Top 5 ODI encounters between India and Australia

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Sachin tore apart the Aussie bowling as he helped India qualify for the Coco-Cola Cup final

India and Australia share one of the fiercest rivalries in the cricket world. One can always expect fireworks when these two teams play each other.

Since the turn of the decade, the rivalry between India and Australia has out-shone any other battle, both on and off the field. Every India-Australia series usually garners a lot of interest, irrespective of the format and is one of the most watched battles across the globe.

Even though the head-to-head record is tilted heavily towards Australia, there have been some memorable ODI matches. With India and Australia expected to play a fiery 5-match ODI series in a few days, let’s look at the top 5 ODI encounters between these two cricketing giants.


#5 6th Match Coco-Cola Cup, Sharjah (1998)

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This was a game that most Indians are proud of even though they were on the losing side. In an all-important group encounter, India were battling Aussies and the result was going to decide the finalists. Australia had already qualified for the finals and a win would have sealed the berth for India.

With the help of a brilliant hundred from Michael Bevan (101 not out) and a controlled 81 from Mark Waugh ensured Australia got to 284 at the end of 50 overs.

India needed to score at least 254 to qualify for the finals on net run-rate. As it was often the case those days, India heavily depended on Sachin to score big and he didn’t disappoint. He was slowly taking India to that qualification mark before a desert storm interrupted the game with India 143-4 in 31 overs.

When the players were back on the field, India’s task became tougher as the target was revised to 276 in 46 overs, but more importantly, India needed 237 to qualify for the final.

What followed after the desert storm was absolute magic. Tendulkar decided to tear apart Australia's bowling attack as India scored almost 100 runs in the next 11 overs with the master doing the bulk of the scoring, helping India overhaul the required qualifying target quite easily.

And when he got out in the 43rd over as he was trying to go for the win, he had scored a scintillating 143 off 131 balls (9 fours and 5 sixes). Though India didn’t win, Sachin’s knock was one of the greatest ever in an ODI and now everyone remembers it by the name ‘Desert Storm’.

#4 2nd Final - CB Series, Brisbane (2008)

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A gripping tri-series between Australia, India and Sri Lanka led to an India-Australia final - a best-of-three affair to decide the winner of the CB Series. With India taking a 1-0 lead in Sydney, Australia were going to come back hard as the visitors were looking for their first ODI series win down under.

After winning the toss and opting to bat first, India got off to a solid start with Uthappa and Tendulkar stitching a 94-run opening partnership. The latter looked in prime form and formed another crucial 54-run stand with Yuvraj.

Tendulkar missed a second consecutive ODI ton but when he got out, India were nicely poised at 205-4 in the 40th over and were set for a score of around 280 looked, however, quick wickets helped Australia restrict India to 258-9.

Chasing 259, Australia lost Gilchrist, Ponting and Clarke as Praveen Kumar wreaked havoc, leaving Australia reeling at 32-3 inside 9 overs. The trusted pair of Hayden and Symonds got Australia back on track once again (both of them had bailed Australia out of trouble even in the first final) but both fell in the same over to tilt the match in India’s favour again.

Michael Hussey and James Hope combined to stop the Indians in their tracks as they put on 76 runs for the sixth wicket to help Australia claw their way back into the game. 60 runs were required from the final eight overs when Hussey was dismissed, but Hopes was not going down without a fight even as India kept chipping away with wickets at the other end.

Defending 13 in the last over, Irfan Pathan held his nerve as he priced out the last two wickets (Bracken and Hopes) to hand India a famous Tri-series victory.

#3 5th ODI - Australia tour of India, Hyderabad (2009)

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The 7-match ODI series was nicely poised at 2-2 and the crucial 5th ODI was held at Hyderabad with both teams eyeing a lead.

Opting to bat first on a placid track, Australia racked up 350-4 in 50 overs. All batsmen who batted (top 5) contributed to the score with Shaun Marsh scoring a superb 112. Watson (93) and White (57) scored quick-fire fifties along with cameos from skipper Ponting (45) and Michael Hussey (31). Australia reached a mammoth total of 350 as the Indian bowlers just couldn’t control the run-flow at any given stage of the innings.

Chasing a mammoth 351, Sehwag and Tendulkar helped India get off to a brisk start, putting on 66 in 53 balls. India kept scoring at a good rate but wickets at regular intervals hampered their cause and they were left in a spot of bother when Dhoni departed and the score read 162-4 in the 24th over.

This is when Tendulkar and Raina decided to take the attack to the bowlers as they added 137 in 19 overs to put India on course for a memorable win. When Raina fell in the 43rd over, India needed just 52 runs with the master going strong at the other end.

But, it was a night where millions of hearts were broken. Sachin fell on 175 (45th ODI ton) trying to paddle scoop when India needed just 19 off 18 balls and the lower order failed to get India home as the hosts lost a thriller by 3 runs.

#2 Quarter-final – World Cup, Ahmedabad (2011)

India got to the target with 15 balls to spare
India got to the target with 15 balls to spare

Playing the World Cup at home, expectations were huge from Team India. The 2011 World Cup was Sachin’s sixth and last World Cup appearance.

Batting first after winning a crucial toss on a tricky Motera track, skipper Ricky Ponting scored a magnificent hundred (104). With contributions from wicketkeeper Brad Haddin (54) and David Hussey (38 off 26 balls), Australia did very well to reach 260.

And with a strong bowling attack, they would have fancied their chances against an Indian batting line-up which already have had a few collapses in the tournament.

India were off to a cautious start in their reply to a tricky target of 260. The top 5 Indian batsmen (apart of Sehwag) got off to starts but failed to kick on from there. Wickets fell at regular intervals and India found themselves in a peculiar position at 187-5, another collapse would lead to India’s exit from the World Cup.

When Raina joined Yuvraj in the middle, India still needed 74 runs. But the pair slowly absorbed the pressure and then suddenly started to gain momentum.

India got to the target with 15 balls to spare as Yuvraj and Raina helped India knock the defending champions out and set up a mouth-watering semi-final against Pakistan.

#1 6th ODI – Australia tour of India, Nagpur (2013)

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It was turning out to be a very high scoring series as both the teams had scored 300+ in every game coming in the sixth. Trailing the series 2-1 (4th and 5th matches were wash-outs), India were looking to level the series and they opted to field first on a flat deck in Nagpur.

Australia lost their openers early, but captain George Bailey and Shane Watson not only helped them recover but also bludgeoned the Indian bowlers as they put on a superb 168-run stand for the third wicket. Watson (102) got out soon after reaching the three-figure mark, but Bailey went on to pile further misery on the Indian attack and scored 156 off 114 balls to help Australia finish with a massive 350.

India had already chased 360 with ease (9 wickets and 39 balls to spare) in Jaipur earlier in the series and an encore was on the cards as the hosts were once again off to a flier with a 178-run opening partnership. After that mammoth stand, both Rohit Sharma (78) and Shikhar Dhawan (100) fell in the span of six overs.

Virat Kohli, who scored the fasted ODI century by an Indian (52 balls) in the Jaipur chase, was up to the task again, taking calculated risks, running hard and scoring important boundaries. When Raina and Yuvraj got out on successive balls, a panic of sorts set-in.

But Kohli, along with skipper MS Dhoni helped India complete yet another memorable run chase as the Men in Blue became the first team to chase 350+ targets twice. India got to the target with three balls to spare, with Kohli scoring a magnificent 115 off 66 balls to help his team level the series 2-2

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Edited by Sankalp Srivastava