Potent Aussie pacers blow India away in rain-affected Perth ODI

One of the commentators mentioned during the live broadcast that the ground staff at Optus Stadium in Perth have rarely had to reach for the covers during a match as the weather remained stable generally, until Sunday. The ODI series opener between Australia and India gave them a good workout, with four rain breaks making it an infuriating, start-stop day. Australia flexed their bowling might to confine India to 136 for 9 in 26 overs, before overhauling a DLS-adjusted target of 131 to grab their first ODI win at the venue in four attempts along with a 1-0 lead in the series.

India lost the toss and Australia inserted them in given the moisture hanging in the air. India batted in overcast conditions, on a surface rife with bounce. Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc, at the top of their game, were brilliant from the outset, and their new-ball strikes left a deep imprint on the game.

Rohit Sharma, tied up by Hazlewood’s typical hard lengths, was outfoxed by one that jumped from beyond the eight-metre mark. Anxious to get going after facing seven dots, Virat Kohli fell to Mitchell Starc, slicing an ambitious drive to Cooper Connolly at backward point. It was Kohli’s first duck in ODIs in Australia.

Gill was looking in sublime touch until he perished in a soft manner, feathering a leg-side delivery from Nathan Ellis through to the wicketkeeper to leave India tottering at 25 for 3, prior to the first rain delay after 8.5 overs. Axar Patel’s promotion ahead of KL Rahul broke the monotony of right-handers, but play barely went on for a dozen minutes before drizzle sent everyone scurrying off the field again.

When the skies cleared after a long wait of two hours, the match had been shortened to 35 overs a side. India’s intent was clear from ball one as Shreyas Iyer hammered the first delivery post-resumption for four, although Hazlewood was in his element and it was going to be a daunting task to get the better of him on a continual basis. Soon the Australian metronome scripted his seventh dismissal of Iyer in 13 games across formats, angling a short ball into the ribcage for a tickle behind.

Two more exasperating rain delays later, the match was pruned again: 26 overs a side, with India having just 56 balls to play. Axar Patel immediately took the attack to debutant Mitchell Owen, carving two boundaries, while KL Rahul switched up the gears with boundaries off his own in the next over from Ellis.

Axar’s ebullient knock came to an end when he miscued a slog sweep against Matthew Kuhnemann to long-on, but Rahul kept India on course. He waltzed down the pitch to Matthew Short and badgered two sixes before falling to Owen for 38 off 31, the all-rounder’s maiden ODI wicket. India’s late flourish transpired through debutant Nitish Reddy, who struck a pair of sixes to haul up the total to 136, meaning they had scored 84 runs in the 9.2 overs after the final rain break, a silver lining in an otherwise forgettable day with the bat.

The Australian pursuit, revised to 131, began on a bumpy note as Arshdeep Singh removed the dangerous Travis Head, India’s arch nemesis in recent years, with an astute square third-man trap. Captain Mitchell Marsh though responded with brute force, pulling Arshdeep for six before meting out the same treatment to Mohammed Siraj and Harshit Rana.

Miffed by the proceedings, Gill threw the ball to spin, and Axar made an impact, removing Matthew Short owing to a miscue. But by then, Australia had already polished 55 runs off the target inside 10 overs. Marsh held one end up formidably to finish with 46* while fellow local Josh Philippe added a brisk 37, ensuring the gloom over Perth belonged only to the visitors.

Brief scores: India 136/9 in 26 overs (KL Rahul 38, Axar Patel 31; Josh Hazlewood 2-20, Matthew Kuhnemann 2-26) lost to Australia 131/3 in 21.1 overs (Mitchell Marsh 46*; Axar Patel 1-19) by seven wickets (via DLS method)