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After suffering defeat at the hands of Australia in the T20 format, India have made a strong statement in the 50-over format just weeks before the start of the World Cup. In a thrilling display of cricket, the Indian cricketers held their nerve, and have taken a 2-0 lead in the five-match ODI series.
With six overs left in the match, Australia needed just 38 runs and had five wickets in hand, but the number one ODI bowler Jasprit Bumrah had different plans. In the 45th over, Kuldeep Yadav took the wicket of Alex Carey, but conceded 9 runs.
At this stage when Australia needed just 29 runs in the last five overs, Virat Kohli introduced Bumrah for his final two overs. Bumrah could not get the wicket of the settled Marcus Stoinis but ensured that he gave away just two runs in his last overs. He also picked up the wickets of Nathan Coulter-Nile and Pat Cummins in the 46th over.
With Mohammad Shami conceding 7 and 9 runs in the 47th and 49th overs respectively, Australia needed just 11 runs in the final over. Virat Kohli opted for Vijay Shankar, who gave 13 runs in his first over, instead of Kedar Jadhav. The move worked wonders for India as he dismissed half-centurion Marcus Stoinis of the very first ball of the over.
The wicket of Stoinis titled the match in favour of India, and Shankar's accurate bowling ensured that India bowled out Australia in 49.3 overs. The wicket of Adam Zampa off the third ball of the over gave India an 8-run win over Australia.
Earlier in the match, Australia opted to field first and asked the unchanged Indian team to bat. India received an early blow as Rohit Sharma got out in the very first over. Virat Kohli then stitched two small partnerships with Shikhar Dhawan and Ambati Rayudu and took India to 75-3.
What followed next was a commanding partnership between Kohli and Vijay Shankar. The duo added 81 runs for the fourth wicket off just 71 balls. Just when Shankar looked like he was going to score his maiden half-century, he was unluckily run-out at the non-striker's end by Zampa.
The wicket did not stop Virat Kohli from notching up his 40th ODI century, but the regular loss of wickets at the other end meant that India could manage only 250 runs before getting bowled out. During the chase, Australia got off to good start but the introduction of spin turned the tide in India's favour. Kuldeep Yadav was India's best spinner with 3 wickets to his name.
Here's how Twitter reacted to India's thrilling win at Nagpur:
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