Why India lost the 4th ODI against Australia?

You can never write off an Australian side, especially in ODIs. They were 0-2 down and now they have levelled the series 2-2 with a game to go. This win would certainly lift the spirits of Australian fans and they might start believing in their side to lift the World Cup for the 6th time.

The match began with an amazing opening stand of 193 between Shikhar and Rohit that helped India post a massive total of 358 at the end of 50 overs. Australian on the other hand lost 2 early wickets and that is when Handscomb and Khawaja joined hands to add 193 runs for the 3rd wicket.

But, it was Ashton Turner at the end who snatched the victory from India and made a blistering 84 at a strike rate close to 200. What a game of cricket it was for the cricket fans as they got to witness a record-breaking run chase in a batting dominated the match.

Here are some of the reasons why India lost.

Decision at Toss

Skipper Virat Kohli made a mistake of batting first despite knowing the fact that dew plays a significant role at Mohali. It wasn’t easy at all for the Indian bowlers to bowl in the latter half of the 2nd innings which let Aussies score freely. Even in the last game, Virat did not read the conditions well and decided to chase on a pitch where there was no dew. The decision at toss in the last two matches turned out to be crucial for their outcome.

Absence of Dhoni

Every Indian fan must have missed the stalwart MSD in this match, not only as a wicket-keeper batsman but also as a guide to spinners and Virat. Pant missed a couple of stumpings and crowd was not impressed by the same as they started chanting “Dhoni… Dhoni…”

The duo of Kulcha was ineffective in Dhoni’s absence as they gave away 144 runs in the 20 overs they bowled. Virat was feeling the pressure as MSD wasn’t there to take the load off him in field placements. But Indian fans have to accept the fact that MSD’s retirement is inevitable and we might eventually find India into these tricky situations again.

Dropped Catches

At this professional level, you cannot drop so many catches and expect to win matches on batting friendly pitches like these. Two of them were dropped by Shikhar Dhawan and one by Kedar Jadhav. Although there was a lot of dew, it can’t be accepted as an excuse at this level.

Turner’s Innings

Ashton Turner might have just played the innings of his life and booked his birth in the World Cup Squad. It was only his second ODI game but the way he timed the ball was a treat to watch for every cricket fan. It seemed like he had an extra second to play every ball, as each of his shot found the middle of the bat.

There are problems to solve for India before the 5th ODI at Delhi. They would look to correct them and bounce back to take the series 3-2. However, the Australian team would be high in confidence and would fancy their chances to take the ODI series along with the T20I series. Firoz Shah Kotla would be brimming with energy as the series is nicely set up for a cracker of a game.