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Australia clinched the ODI series with a 3-wicket victory over India at the MCG, extending their unbeaten streak at home to 18 matches, a world record.Misfields, dropped catches, poor form of one opener and indiscipline by Indian bowlers were yet again the issues haunting the Indian team, as they collapsed to a defeat strangely similar in margin to the last two matches.It did look for a considerable duration on Sunday that the visitors would claim their first win in the series. These are the most talked about moments and decisions from the match which decided the outcome of the thriller.
#1 Shikhar \'Dotwan\'
Dhawan scored 68 on Sunday, his highest score since June 2015 against Bangladesh, but the doubts regarding his capabilities refuse to die down. He faced 91 balls for his 68, and in a series of high scoring rates, his strike rate of 74.73 can be called disappointing at best.
He faced a jaw-dropping 41 dot balls. Australia won the match with 7 balls to spare, a figure that shows how costly Dhawan’s stay at the crease was.
Kohli and Dhawan did build a good partnership to stabilize the innings after the loss of Rohit Sharma’s wicket, but the number of dot balls he faced put India’s score in the first 20 overs a good 30 runs less Australia’s at the same stage, and ensured that India never looked like reaching the 330-mark called for by Dhoni before the match.
At the risk of sounding harsh, Dhawan’s slow innings looked like being played for the sake of saving his own spot in the side than the team’s cause.
#2 Faulkner\'s sledging fires up Indians
Long gone are the days when an angry look from their foreign counterparts made the Indian batsmen wither at the crease; recent years have seen Indians returning fire wth fire.
James Faulkner was at his troublesome best on Sunday, trying to get under the skin of the Indian batsmen. He taunted Virat Kohli for not being able to smash him out of the park in the 35th over, and Kohli responded by asking him not to waste time and hitting a six in the next over.
Even towards the death, Faulkner tried to unnerve MS Dhoni, offering him what was definitely not encouragement as he brushed close by him on way to changing his fielding position. Dhoni also responded in the only honourable way, by waving him away and responding with a six.
Relatedly, Ishant Sharma was also at the end of some sarcastic applause by the crowd after he managed to successfully field a ball, in a series which has seen him come up with several fielding howlers. He also responded in the only honourable way, with a huge smile and a wave to the crowd.
#3 Dhoni\'s lightning hands
The 3rd ODI was all about how good a response the Indians could come up with, after having been narrowly beaten in the first two matches. Captain MS Dhoni was leading from the front on Sunday, also responding to his countless detractors.
Not only did his 9-ball 23 give the Indian innings a much-needed flourish towards the end, he showed why he still is, at 34 years of age, one of the best wicketkeepers in international cricket.
He was shouting instructions to his fielders all through the chase, and brought India back into the game with two stunning pieces of glovework – the stumping to dismiss India’s nemesis George Bailey, and the run out of Mitchell Marsh.
However, it can be said that he missed a trick or two in terms of his captaincy decisions, not only in terms of team selection, but also in his use of bowlers.
#4 Incorrect use of spinners
India chose to go into the 3rd ODI without Ravichandran Ashwin, a shocking move considering that he has been the team’s most trusted bowler of recent times. Gurkeerat Singh and Rishi Dhawan, who got into the team in place of Ashwin and Manish Pandey, were not very effective either with the bat or the ball, defeating the purpose of this move.
However, the more blatant mistake on the day was the use of Ravindra Jadeja. Jadeja, the best Indian bowler on the day, paved a way into the game for his team in his first spell, ensnaring danger men Steve Smith and George Bailey.
However, he was taken off the attack after that, and the game moved away from India’s grasp. Moreover, even when Jadeja was brought back to bowl in the last 10 overs, he was made to bowl from the wrong end, from where he could extricate considerably less turn and grip.
#5 Australia middle and lower order puts Indian counterparts to shame
Glenn Maxwells 83-ball 96 is the highest score from a batsman coming in after No.4 till now in this ODI series, the previous best having been his own 26* in the 2ndODI. Maxwells knock was ultimately the biggest difference between the two teams on Sunday, like the gulf of class in the middle and lower orders of the two teams.
Whereas the Indian batsmen coming into bat in the last 10 overs Gurkeerat Singh, Rishi Dhawan and Ravindra Jadeja struggled to make connection between bat and ball, the Aussie retort was a composed one.
Even with wickets falling regularly, the batsmen never let up on the scoring rate, in the assurance that they had a deep batting order, composed of clean hitters of the ball till No. 9 John Hastings.
Man of the Match Maxwells innings was one oozing class. He looked set to break free at one stage, but held back when wickets fell at the other end, realizing he was the one who was required to play sheet anchor. He unleashed his barrage of strokes only in the last three overs, with the exhausted Indian attack having no defence against him.
He even had a shy at reaching his individual century, but fell in the attempt to hit a boundary when only a single would have sufficed.
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