India beat Australia in the first ODI by 26 runs in a rain-curtailed match by DLS method. With 9 wickets down Australia needed 34 runs from the last over which was never going to happen.
Only Glenn Maxwell could make a mark in the Australian batting lineup. Maxwell changed the game for a while as he struck three sixes in a row off Kuldeep Yadav. He scored at a strike rate of over 200 in his innings of 39 runs from 18 balls. Marcus Stoinis sued up deliveries and got out without scoring in double digits. Mathew Wade and Pat Cummins succumbed to the pressure as they gave up. James Faulkner tried to keep the run chase alive but could not succeed, as India won by a comfortable margin.
After win, Indian captain Virat Kohli was all praise for his team’s middle order and Hardik Pandya in particular. On a day when India’s formidable top order failed to fire, the likes of Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni and Hardik Pandya stepped up to help the hosts put up a formidable total. Pandya scored a blistering 83 off 66 balls that took away the momentum from Australia.
“Hardik believes in himself, and his innings was the game-changer,” said Kohli in the post-match presentation, “He possesses all three skills equally and we are lucky to have him.” Australia’s innings started late and their target was reduced to 164 that they had to get in 21 overs. Pandya chipped in at this point as well, picking the all-important wicket of Australian skipper Steve Smith and that of Travis Head.
