Australia made a mockery of India's bowling as they clinched the high-scoring thriller in the first T20I of the three-match against Men in Blue on Tuesday (September 20).
Rohit Sharma & Co's frailties with the ball were laid bare as Australia gunned down a formidable 209-run target rather comfortably with four balls to spare to start their campaign on a high.
Matthew Wade's 45 off 21 and Cameron Green's 61 off 30 were too hot for India despite KL Rahul's handsome 55 off 35 and Hardik Pandya's stunning 71 off 30.
Meanwhile, former India's head coach Ravi Shastri tore into Team India's lacklustre show despite posting a huge total. Shastri gave a big statement and said India are a no match to any of the top teams.
"If you look at all the top Indian teams over the years, there is youth and experience. I find the youth missing here and hence the fielding. If you look at the last five-six years, fielding wise, I think this side is no match to any of the top sides when it comes to fielding. And that can hit badly in big tournaments," Shastri said on Star Sports after the match.
India dropped three catches in total against Australia, out which two were crucial of Cameron Green and Matthew Wade, both of whom went on to become the architects of the Australian win. While Green was dropped on 42 and went on to make 61 off just 30 balls, Wade played a terrific knock of 45 off just 21 balls, late in the day.
He further spoke about the impact of fielding on the batting side which has to score additional runs to cover up the deficit caused by the fielding unit.
"It means that as a batting side you have to get that 15-20 runs game after game, because if you look around the field, where is brilliance? There is no Jadeja. Where is that X-factor?" Shastri further added.
"What I was disappointed today with was the standard of fielding. I mean, it looks sloppy and I think you need a big upping of the ante when it comes to the fielding if you have to beat big sides in big competitions," he concluded his assessment.
Team India will play the second T20I against Australia on September 23 and look to bounce back in order to keep the series alive.
