Australia’s bowlers run riot over India in the 2nd ODI. The Men in Blue managed 264-9 on a batting surface against a sturdy Aussie attack. Adam Zampa was the damage-in-chief who got 4 wickets and conceded 60 runs in his 10-over spell. Adam Zampa foxed Indian batters with his immaculate line & lengths as his disciplined style of bowling frustrated the batters.
Xavier Bartlett strikes early & dents India’s batting unit
Australian skipper Mitchell Marsh had absolutely no hesitation in bowling first after winning the toss. Australia made 3 changes to their playing 11 as Alex Carey, Xavier Bartlett & Adam Zampa were back in side in place of Nathan Ellis, Josh Phillipe & Matthew Kuhnemann for this game, whereas India astoundingly went for an unchanged side as Kuldeep Yadav again was ignored for Washington Sundar.
Josh Hazlewood was bowling exceedingly well as his immaculate line & lengths were a treat to watch. In his first 3 overs, he bowled 2 maiden overs as Shubman Gill & Rohit Sharma were clueless to negate the threat of Josh Hazlewood. Xavier Bartlett, in the 7th over of the match, sent back Shubman Gill, who wanted to clear long on the fielder, but Mitchell Marsh took a diving catch to send back India’s skipper. India’s score at that time was 17-1 in 6.1 overs.
There was a huge cheer from the Adelaide crowd when Virat Kohli came into bat. Well, the cheer and buzz were again short-lived for the former skipper. Virat Kohli was trapped LBW by Xavier Bartlett as Virat Kohli was dismissed on a golden duck in just 4 balls by Xavier Bartlett in the same over. Virat Kohli now has registered two back-to-back ducks in the ODI series, as India’s power play was no less than a disaster, as they not only lost 2 wickets but managed only 29 runs in the first phase of the match.
Rohit Sharma in vintage mode
Rohit Sharma was seen blatantly struggling against specifically Josh Hazlewood, who bowled off-stump channel beautifully. Josh Hazlewood was bowling back-to-back jaffas, as taking him on wasn’t a feasible option. Rohit Sharma stood tall in the tricky phase and then unleashed the attack on the mighty Aussies. Shreyas Iyer was happy to play the role of aggressor when Rohit Sharma was getting his eye in.
Rohit Sharma reminded the world cricket that he is not done yet. With no longer Rohit Sharma being the captain, he took the team out of the muddle like a skipper. The way he was whacking the bowlers around the park reminded ICC CT 2025 & ICC ODI WC 2023 version of Rohit Sharma. Mitchell Marsh & bowlers were worried as he was nearing his ton very rapidly. At the end of 25 overs, India’s score was 112-2 with Rohit Sharma’s score being 61 runs in 83 balls and Shreyas Iyer’s score being 40 runs in 54 balls.
Mitchell Starc & Adam Zampa drag India
Mitchell Starc’s introduction in the 30th over changed the fortunes for Australia. Mitchell Starc sent back dangerous-looking Rohit Sharma as a short delivery foxed Rohit Sharma, as Josh Hazlewood took a catch at long leg. The partnership between Rohit Sharma & Shreyas Iyer of 118 runs in 136 balls was broken, and Australia breathed a sigh of relief. Rohit Sharma missed out on a well-deserved ton as he got out on 73 runs in 97 balls. He hit 7 fours and 2 sixes. India’s score at that time was 135-3 in 29.3 overs.
Adam Zampa, who was operating from the other end, then ripped Shreyas Iyer’s stumps. Shreyas Iyer would rue his shot selection as he had a golden chance to convert his 61 runs into a big daddy hundred as India’s score was 160-4 in 32.4 overs. Adam Zampa took a massive wicket of KL Rahul, who was stunningly bowled in the 37th over, as India’s batters fumbled as at that time, the score was 174-5 in 36.2 overs. India’s batting went off the radar in the second half of 1st innings, with the score being 198-5 in 40 overs.
Topsy-turvy death overs for Australia & India
Axar Patel was looking untroubled with the wickets falling from the other end. The problem with India in the death overs was that there wasn’t a recognizable batter at the crease. Washington Sundar wasn’t in great touch due to the uneven nature of the surface. India, in a blink of an eye, was reduced to 226-8 in 44.5 overs as Axar Patel, Washington Sundar & Nitish Reddy went back to the dugout.
Against the run of play, Arshdeep Singh & Harshit Rana played a kind of blinder knocks for the team. The duo took the score to a fighting 264-9 as Harshit Rana scored 24 runs in 18 balls and hit 3 fours, whereas Arshdeep Singh scored an invaluable 13 runs in 14 balls as he hit 2 fours. India could have been bundled out inside 250 runs, but the duo hung in there.
Who’s winning, Australia or India?
Australia would still fancy their chances of winning the match & clinching the series. The onus will be on the openers, Travis Head & Mitchell Marsh, to give the team a rollicking start as the middle order isn’t that powerful even when Alex Carey is there. All eyes will be on Matt Renshaw’s whose batting would be tested in tricky conditions against a quality India bowling unit.
It’s quite clear that India needs to bowl out Australia to win the match. The target of 265 runs isn’t daunting nor threatening in modern-day cricket. It’s the test of character for Shubman Gill as the series is on the line. The spin duo of Washington Sundar & Axar Patel can’t afford to experiment with their line & lengths.
It would sound very harsh, but it looks like mighty Aussies will chase down 265 runs, as there isn’t much required run rate pressure. India needs wickets in every phase of the match, whereas Australia needs a wicketless phase of 15 overs to win the match. Cricket is a funny game, as India can pull a rabbit out of a hat, but it looks unlikely to happen as the Aussies have almost got this match in their bag.
Also Read: AUS vs IND: Mitchell Marsh’s Onslaught Dethrones India