went for 35 in his 3.1 overs without getting a wicket.

Peter Nevill – 6/10:

Peter Nevill just got two balls to bat and he made it count by hitting them for a four and a six in the last over, helping Australia get to 160, which was a challenging total on that big ground and dicey pitch.

Nathan Coulter-Nile – 5/10:

Nathan Coulter-Nile tried his best with the ball but wasn’t as effective as he was against Pakistan. He managed to get Dhawan’s wicket, but overall, he didn’t have much success in his four overs. Kohli hit him for 16 in his last over and his overall figures read 4-0-33-1.

Adam Zampa – 6/10:

Adam Zampa was criminally under bowled by Steven Smith in the last two matches and though he bowled his 2 overs brilliantly, Smith may have missed a trick by sticking to Coulter-Nile and Faulkner and bowling Zampa for just 2 overs on a slow pitch. The leggie was their most economical bowler giving away just 11 in the couple of overs that he was used for.   

Josh Hazlewood – 4/10:

For once, Josh Hazlewood looked like a mortal bowler and went for runs in his first two overs, with Dhawan hitting him for a four and six. But he came back to finish on a good note, but couldn’t give Steven Smith the thing he needed the most- a wicket. His figures read 4-0-38-0.

What were the most talked about points in the game? – India v Australia World T20 – 5 Talking Points