Two-time World Cup winners, India, 8 October, hammered Australia by six wickets in their opening match while playing at the MA Chidambaram Stadium (Chepauk) in Chennai.
After much struggle, India managed to beat Australia by 6 wickets, with 52 balls remaining, all thanks to the best bowling performances by the entire bowling squads and the powerful steady batting by India’s chase-master Virat Kohli and reliable KL Rahul, who remained unbeaten.
Earlier, Australia had won the toss and decided to bat first, but despite losing the toss, India bowlers didn’t disappoint.
For India, each bowler showcased their magic. Ravindra Jadeja was the most successful bowler, who picked 3 wickets, while Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav picked 2 wickets each. Also, Ravichandran Ashwin, Hardik Pandya, and Mohammed Siraj all clinched one wicket each.
Apart from David Warner (41) and Steve Smith (46), no other batter could stand on the Chepauk pitch for long. Australia managed to score just 199 in 49.3 overs.
Now, while chasing the small target, India lost Ishan Kishan, skipper Rohit Sharma, and Shreyas Iyer in the initial overs. However, Kohli (85) and Rahul (97*) built a partnership to remember, led India to a 6-wicket victory.
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Points table:
Despite the win, India is not among the top four nations after the first round of matches and is in the fifth spot. The reason is the net-run rate, in which India ranks lowest among the 5 teams that won their first matches.
India has +0.883 NRR, compared to New Zealand (+2.149), South Africa (+2.040), Pakistan (+1.620) and Bangladesh (+1.438).
Here’s the points table:
| Teams | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | No Result | Points | Net Run Rate |
| New Zealand | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +2.149 |
| South Africa | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +2.040 |
| Pakistan | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +1.620 |
| Bangladesh | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +1.438 |
| India | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +0.883 |
| Australia | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -0.833 |
| Afghanistan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1.438 |
| Netherlands | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1.620 |
| Sri Lanka | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2.040 |
| England | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2.149 |
India’s next match:
India is all set to play with Afghanistan on 11 October at Arun Jaitley International Stadium in New Delhi, where it will try to improve both it net run rate and ranking.
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Updated: 08 Oct 2023, 10:52 PM IST