Virat Kohli's remarkable fielding and Mohammed Shami's deadly yorkers turned the complexion of the game as India stormed back to steal a victory from the jaws of defeat against Australia in the warm-up match on October 17 (Monday). Needing 11 runs off the last over, Shami nailed one yorker after another and bagged three wickets in the over to bundle out the Baggy Greens for 180 runs. Australia lost four consecutive wickets in the last four balls of the match, with one wicket coming in the form of a run-out. Mohammad Shami put the concerns over his fitness to rest with a sensational 20th over.
K L Rahul (57 off 33) and Suryakumar Yadav (50 off 33) smashed entertaining half-centuries to power India to 186 for seven after Australia opted to bowl at the Gabba. Harshal Patel delivered after being hammered early on, as he conceded only five runs in an over that also included a brilliant run out off a Kohli direct hit. The star India batter had also plucked a stunning one-handed catch out of thin air at the boundary line to dismiss Pat Cummins.
After leaking plenty of runs in the first five overs, Indian bowlers pulled things back after the powerplay briefly before Australia captain Aaron Finch and stylish batter Steve Smith unleashed a couple of lofty hits into the stands and tightened the screws on the Men in Blue.
After the 10th over mark, Australia were 94/1 with Finch unbeaten on 41 off 32 balls and Smith was not out on 10 runs off 10 balls.
India wrapped up the first innings for the warm-up match against Australia saw the Men in Blue set a target of 187 runs at the Gabba on Monday, October 17. KL Rahul, and then Suryakumar Yadav were the main assaulters with the bat, but Kane Richardson's heroics in the later stages of the innings stifled a strong start by the Indians
In the latter stages of the innings, Suryakumar, with his unorthodox batting, was striking the ball at 151.51 and managed to find the boundary five times, with one six to his name as well. He completed his half-century in 32 balls, braving bouncers and fast yorkers as well, but the next ball was unlucky to lose his wicket.
It was a slower full toss on the middle stump, and Surya tried to flick the ball. He managed to get the ball off the bottom of the blade with the ball lobbing back to the bowler Kane Richardson, who caught the ball comfortably.
This was after Former India captain and maverick batter Virat Kohli played a couple of stunning shots during his knock of 19 runs from 13 balls before being dismissed on Mitchell Starc's short ball. The right-handed batter smashed a four and a six during his brief stay in the middle. All-rounder Hardik Pandya failed with the bat as he handed a simple catch to Tim David at short third-man off Kane Richardson's bowling and departed after scoring 2 runs off 5 balls.
Suryakumar continued his assault on bowlers and looked in ominous form once again. Dinesh Karthik, on the other hand, came to bat after Pandya's dismissal with six overs remaining India's innings.
At the 15th over mark, India was 138/4 with Suryakumar batting on 26 runs off 18 balls and Karthik unbeaten on 10 runs off seven balls.
After bossing the first five overs of the match, India failed to capitalise on the momentum as Australian spinners came to the party. Glenn Maxwell first dismissed KL Rahul, who departed after playing a terrific knock of 57 runs off 33 balls, while Ashton Agar dismissed the Indian skipper for 15 runs off 14 balls.
At the 10th over mark, India 89/2 with Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav holding the fort for the Men in Blue in the middle.
Team India got off to a flying start in the warm-up match against Australia on October 17 (Monday). Captain Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul opened the batting for the Men in Blue and the latter took a special liking to Aussie bowlers. The stylish batter manipulated the field perfectly while he also launched multiple deliveries into the stands. Rahul, who has been often criticised for maintaining a low strike-rate, took the aggressive approach right from the onset and played some sumptuous shots.
After the end of the five overs, India were 56/0 with KL Rahul unbeaten on 49 runs off 26 balls while Rohit Sharma was not out on one run off five balls.
Earlier, Australia captain Aaron Finch won the toss and elected to field first in the warm-up match between India and Australia on October 17 (Monday).
Playing XIs
Australia XI: Aaron Finch, Mitch Marsh, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, Josh Inglis (wk), Pat Cummins, Ashton Agar, Mitch Starc, Kane Richardson
India XI: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Axar Patel, Ravi Ashwin, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh
Where to watch
India vs Australia warm-up match will be played at the historic Gabba in Brisbane. The match will begin at 9:30 am IST. The fans can catch the live action on Star Sports Network and on Hotstar. You can also follow the live updates on the Sports Tak app.
