India pip Australia in a nail-biting thriller as SKY rains down on Inglis’ parade

Team India eased out the pain of the defeat in the World Cup final as they triumphed over Australia in the curtain-raiser of the five-match T20I series, courtesy of some impeccable batting flair.

Winning the toss, India opted to bowl first and Ravi Bishnoi provided an early breakthrough as he managed to sneak through the defences of Matthew Short (13). The ball prior to Short’s dismissal could have proven to be the unraveling of Steve Smith but Bishnoi couldn’t latch onto the opportunity off his own bowling.

Smith (52) and an incoming Josh Inglis (110) chugged along and left the Indian bowlers scrambling for shelter amidst raining boundaries. Smith held fort at one end while Inglis peppered boundaries at the other. The duo posted a staggering 130-runs partnership that saw Australia cruise to 161/1 within just 16 overs.

Prasidh Krishna affected the important run-out that found Smith short of his crease, and soon enough, the pacer claimed the big scalp of Inglis in short succession to dampen the Australian spirits. What possibly could have been a 230-odd score was reduced to 208/3 that still needed India to pull off their highest T20I chase in order to avert a defeats to the mighty Roos.

Yashasvi Jaiswal started on a feisty note, launching Marcus Stoinis for a couple of boundaries in the first three balls of the innings. However, a confusion from Jaiswal cost India dearly as they lost Ruturaj Gaikwad for a diamond duck after he was run out.

The dismissal of Gaikwad did very little to dissuade Jaiswal from going after the Aussie bowlers as the southpaw kept on sending the ball scurrying to the boundary at will. Unfortunately, Matt Short produced that all-important mishit from Jaiswal (21) as he holed out to Smith at mid-off.

At 22/2, India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav walked out to the center. Not only did he rebuild the innings alongside Ishan Kishan but it was another one of those signature blitzkriegs that saw him decimating the Australian bowling unit at volition to keep India afloat in this staggering run-chase.

The pair of Ishan and SKY added 113 crucial runs from 60 balls for the third wicket that brought India back to the game. Kishan smashed a glistening 58 off just 39 balls while SKY continued the battery at the other end. Tanveer Sangha managed to put an end to the partnership as he forced the former into a miscued shot that went straight down the gullet of Matt Short. Tilak Varma couldn’t really add more sheen to the Indian total as he fell for 12 from just 10 balls with Sangha adding to his tally.

Rinku Singh’s arrival in the center steadied the nerves in the Indian camp while SKY propelled the charge significantly. Another 40-runs stand between Surya and Rinku brought India within touching distance but the job was still not done when the Indian captain fell for 80.

Rinku Singh did uncomplicate matters for India as he brought out the big guns handsomely enough but it seemed that the drama was just not done. Axar Patel’s departure in the 19th over sparked a collapse that saw Ravi Bishnoi and Arshdeep Singh run out on consecutive balls, sparking the possibility of a Super Over.

However, snuffing out all twists and turns, Rinku smashed Abbott over long on for a maximum on the final ball with one to win, runs that were not added to his total as the pacer had overstepped. India clinched a thrilling win to go 1-0 up in the five-match series as Suryakumar Yadav was handed over the Player of the Match award.