India end Australia’s Winning Streak, Win the Match by 36 Runs

Team India has put an end to Australia’s 10-match winning streak as they beat the defending champions by 36 runs on Sunday. Virat Kohli and Co. registered their second win in the World Cup as they will face New Zealand in their next game on Thursday.

In an era where we keep comparing India’s current big stalwarts such as Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, time and again India’s opener Shikhar Dhawan has proved that he too is one of the vital cogs in the team. Shikhar Dhawan’s love affair with big tournaments continues to grow by leaps and bounds as he notched his sixth century in the world cups on Sunday at London.

He played a sensational knock of 117 runs off 109 balls, scoring as many as 16 boundaries. India’s top three are once again on course to leave a big impact in a perennial tournament. After seeing a masterclass innings from Rohit the other day, it was time to witness one more stellar knock, this time from his partner Shikhar Dhawan.

Winning the toss and opting to bat first, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan gave India the start they wished for. The duo tackled the most difficult phase cautious. India posted 41 runs in 10 overs without losing a single wicket which actually set the tone for a big total posted at the Kennington Oval ground at London.

Dhawan stayed at the crease till the 36th over which meant the runs kept flowing at an impressive run-rate during the innings. Rohit too played a good hand of 57 off 70 balls before he nicked a Coulter-Nile’s ball to the keeper in the 23rd over.

Virat Kohli played as a second fiddle in most part of his innings, as batsmen at the other end hit the big shots.

Having reached 220 in 36 overs, India planned to shift into fifth gear as Hardik Pandya was promoted up the order to up the ante and score as many runs in the remaining overs. Hardik continued his belligerent form, scoring 48 runs off 27 deliveries, including 4 fours and three sixes.

MS Dhoni and KL Rahul too played decent cameos in the end, as India eventually ended at 352 for 5 in 50 overs.

Australia started in a much similar fashion, having not lost a single wicket in the first ten overs. However, just when they looked like cruising in the chase, an error in judgment by David Warner saw skipper Finch getting run-out in the 14th over as the crowd once again came alive at Kennington Oval.

David Warner played an uncharacteristic inning on Sunday, who took as many as 84 deliveries to reach his half-century. Warner slow innings added pressure on Smith and Khawaja who had to play some unconventional shots in order to maintain the required run-rate.

Wickets kept falling at regular intervals as Australia could manage to score 316 runs in their 50 overs.

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