5 Talking Points: Australia v India, 3rd T20I

After having won the series in the first two matches, India were looking to make history by whitewashing the Aussies at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).Australian stand-in captain Shane Watson won the toss and elected to bat first. The captain led from the front with a brilliant 124* as the host put a big score of 197/5 in 20 overs.In reply, India got off to a flying start with scoring 74 runs in the first six overs. The Indian top-order once again performed exceptionally well while Raina played a superb innings alongside Yuvraj Singh to guide India towards victory by seven wickets. With this win, India made history by whitewashing Australia in Australia in a bilateral series for the first time. This win will give the MS Dhoni’s men the confidence to do well in the upcoming World T20 in their own backyard.Here are the five major talking points from the second T20I:

#1 Watson\'s superb all-round performance

Shane Watson after reaching his hundred at SCG.

Shane Waston, who is the stand-in captain for the Australia in the absence of injured Aaron Finch, promoted himself up the order to open the innings with debutant Usman Khwaja. Waston looked solid from the beginning as he was back to his most familiar batting position in T20s. He grabbed the opportunity with both hands and went on to score an unbeaten 124 of just 71 balls.

Waston dominated the Indian bowlers right through his innings hitting 10 fours and five massive sixes and giving away only one chance. Watson was on 58 when in Hardik Pandya’s second over he slashed a wide full toss to deep-cover where Indian vice-captain Virat Kohli misjudged the fight of the ball and dropped a tough chance. It was, nevertheless, a crucial moment of the match as Watson went on to add 66 more runs to Australian total.

With both David Warner and Aaron Finch not playing the match it was Watson’s chance to showcase his abilities and he did that by becoming the second highest scorer for Australia in a T20I match. He also bowled well as he gave his side the first break-through in the form of Shikhar Dhawan, and he ended the match with figures of 1/30 in his four overs. Watson’s knock will give the Australian team management a tough job to pick out the openers in the upcoming World T20 starting from March in India.

#2 Indian spinners went for plenty

The Indian spinners went for 96 runs in their collective 10 overs.

The Indian spinners were outstanding in the first two matches but went for plenty this time around. In the first two matches of the T20 series, the Australian middle order crumbled in front of the spinners after good starts. The spinners not only picked wickets but also pulled down the run rate with ease.

But not in todays match, as the spinners went for 96 runs in their collective 10 overs picking up four wickets. Dhoni brought his go-to bowler Ravichandran Ashwin in the fifth over of the innings and straight away bought Ravinder Jadeja in the next over. However, Yuvraj Singh had a good start, picking up Maxwell on his first ball but also went for 19 in his two overs.

Both Jadeja and Ashwin looked very conscious of the short boundaries, and bowled accordingly, which made them predictable and it became easier for the Australian batsmen to hit them through the line. The flat wicket of the Sydney Cricket Ground also made it tough for the spinners. Watson was exceptional against them hitting big sixes over their head for fun.

#3 Indian top-order\'s phenomenal run

Raina played a match-winning innings of 49* off 25 balls

The Indian batting was brilliant in the series especially the top-order batsmen who scored plenty of runs. Their phenomenal performance with the bat continued in the third T20I as well. Shikhar Dhawan played a blistering innings up front to give India a flying start. India scored 74 runs in the first six overs while chasing a big score 197, and were well on course.

Like the second match, both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma scored valuable fifties. Rohit has scored 657 runs in ten games of the tour while Kohli went on to score 661 runs in the same number of matches. Dhawan has also scored 440 runs in the tour.

Suresh Raina came out to bat at No.4 when Rohit lost his wicket, and India were 124-2 at that time. Raina immediately formed a good partnership with the in-form Kohli. Kohli was unluckily dismissed by leg-spinner Cameron Boyce, but Raina did not allow the Australian bowlers to settle in. He played some clever shots on the leg-side and ran extremely well between the wickets for his unbeaten 49 of just 25 balls. He sealed the match on the last ball by hitting a boundary.

#4 Cameron Boyce shines on debut

Boyce (left) celebrating a wicket with captain Shane Watson (right).

In a high scoring match that saw almost 400 runs being scored in 40 overs, a bowling figure of two wickets for 28 runs in four overs is undoubtedly special. The young Australian spinner shined on a day when the Indian spinners struggled. It was Boyce’s 12th over which brought Australia into the match.

India were cursing towards the target as both Rohit and Kohli were smashing the bowlers all around the park. The leg-break bowler was called by the Aussie captain to deliver the 12th over of the Indian innings and he did not disappoint his captain as he picked up the in-form Rohit and was extremely unlucky to not get Raina when stand-in wicket-keeper Cameron Bancroft missed a simple stumping chance.

Though, luck favoured him soon after as he bowled Virat Kohli just after the latter got to his fifty. Kohli came charging down the pitch to hit the ball but it got an inside edge, and hit his pads before finally hitting the leg and middle stump. Boyce not only picked up wickets but also kept it quite from his end. His first over went for only 5 runs which put the pressure back on the Indian batsmen.

#5 Is Yuvraj back?

Yuvraj Singh celebrates after the win at the SCG.

After not getting a chance to showcase his caliber with the bat in the first two matches of the series, Yuvraj Singh finally went to the field with a bat in hand in the third T20I. In the second match, he had picked up Glenn Maxwell’s wicket which virtually changed the course of the match and Indian went on to win the game alongside the series. Today, Yuvraj again picked up Maxwell with his first ball of the match.

But facing your first international ball after almost two years is not easy, especially if it’s in Australia. Yuvraj was struggling to get bat to the ball for the first few deliveries. He did a smart job of giving the strike back to Raina, who was exceptional today. But it all fell on the stylish left-hander when he wasted some deliveries and picked a single on the last ball of the penultimate over the match.

The last over required 17 runs and Yuvi started off with a handsome flick which went for a boundary. The very next ball went for a massive six through mid-wicket on the bigger side of the SCG. His knock of 15 of 12 balls definitely gave India the much-needed boost as they eye the World T20 crown.