Team India. (Source – Getty Images)
In a must-win game, Australia suffered a heart-breaking 24-run defeat against India, which pushed them towards elimination. Mathematically, the Mitchell Marsh-led side is still alive, as they need Bangladesh to win against Afghanistan on June 25. If it doesn’t happen according to the plan, Australia will be flying back home.
Australia won the toss and elected to bowl first in St Lucia. Josh Hazlewood picked up the wicket of Virat Kohli early, which put India under some pressure but skipper Rohit Sharma was terrific as he played a blistering knock of 92 runs off 41 deliveries. He helped India start well with the ball and capitalize on the conditions as based on his innings, India posted 205 runs in the first innings. Suryakumar Yadav played a good cameo of 31 runs off 16 deliveries while Hardik Pandya hit 27* runs off 17 balls.
Chasing 206 wasn’t easy and especially when Australia lost the wicket of David Warner in the first over of the game. However, Travis Head kept the Kangaroos in the hunt with his brilliant innings of 76 runs off 43 balls. Mitchell Marsh supported him well in the middle but it was all dark after Head’s dismissal. Wickets fell like a house of cards and Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh were at the centre of all.
1. Rohit playing captain’s knock
India needed a hero, and Rohit turned out to be their saviour. After the ODI World Cup 2023, this was the first time when Rohit faced Australia and he looked like a guy with vengeance. He looked fantastic right from the start and based on which, India had a perfect start. His knock of 92 runs eventually made the difference.
2. Horrors of the past
Travis Head scared every Indian fan. He once again threatened to take the game away but failed to do so in the end. However, his knock of 76 runs deserves a lot of recognition as, despite the defeat, Australia remain in the hunt to make it to the playoffs.
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Losing skipper Mitchell Marsh said:
Disappointing. It happens in the game of cricket. In the course of 40 overs, there are a lot of small margins. India were the better team, Rohit is a class player. (On Head and Maxwell’s batting) Gave us more belief than hope. In a run chase like that if you keep it at 10 an over, we are in the game. India’s bowlers were too good though in the end. Come on, Bangladesh now!
Winning skipper and POTM Rohit Sharma said:
Satisfying. We know the opposition and the threat they bring. As a team we did well, kept doing the things we needed to do. Gives us good confidence as a team. 200 is a good score but when you are playing here with wind being a big factor, anything can happen. But I think we used to conditions really well, and it was about individuals doing their job. If was about getting wickets at the right time. (On Kuldeep) We know the strength he has, but we need to use him when necessary. In New York, there were seamer friendly wickets. He had to miss out but we knew he had a big role to play out here. (On semi-final) We don’t want to do anything different, play the same way and understand what each person has to do. Play freely and not think too much on what’s lying ahead. Not think about the opposition. We have been doing it consistently, just need to continue. (On playing England in semi) It will be a nice match, nothing changes for us as a team.