Sunday, February 05, 2012

Australia score resounding win in first ODI

A fantastic batting show by the Australians to post a mammoth total on the board in a rain-truncated match and their bowlers utilized the condition to full advantage and registered a thumping 65 run victory by D/L method.

The wicket at the MCG was a good one for batting but with predictions for rain, the Indian skipper chose to field. His new ball bowlers proved his decision correct as they bowled superbly and didn’t allow the Australian  powerful openers to get going.

The Kumars were crisp with their line and length and it frustrated the batsmen. With the scoreboard crawling at  a snail’s pace, Warner tried to up the ante. But he was cleaned up by Vinay Kumar and it was followed by the prized wicket of Ricky Ponting. India enjoyed a superlative Quick Start Overs by conceding just 25 runs and  picking a couple of important wickets.

The Kangaroos trudged along slowly gathering pace before rain interrupted at 35/2 off 11 overs. There was a one and a half hour odd break. When play resumed, it was restricted to a 32-overs per side contest. The Australians stepped on the gas pedal as Matthew Wade and David Hussey went about stroking extravagant shots. They notched up a 81 run stand at better than run-a-ball pace  and punished the hapless Indian bowlers to all parts of the park. Wade went out to score his debut ODI fifty as Australia kept on piling runs. It was heading to a 200-par score but Wade lost his wicket. David Hussey, who picked up the Batting Efficiency of 148, pulled off a masterful half-century which included four boundaries and three crackling sixes and dragged the score past 200. The last five overs boosted the total as 55 runs were notched up without any loss. Vinay Kumar picked 3 for 21 in 7 overs and earned the Bowling Efficiency of 314 points.

Have a look at the scorecard

The seaming conditions was something which was not witnessed when India were bowling. That may have been the difference in the sides, as the ball was zipping and moving around off the seam when India came out to chase. Tendulkar  departed cheaply and Gambhir too could not adjust to the conditions as he was out dabbing away from his body. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma did well to hang around when they took on the bowling attack. The pro founded cover drives, full throttled pulls showed the magnitude of confidence at which they went about scoring. But they could not hold on and inexperience got the better of them. They were removed in the same over of Clint McKay who took 2 wickets in three balls. He earned himself the Bowling Efficiency of 206 points and finished with a four-fer.

The conditions were good for batting had the Indian openers negotiated the opening overs early. But exposing the middle order too soon paved way for another one of those reminiscing downfalls we have witnessed. Dhoni was the only withstanding pillar but he ran out of partners eventually. India were bundled out for 151  and Australia take a bonus point along with a bludgeoning start to the CB series.

On the Castrol Index, Australia finish with 49 points while India ended up with 28. Matthew Wade was named the Man of the Match and earned an Overall Castrol Index of 40, while his Victorian team-mate David Hussey topped the list with 58 points.

India’s next assignment is against Sri Lanka at Perth on the 8th of February.

Friday, February 03, 2012

Young Indian burning fire buries the Aussie hatchet

Jadeja’s all-round performance powers India to a comfortable eight wicket victory.

India, chasing a mediocre total of 132, started off on a calm note for a change, Sehwag and Gambhir played off the Quick Start Overs scoring 42 runs without losing their wickets. Sehwag departed in his typical fashion, bringing in the man in form Virat Kohli to the crease. This is where the Aussies lost the plot as Kohli and Gambhir digged out runs from every nook and corner possible with some attacking shots as well as with clever singles and doubles. They did everything possible to thwart Bailey’s constant bowling changes.

Gambhir got to his 7th T20I fifty and did not lose his wicket till the end. When Kohli got out, surprisingly, the captain inserted himself ahead of Suresh Raina. All the four top order batsmen put up double figures.

Gambhir, for his unbeaten half-century, earned himself the Batting Momentum of 75. Brad Hogg, the left-arm chinaman, grabbed the Bowling Efficiency of 73. Dhoni and Gambhir did face some jitters at the end of the innings when it came down to scoring a run off three balls after  three runs were needed off two overs. In the Extreme Performance Overs, they picked up 21 runs for no loss.

Earlier, Australia started off on an average note as they lost the big-hitting David Warner early. Shaun Marsh, who is facing the biggest slump of his career, departed without disturbing the scorers. The Quick Start Overs fetched 42 runs for 2 wickets. David Hussey, the experienced campaigner in this format of the game, began to take the game to the Indians but departed off Jadeja. Aaron Finch, who replaced Travis Birt in this match, played some sparkling shots before he departed, achieving a Batting Momentum of 71.

The Australian middle-order showed its fragile nature as the wickets kept on tumbling at regular intervals. Ravindra Jadeja, the young athlete, affected three run outs and picked up a wicket, summing up his day’s work as phenomenal.

Matthew Wade, the star of the match the other night, again showed a contrasting display of cricket, as last time, he scored a breath-taking 72 off 43 balls, this time he went about calmly, composing a patient innings of 32 off 29 balls. Praveen Kumar and Vinay Kumar did well with some assistance from the pitch.

The ball was swinging both ways early in the innings, which prompted the skipper to romp in the medium-pacer Virat Kohli to bowl rather than the preferred offie, Ashwin. Praveen Kumar for his two wickets and 21 runs off 3 overs, earned the Bowling Efficiency of 100. The tail did not wag enough for Australia as the Extreme Performance Overs yielded them only 25 runs and a staggering five wickets. Australia ended up two balls before 20 overs at 131.

Click here for the Scorecard

India finished the game with 154 points, leading the home side by a comfortable margin of 9 points. Jadeja was named the Man of the Match for his stupendous efforts.