Prasid Krishna. (Photo Source: Pankaj Nangia/Getty Images)
India beat Australia by 99 runs in the second ODI on Sunday, September 24 at Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore and took an unassailable lead of 2-0 in the three-match series. After being put in to bat first, India posted their highest ODI score vs Australia of 399/5 in their allotted 50 overs. Shubman Gill (104 off 97) and Shreyas Iyer (105 off 90) starred with the bat while captain KL Rahul (52 off 38) and Suryakumar Yadav (72 off 37) scored brilliant fifties.
In the second innings, Australia got a double whammy in the second over itself as Prasidh Krishna got rid of Matthew Short (9 off 8) and Steve Smith (0 off 1) off consecutive deliveries. David Warner (53 off 39) tried his best to keep Australia in the game with his second consecutive fifty of the series. However, he didn’t find much support from others.
Here are the talking points of the match:
1. Shreyas Iyer returns to form
The 28-year-old recently made a comeback into the team after recovering from a back injury and finally managed to find some form in the second ODI. Iyer played a brilliant innings of 105 off 90 balls with the help of 11 fours and three sixes and got involved in a crucial 200-run partnership with Shubman Gill.
2. Ravichandran Ashwin shines with the ball
The Indian off-spinner playing just his second ODI after a 21-month-long gap in ODI cricket bowled a magnificent spell of 3/41 in seven overs. Ashwin picked up the prized scalps of David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne and Josh Inglis to break the back of Australian batting in the middle overs.
3. David Warner bats right-handed
The Australian opener, being well aware of Ashwin’s dominance against left-handers, decided to unsettle the Indian spinner by batting right-handed against him from the 13th over of the innings. However, his plan failed big time as he got dismissed lbw while trying to reverse sweep him. There was more drama to follow as the southpaw got an inside edge onto the pads but didn’t review the decision.
Winning Captain, KL Rahul, India said:
When I saw the wicket in the morning, I didn’t think it would spin so much. Putting 400 on the board gives you confidence. It’s not really our decision to make. Our jobs are clear. Everyone who gets picked in the XI, needs to focus on their job. Everyone has gone through this, you need to keep getting better and wait for the opportunities. We have dropped a few catches, but fielding under lights, it’s challenging physically. The coaches are doing their best to keep the guys fit. Sometimes these errors happen. The commitment is always there, we’ll learn from it, brush it off and get better in the next game. Nothing is discussed, but guys coming back will want to make it count. With the World Cup only a couple of weeks away, guys will want to get into it. They need to get used to the challenges, they will be keen to get back on to the field.
Losing Captain, Steve Smith, Australia, said:
When we came here it looked like a good wicket. Credit to them, Gill and Iyer batted beautifully and took the game away from us. The way KL and Surya batted, it was briliant. After the rain, it got sticky and it started to spin. We have lost quite a few (matches) in a row, in South Africa and here. We need to sort out a few things, hopefully we turn it around in the next game. We have a few days now, we are working towards the World Cup, both the teams are. Hopefully we’ll turn it around in the last game.
Player of the Match, Shreyas Iyer, said:
It was a rollercoaster right, feeling fantastic. My team-mates, friends and family were there for my support. I was seeing the matches on TV, I wanted to be out there and participate in the matches. Grateful to be believing in myself. The pain and niggles kept on coming, but I knew what I was aiming for. Glad that I was able to execute my plans perfectly today. Basically when I went in to bat, I didn’t want to complicate things. I wanted to get my eyes set, that’s how I give confidence to myself. I am flexible, ready to bat any position, whatever my team needs to do. Virat (Kohli) is one of the greats, there’s no chance of stealing that (number 3) spot from him. I just need to keep scoring.