Ind vs Aus: It’s nil-three for MS Dhoni, and Co

Also Read: ‘Fielding let us down’

The theme has been the same in all the three games. Just like the first two matches, India posted a decent total of 296 after Australia decided to put India into bat. There were two differences in this game as compared to the first two ODIs. It was Australia who won the toss this time, and it wasn’t their top order that did the job but Glenn Maxwell in the late middle order. He hit a game-changing 96 off 83balls that helped Australia secure a 3-0 lead in the five-match series.

WATCH VIDEO: Maxwell stars in win (App users click here)

India didn’t have a bad start in defending the target. They had managed to remove the Australian top order earlier than normal. Umesh Yadav induced Aaron Finch to edge behind, and Ravindra Jadeja’s double strike removed George Bailey and Steve Smith. Things were looking good at that point. Ishant Sharma had the ball consistently landing on the seam and even got Shaun Marsh to edge behind. Yadav, too, had taken a wicket and Jadeja got some turn, Australia were four down under 30 overs, and India were tightening the screws. A powerfully accurate throw from Umesh Yadav from the deep ran out with Mitchell Marsh and when Matthew Wade became the sixth wicket to fall, Australia still needed 81 from little over 11 overs. But India hadn’t reckoned with Maxwell.

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Ashwin left out

Maxwell took on young pacer Barinder Sarn, carting him for a four and a six. Dhoni got back Jadeja whose first spell had read 6-0-25-2. Maxwell and James Faulkner treated Jadeja with respect, and waited out for the right time to lash out. When the equation came down to 59 from 48 balls, Maxwell upped the ante. He smashed a six and a four off Yadav’s ninth over, leaving Australia requiring 44 from 42 balls. The batting pair winked out two more fours in Jadeja’s ninth over and managed to get 11 without much from Ishant. With 11 needed in the last two overs, Maxwell slugged a six over long-on and slapped a four to point, off Yadav, before falling, caught at long-off as he tried to bring up his hundred with the winning hit.

Also Read: Australia desperate to win 5-0

The Sunday morning had seen India go in without their premier spinner R Ashwin, a decision that perhaps came to bite them considering how well Jadeja bowled on this pitch. They gave Gurkeerat Singh Mann and Rishi Dhawan the chance to make their debuts. And Shikhar Dhawan, who has been out of sorts for a while now, crawled along at slow pace. He made a fifty but his 68 came off 91 balls. Apart from Kohli’s hundred, Ajinkya Rahane impressed with a fifty while Dhoni chipped in a cameo, a 9-ball 23 with two six and two fours.

Later, Dhoni pinned the blame on fielding.

“In the first two games we thought maybe 10-15 more runs would have been good. But if we had those 10-15 runs they might have batted slightly differently and put more pressure on our bowlers. Today, on and off the bowling was decent. We did let ourselves down with our fielding. The best fielders in our group actually left quite a few deliveries. You accumulate those 15 runs or maybe more, and then the turnaround could have happened. I felt in this game, it was the fielding that let us down,” the India captain said.

India are yet to find a way to get those extra 30-40 runs, their fielding hasn’t been sharp, and their bowling has been without much imagination. We shall have to wait and watch to see if they can improve on those departments in the remaining two games.