India once again showed that they were a cut above the rest when it comes to ODI cricket as they comfortably beat the Australians despite not putting up a big score on the board. Virat Kohli’s men put in a superb bowling performance after the batting did not live up to the initial expectations. After Kohli’s dismissal, India’s chances of making 320+ came crashing down as they ended up making only 252.
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When the Australians came out to bat, it looked at one point like they would run away with the game because their captain Steve Smith was in tremendous form, having just cracked a half century in his 100th ODI.
Pandya’s all-round ability to the fore:
However, their chances were dented once Hardik Pandya came to bowl a new spell and sent a short one to Smith. The player did not expect it and tried to pull it over mid-wicket for six. However, since the bat only found his top-edge, it went straight down Ravindra Jadeja’s throat and he completed an excellent catch.
Ravindra Jadeja had replaced Kedar Jadhav just one over before and changed the match with a spectacular catch. Jadeja is one of the best fielders in the world. In the last couple of years, we have seen Ravindra Jadeja do some outstanding things on the field and win matches for India purely on the basis of his fielding skills.
The celebrations by all the player was enough to tell that they knew about the importance of the wicket. All of them rushed to congratulate both Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja and from there, Australia never really recovered. Despite a fighting effort from Stoinis, India’s spinners and pacers were just too good as they wrapped up the game towards the end. If Smith had not gotten out at that crucial juncture, the game would have surely swung the other way.
