India wins the series 2-1! Kohli and SKY emerge as stars!
India wins the series 2-1! Kohli and SKY emerge as stars! On Sunday, September 25, the Men in Blue shot down a 187-run target in the series-deciding 3rd T20I in Hyderabad. India can get relief and forget about the Asia Cup loss now that they have won a great series against the reigning world champions of the shortest format after coming from a sad continental tournament.
India lost the first T20I in Mohali, even though they scored 208 runs. However, they won the second T20I in Nagpur, which was cut short by wet fields.
Suryakumar Yadav and Virat Kohli put on a stunning 104-run stand for the 3rd wicket. The pair played ice and fire in the middle to stop the Australian threat. Suryakumar continued to show why he is India’s best and most versatile T20I batter with a 36-ball 69. Kohli, meanwhile, hit a 48-ball 63 and handled the pressure in the last few overs as India crossed the finish line.
When India was down to 30 for 2 in the powerplay, it was Virat Kohli who put the pressure back on Australia. In Josh Hazlewood’s over, the last one of the powerplay, the former captain hit a huge six into the stands near mid-wicket.
The openers fail
India’s chase in the series-deciding game didn’t start out well. As India’s vice-captain KL Rahul failed early again in a tight pursuit, it looked like old problems would come back to haunt the team. Rahul’s strike rate in the Asia Cup was criticized, but he started the series with a good fifty. Since then, though, the star batter hasn’t done much. In the last-ditch effort to win, Rahul only scored one run and was out after Daniel Sams’s first over.
Captain Rohit Sharma, whose 20-ball 46 helped India catch up in Nagpur, tried to put pressure back on Australia. During the power play, he hit two fours and a six, but Pat Cummins beat him by not giving him any room in his first over. Rohit hit a pull shot right into the hands of the fielder at deep mid-wicket. This was a shocker for the Indian fans.
The stars of the day!
But Suryakumar and Kohli gave a master class in chasing in T20Is. Their styles went well with each other. Kohli gave Suryakumar room to launch on a tricky pitch by going after the bowlers during the powerplay. After the field restrictions were lifted, Suryakumar made full use of his range to speed up.
When Suryakumar Yadav was out in the 14th over, Kohli took over as the main player in his 48-run partnership with Hardik Pandya. In the last over, Kohli hit a six off Daniel Sams to make it 5 runs off 5 balls, but he was not in the middle when the winning runs were made.
Kohli gave Suryakumar a lot of praise and praised how much the Mumbai Indians batter has grown over the last year at the highest level.
“For the past 6 months, he’s been outstanding. It’s the array of shots and to play those shots at the right time is such a tremendous skill. He’s a guy who knows his game inside out. He’s got the gift of timing and I was in awe watching him play his shots,” Kohli said.
Stars of the series
Axar Patel showed again why he could be a good replacement for Ravindra Jadeja when he took 3 wickets and broke the back of Australia’s middle order. After Jadeja’s injury, Axar will go to the T20 World Cup. He proved his skills when he took 8 wickets in the series. Axar was hence made the “Player of the Series.”
There were also some good things for Australia. Cameron Green once again showed that he could be a good choice for Australia in T20Is. He got to fifty in just 19 balls, which was the joint-second fastest T20I fifty for Australia in men’s cricket.
On the other hand, Tim David hit his first T20I fifty for Australia, showing the selectors that they were right to pick him for the T20 World Cup squad.