On a Chepauk pitch that favoured spinners, Ravindra Jadeja was the sixth bowler to be introduced by skipper Rohit Sharma but he ended up making the most impact. Jadeja picked up three crucial wickets to prevent Australia from posting a big total on the board.
Jadeja became the third left-arm spinner to take three wickets against Australia in an ODI World Cup match. The first to do it was India's Maninder Singh who took three wickets from 34 runs and helped the Kapil Dev-led side win the match by 56 runs in the 1987 World Cup. 16 years later, Kenya's Aasif Karim took three wickets for just seven runs from 8.2 overs including two maidens. However, the Rocky Ponting-led side won the match by five wickets while chasing 175.
The 34-year-old was introduced in the 20th over of the innings. In his fifth over, he bowled an unplayable delivery to Steve Smith to hit the top of the off-stump. Smith departed after scoring 46 runs. In his next over, Marnus Labuschagne went for a sweep shot but could only manage an edge which was taken by KL Rahul. Alex Carey was sent to counter the left-arm spinner but he was dismissed lbw for a two-ball duck.
Jadeja said the conditions suit him and the Indian Premier League (IPL) experience came into play as well.
“I play for CSK so I know the conditions here, when I saw the pitch I thought I should get 2-3 wickets, luckily I got 3 wickets and am very happy. I was looking to bowl into the stumps and there was turn, you never know which one is going straight and which one is turning, the odd ball was turning and I was just mixing the pace,” Jadeja told the broadcasters during the innings break.
“Chennai crowd always come in good numbers and it is good to see a full house. Just go out there and play simple cricket, not try anything fancy and keep it simple,” he added.
Apart from Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav picked up a couple of wickets whereas local boy Ravichandran Ashwin picked up a wicket. Australia got bowled out for 199 in the final over.
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