All eyes will be on Virat Kohli to steer India to a win after the men in blue lost three wicktets in the opening phase of the game.
Australia were all out for 199 with the Indian spinners keeping them under the pump. However, any advantage India may have gained from their performance with the ball and in the field was almost nullified by the nightmarish start they got off to with the bat. The Indian openers looked unsettled from the beginning. Naturally, in front of an in-form bowling duo of Mitchel Starc and Josh Hazelwood, the men in blue looked quite rusty on the pitch. Subsequently, Ishan Kishan fell for a golden duck. While Rohit Sharma and Shreyas Iyer fell for ducks as well. Naturally, India found themselves tottering at 2/3 in 2 overs. Now, all hopes of team India will rely on Virat Kohli to steer India to a remarkable win.
India had a fantastic outing with the ball as they were able to restrict the Aussies to a paltry score of 200. However, the Aussies had different plans in their arsenal and bamboozled India’s top order. Led by an inspirational spell of Mitchel Starc, the Aussies grabbed three quick wickets in the first three overs. This included the wicket of Rohit Sharma 0(1), Ishan Kishan 0(6) and Shreyas Iyer 0(3). In the process, Starc also completed his record of taking 50 wickets in the ODI World Cup. Given below is a list of wicket-takers who have etched their name on the leaderboards:
Most wickets in ODI World Cup:
71 – Glenn McGrath
68 – Muttiah Muralitharan
56 – Lasith Malinga
55 – Wasim Akram
50 – Mitchell Starc*
49 – Chaminda Vaas
After the dismissal of Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer, all eyes will be now on India’s most reliable batsman Virat Kohli to steer the Indian innings. Kohli has by far looked like the most settled batsman out there in the middle. Added to that, as luck has it, Kohli was dropped on 12(27) when a mistimed shot landed in between Marsh and Carey. Kohli’s foot movement has also been rather impressive. He is reaching up to the pitch of the ball and creating continuous movement in the crease which is not letting the Australian bowlers settle. Kohli’s innings have brought in a tectonic shift in the win predictor in favour of India (55%- India, 45%- Australia). As of now, Kohli is playing at 18(38) and looks very settled to take India to another memorable victory.
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