advertisement
India registered a 6-wicket win in their 2023 ICC World Cup opener against Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
After losing 3 early wickets, KL Rahul's and Virat Kohli's scintillating knocks guided India to victory.
Kohli scored a valiant 85 while KL remained unbeaten at 97.
Earlier, opting to bat first, Australia were bowled out for 199 runs.
All six of India's bowlers were among wickets.
Spinners ruled the roost for India, with Ravindra Jadeja leading the charge with his three-fer.
For the Aussies, Steve Smith was the highest scorer with 46 runs.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)
India vs Australia Match Updates, ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Today’s Match Updates: Hello and welcome to our blog on India vs Australia being played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Stay tuned for updates!
India: Rohit Sharma(c), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, Suryakumar Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Shubman Gill
Australia: David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Alex Carey(w), Pat Cummins(c), Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood, Sean Abbott, Travis Head, Marcus Stoinis, Josh Inglis
"I am feeling really good. I have been out for a while but now I have been playing for the last two months, feels good to be back and traveling with the team. It feels great to play in a home WC, you don't get to play home WCs but we are the lucky ones. Australia are a very good side, we played them recently, and it is going to be a cracking contest. The feeling is quite relaxed, we have played a lot of cricket recently, when the warm up games were washed out, the players tried to relax and refresh. Basically the preparation stays the same, try and give your best, try to keep things simple and back your strengths, enjoy the occasion as you don't get to play a lot of WCs. It is starting at 2 o clock, it is going to be a little hot but we are looking forward to it and hopefully things go our way." - Jasprit Bumrah ahead of the match
While we wait for the toss, here's something for you to read about India's spin attack:
With a black soil pitch selected for the game, spinners will have a say in the match as it progresses on Sunday. India’s spinners in the ODI World Cup squad include left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who has picked 33 wickets in 17 matches, the most amongst spinners participating in World Cup.
Click here to read the full story.
"Could be two-paced, little bit on the slower side. Fast bowling won't be easy either, especially back of the length. India will be tempted to play three spinners. Won't be surprised even if Australia play at least two. Don't underestimate Adam Zampa on this surface." - Ravi Shastri
Pat Cummins has won the toss and decided to bat first against India.
"We'll bat first, looks like a good wicket. Sun is out, good opportunity to bat. We are in a good spot, we've played a lot over the last month. Travis Head isn't here, Abbott and Josh Inglis miss out." - Cummins at the toss
"The conditions are there for the bowlers, slightly on the slower side. We need to understand our lines and lengths early. We've played a lot of cricket before the WC, played two good series' and covered all our bases. Shubman hasn't recovered in time. Ishan comes in to replace him, he will open the batting." - Rohit Sharma at the toss
Australia: David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, Alex Carey(w), Glenn Maxwell, Pat Cummins(c), Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa
India XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
A little trivia ahead of the match - Virat Kohli is the only batter from the current squad to have a century scored at this venue.
Right then, both teams are done with their national anthems with India's echoing loud at the Chepauk. Live action super soon!
Players are walking out in the middle. David Warner and Mitchell Marsh are at the crease for Australia, Warner on strike. Jasprit Bumrah will open the attack for India.
We have two slips in place. Jasprit Bumrah gets off the mark with a dot. Warner takes a single on the second delivery to give Marsh the strike. Four dots on the trot and the over yield just one run.
Australia after 1 over - 1/0
Mohammed Siraj will share the new ball with Bumrah. Warner faces his first ball and welcomes him with a boundary, first of the match. Siraj makes a comeback and bowls five dots.
Australia after 2 overs - 5/0
Bumrah is back for his second over and he strikes on the second ball. Mitchell Marsh is out caught by Virat Kohli at the slips. What a start, this! Meanwhile, new batter Steve Smith has walked in to bat alongside Warner.
Australia after 3 overs - 6/1
A bright sunny day in Chennai, loud cheers from the local fans and an early breakthrough from Bumrah - India have gotten off to a perfect start in their world cup opener!
Coming back to the pitch, it's Siraj's second over and Smith manages to steal four runs off his fourth delivery as he flicks the ball to deep mid-wicket for a boundary. Over ends!
Australia after 4 overs - 11/1
Bumrah is back for his third over and Smith's body language looks like he is well accustomed to the Chepauk conditions now. And just as I write this, he makes optimum use of Bumrah's pace and makes way for the ball between extra cover and long-off to score a stunning boundary.
Australia after 5 overs - 16/1
Siraj has returned for the sixth over and has bowled a maiden over! Brilliant bowling from the pacer.
Australia after 6 overs - 16/1
Hardik Pandya has joined the attack in the seventh over of the innings. Warner goes straight down the ground to serve him with a boundary. Woah! Warner goes big again! He slashes the ball to backward square leg to collect the second boundary of the over. Make that three as Steve Smith joins the party!
Australia after 7 overs - 29/1
Local boy, Ravichandran Ashwin has been introduced into the attack in the 8th over of the game. He's welcomed with a single by Warner to bring back Smith on strike who scores no run on the next three balls. Two singles from the last two balls come.
Australia after 8 overs - 32/1
It's the penultimate over within the powerplay and the Aussie batters will want to score as many runs as possible.
Meanwhile, David Warner becomes the third Aussie batter after Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist to score most runs in an ODI world cup.
Australia after 9 overs - 36/1
Ashwin has the ball for the last over within the powerplay. David Warner keeps the boundary coming for Australia as he scores one more to sweeper cover on the fifth Ashwin delivery. Right then, we have come to the end of the powerplay.
Australia after 10 overs - 43/1
Hardik Pandya has the ball for the first over outside of the powerplay. Steve Smith looks too good at the moment. In fact, both the Aussie batters are brilliantly counterpunching the Indian bowling attack. Coming back to Smith, he's scored two boundaries in this over and just like that Australia have put up 50 runs on the board.
Australia after 11 overs - 51/1
Ashwin is back into the attack and concedes only 3 runs from the over. A loud LBW appeal was made on the fourth ball but the umpire turned it down. India decided to move on without reviewing it. It's the thirteenth over now and skipper Rohit has introduced Kuldeep Yadav into the attack.
Australia after 13 overs - 59/1
Fourteenth over of the game begins with Warner slamming the ball over cover to score a boundary. Kuldeep takes the ball for the next over and he, too, concedes a boundary from Warner. 15 overs have gone by and the umpire has signaled for a drinks break.
Australia after 15 overs - 71/1
Ashwin continues with the ball and only allows two runs from the over. Kuldeep take the ball for the next over and makes an immediate impact! David Warner is caught & bowled by the spinner and the partnership is finally broken. Warner was looking to go big but a bad timing from the bat and the ball landed in the bowler's hand. He walks back at 41.
Australia after 17 overs - 74/2
Marnus Labuschagne has come in to bat at number four alongside Steve Smith. After facing four dots, he opens his account with a single in Ashwin's over. His spin partner, Kuldeep is back and not much has happened in the last two overs. Just a couple of singles and Labuschagne is taking time to adjust himself at the crease according to the conditions.
Australia after 19 overs - 77/2
Ravindra Jadeja has finally joined the attack in the 20th over of the game. Ahead of the match, experts reckoned that these are the best conditions for a spinner like Jadeja and we are excited to see how things unfold here at Chepauk.
Australia after 21 overs - 88/2
Jadeja is back for his second over and has only leaked a single run in it. For the 23rd over, Rohit Sharma has handed the ball to Siraj after some tight overs from the spinners. Runs have dried up with the run rate just a little bit over 4.
Australia after 23 overs - 93/2
The Aussie batters are rotating strike to keep the scoreboard ticking. The ball hasn't cleared the ropes even once in the last five overs. The Indian bowlers sure are enjoying it, the visitors, on the other hand, will look to break the shackles and go big soon. Meanwhile, Australia have reached 100-run mark as we are halfway through their innings.
Australia after 25 overs - 102/2
Jadeja starts with the ball in the 26th over and makes a loud appeal to Siraj for a catch but the ball lands safely on the ground. Smith sighs. Just two runs from the over. Kuldeep is in from the other end Labuschagne tries a reverse sweep to steal a boundary in his over but Ishan Kishan is too quick at fine-leg to let the ball race away. Yet another boundary-less over for Australia.
Australia after 27 overs - 110/2
Jadeja has dismissed Steve Smith with a peach of a delivery on the very first ball of the 28th over just as he was nearing his half-century. It was an unplayable length ball that Smith looked to fend from middle but the ball travelled to clip the top of off-stump. A disappointed Smith is walking back towards the hut.
Australia after 28 overs - 112/3
All-rounder Glen Maxwell has joined Marnus Labuschagne in the middle to hold the fort for Australia. Marnus Labuschagne tries yet another reverse sweep to collect four runs but there's something with Ishan Kishan today who just can't let the ball clear the rope. He makes a successful run chase and dives to save two runs near the fine-leg fence.
Woah! Another wicket for Jadeja! He appeals for Labuschagne's LBW and the umpire raises his finger. Marnus sends the decision upstairs and it eventually falls in the hosts' favor. Australia burn a review and Marnus will have to walk back. Time for drinks!
Australia after 29.2 overs - 112/4
New batter Alex Carey has come in to steady Australia's ship but looks like his brief stay won't be enough for that as Jadeja has worked his magic yet again. He appeals for an LBW and umpire Richard Kettleborough gives out. It's two in the same over and Australia are looking in grave danger now.
Australia after 30 overs - 119/5
After many silent overs, Jadeja has breathed life in this game. Three wickets in quick successions and the crowd is all pumped up. Cameron Green and Glen Maxwell, the last recognized pair for Australia are currently holding the fort.
Australia after 32 overs - 130/5
After 73 quite deliveries, Maxwell finally gave Australia a much needed boundary in the last over. Now, it's time for the all-rounder to up the ante and score as many runs possible. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma has Bumrah back into the attack to keep up the pressure.
Australia after 33 overs - 131/5
After losing back to back wickets, Green and Maxwell are looking to build a partnership for Australia. Maxwell, in particular, is itching to go big but Jadeja's pace is holding him back. The left-arm spinner has two more overs left in his spell. For the 35th over, Ashwin has the ball. In what is his homecoming game, Ashwin, too will want a few wickets in his pocket at the end of his spell.
Australia after 35 overs - 138/5
TWO HUGE WICKETS!
The last two batters who could have brought Australia back into the game very quickly, are now taking the walk back to the dressing room.
Trying to pull a Kuldeep Yadav delivery, Glenn Maxwell up miscalculating the bounce and exposes his stumps to the ball.
Only a few deliveries later, Cameron Green finds Hardik Pandya at backward point while trying to play the cut shot against Ravichandran Ashwin.
END of 40 overs.
The onus is now on Pat Cummins to take Australia to a half-decent total, and the Australian skipper is seemingly on a mission to turn the tables. He smashes a six and a four off Kuldeep Yadav's bowling, albeit the latter came from a fortunate edge.
ANOTHER WICKET!
The Australian batting unit is crumbling here. Jasprit Bumrah's re-introduction into the bowling attack pays dividends for the Indian team, as in an attempt to dispatch him to row Z, Pat Cummins has found Shreyas Iyer at long-on.
Australia are 168/8 after 43 overs.
At the Australian camp, they have have a quick glance at the scorecard and ponder how, and where, did it go so wrong?
The Indian camp, however, will be enjoying life. Australia are 172/8 after 45 overs.
Adam Zampa and Mitchell Starc have – at least so far – ensured that the Australian innings does not have a premature end. They keep the scoreboard ticking, which now says 188/8 after 48 overs.
AUSTRALIA ALL OUT FOR 199!
What an excellent bowling performance this has been for India, wherein every single bowler was among wickets. Hardik Pandya and Mohammed Siraj opened their respective accounts in the last two overs, ensuring Australia don't get to the 200-run mark.
The pitch is tricky, and Australia boast of a formidable bowling line-up, but the climb should not a steep and tall one for Rohit Sharma and his fellow batters.
WICKET!
This is exactly what India did not need. In only the first ball he faced, Ishan Kishan threw his bat at a Mitchell Starc outswinger and ended up getting caught by Cameron Green at second slip. Playing in the absence of Shubman Gill, Kishan departs on a golden duck.
India are 2/1 after 1 over.
CALAMITY STRIKES FOR INDIA!
After Ishan Kishan lost his wicket on a duck, skipper Rohit Sharma and Shreyas Iyer followed suit. They are both dismissed in Josh Hazlewood's first over. India are now struggling at 2/3, and surely, we have a game at our hands!
Five overs, 12 runs, 3 wickets.
The numbers are self-explanatory, portraying everything that you need to see, and know. That being said, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul have looked resolute so far.
With another brilliant shot, this time a straight drive, Virat Kohli alleviates some more pressure. India are 18/3 after six overs. Meanwhile, Pat Cummins is coming to bowl.
DROPPED!
Can this be the turning point of the game? Virat Kohli's attempted pull goes to the moon, and on return, finds Mitchell Marsh hovering underneath. But as Indians waited with bated breath, Marsh missed the opportunity of sending the former Indian skipper packing.
India are 21/3 after 8 overs.
The first 10 overs have concluded, and this phase has been completely dominated by the Aussies. India have lost three wickets by scoring just 27 runs, but thankfully for them, Virat Kohli is still out there, waging a difficult war.
India – 27/1 after 10 overs.
We are in a bit of a stalemate situation. Australia are doing just about enough to ensure the runs don't come easily, but Virat Kohli and KL Rahul are doing just about enough to ensure they don't gift their wickets away.
India – 38/3 after 13 overs.
It has taken much longer than expected, but India have finally crossed the 50-run mark. Interestingly, Cummins has called the likes of Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green into the attack, but the only specialist spinner in his team, Adam Zampa is yet to be introduced.
India – 52/3 after 16 overs.
When he finally arrived, after a prolonged wait, Adam Zampa proved to be underwhelming. He concedes 13 runs in his first over, courtesy of three exquisite boundaries from KL Rahul's willow.
If the first ten overs were all about the brilliance of Australia's pacers, the second ten overs have been a terrific display of grit and execution from the two Indian batters, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul. 53 runs have been scored in the last 60 deliveries, and that too, without the loss of any wickets.
India are 80/3 after 20 overs. Equation – 120 runs needed in 180 deliveries.
The game is slipping out of Australia's grasp at a rate of nots. Pat Cummins has thrown everything at Virat Kohli and KL Rahul – leg spin, off spin, express pace, not-so-express pace. But nothing seems to work, as the two Indian batters are looking very comfortable in the middle.
They are nearing their half-centuries, while India are nearing a victory. After 23 overs, India are 90/3.
At 2/3, ominously dark clouds of an impending doom loomed over the Indian camp. Now, the sun is shining brightly on them, as the scoreboard reads – 100/3 after 26 overs.
While India are into three figures now, Virat Kohli has brought up his 67th ODI half-century. Batting at 47, KL Rahul looks set to complete a personal milestone soon.
Bottomline? It is looking bleak for Australia. Very bleak.
KL Rahul also gets to his fifty, raises his bat to celebrate. The fans give him a loud cheer. And just after his half-century, Virat has switched the gear as he slams another boundary to add four more to India's account.
After 28 overs, India are 116/3.
Maxwell has replaced Zampa in the attack and he concedes 3 singles from the over. Skipper Cummins then takes the ball for the next over. No boundaries have come from the last two over but India has nothing to worry about as long as the Bangalore boys stay at the crease. Drinks Break!
After 30 overs, India are 120/3.
We are back after the drinks break and the Aussies must have re-grouped to devise new plans for the comfortable looking Indian batters now. More chats between Cummins and Maxwell and the latter is back for his sixth over and he looks desperate for a breakthrough. Meanwhile, Kohli-KL keep rotating the strike. The ball is being changed after four balls of the 29th over. Game halts! For the next over, Starc has been brought back into the attack, he starts around the wicket, Kohli runs two on his first delivery. Three balls later, KL punches the ball towards extra covers to score a lovely boundary.
After 32 overs, India are 132/3.
Adam Zampa is back in the attack and is punished with a gorgeous boundary from India number 3. Runs keep flowing for India. However, Aaron Finch on comms says Kohli looks frustrated with Rahul's running between the wickets of late. Coming back to the pitch, Next is Starc's turn and Kohli is hit on his helmet by former's bouncer. A concussion test is being conducted. Play resumes and Virat smokes the ball to deep backward point for a stunning four.
After 34 overs, India are 146/3.
Adam Zampa is back for his seventh over and he hasn't looked good today. He's leaked runs, committed a few sins and have no wickets in his kitty. Makes an appeal for LBW but the umpire turns it down, Cummins, too, doesn't look interested in reviewing.
After 35 overs, India are 151/3.
Virat Kohli and KL Rahul have brought up India’s highest 4th wicket partnership in ODI World Cups against Australia as they stitch a 150-run stand together. And Kohli has moved into 80s, inching towards his 48th ODI century. Meanwhile, the ball is being changed again. Match resumes and more runs get added to Zampa's account as misfield from Cameron Green yield 3 runs off his delivery. The bowler is visibly upset.
After 37 overs, India are 167/3.
Hazlewood is back again and gets going with three dots on the trot. Kohli looks to go big on the fourth delivery and oh no! The ball goes straight to mid-wicket and Marnus finishes the job. Virat walks back at 85 and the crowd at Chepauk gives him a standing ovation.
After 38 overs, India are 168/4.
Virat might have lost his wicket but he has done enough damage for Australia. Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya has joined KL Rahul in the middle and he has slammed a Hazlewood delivery to the long-off boundary for a huge six. With each passing over, the asking rate is coming down. India are just 18 runs away from registering their first victory of this world cup.
After 40 overs, India are 182/4.
INDIA WIN THE CONTEST BY 6 WICKETS!
It's yet another KL Rahul vs Glen Maxwell face-off and the latter is winning it. He welcomes Maxwell with a massive six and follows it up with a boundary to long-off. Just 5 runs needed and the crowd is celebrating already. It's a SIX and KL finishes off in style!!!
Right then, we have come to the end of our live blog. We'll be back again with another mouth-watering clash. Till then, catch everything that's happening in the world of cricket on our website!