Australia vs India, 3rd T20I: 3 reasons for India's win

An overseas tour is always an exciting affair for India as home tour are highly one-sided affair these days with India winning them without much fuss. Although India had lost their both their away series, India hold the upper hand in this series as Australia seemed to be dented due to various reasons.

The T20 series got underway last week. India lost the first match after almost seizing it while the second match was called off due to rain. The third T20 match that happened today was an exciting affair. Australia who won the toss and elected to bat first and posted 164 runs on the board with the help of fine knocks from Short, Finch, Carey, and Stoinis.

Krunal Pandya recorded his best figures in T20 which read 4-0-36-4. In reply, India got off to a flying start with Dhawan hitting boundaries at ease. Though the progress was dented by some quick wickets in the middle overs, the partnership between Virat Kohli and Dinesh Karthik ensured they reached the target.

Here we brief the 3 reasons due to which India won the game:

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#1 Economical spell by the spinners

Yuzvendra Chahal had to make way for Khaleel Ahmed as a measure to strengthen the pace department. Krunal Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav were the only spinners in the team and were under pressure to deliver. Kuldeep was awesome as always who had decent outings in this series but Krunal Pandya who is playing his first overseas tour had a forgettable outing in the first match.

He was hammered for 55 runs in his 4 overs while he conceded 26 runs in the second match which was a good comeback. However, his position was at stake before today but he announced himself at in the international stage today with an excellent bowling. He picked 4 crucial wickets in the middle overs that hindered the progress of Australia and consequently they weren’t able to reach the 180-run mark in their 20 overs.

Kuldeep gave the first breakthrough while he picked the wicket of Aaron Finch shortly after the powerplay. Krunal scalped Short in his very first over before returning to remove Glenn Maxwell and Ben McDermott off consecutive deliveries in his next over and he completed his spell on a high note by picking the wicket of Alex Carey in his final over.

#2 Good start from the openers

The opening partnership is very much vital for any chase to be successful. The might of Rohit – Dhawan partnership doesn’t need any explanation as there is numerous occasion where the opening stand was just enough to seize the match and their failure in the first match was one of the reasons India lost the match.

Dhawan who had an average outing in Windies series has been outstanding in this series and it was him who almost guided the team to victory in the first match with an outstanding knock of 76 runs from just 42 balls.

He continued his fine form in this match as well with a blistering start while the Rohit played the second fiddle role to near perfection. Dhawan made 41 off just 22 balls hitting 2 sixes and 2 fours while Rohit made 23 runs off 16 balls hitting 2 sixes and 1 four. Both the openers got out in consecutive overs of Mitchell Starc and Adam Zampa but they ensured that the platform for the batsmen to follow is set. Eventually, India went on to win the match by 6 wickets.

#3 The partnership of Kohli and Dinesh Karthik

India got off to an excellent start as Dhawan continued to make a mockery of the Australian bowling. India raced to 67 for 1 at the end of powerplay but Australia struck back with quick wickets. Both the openers got out in the consecutive overs while KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant couldn’t survive at the crease.

The match was evenly poised when Dinesh Karthik joined Virat Kohli at the crease. Had another wicket fallen, the victory would have become a distant dream for India. Gladly, Karthik made sure he stayed at the crease and supported the skipper.

Kohli who had a rare failure in the first game played steady innings while finding boundaries at regular intervals. The partnership gave some mighty blows in the confidence of the Australians as they morally lost the match much earlier which was visible through their body language. Both of them remained unbeaten with the skipper scoring 61 off 41 balls while Karthik scored 22 off 18 deliveries.