Team India dominated Australia in the opening One-Day International, winning by five wickets at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on Friday. Australia was bowled out for 188 in 35.4 overs by the hosts. Meanwhile, the hosts reached the mark in their 40th over.
KL Rahul produced a rousing return in the first ODI against Australia, winning the match. The 30-year-old batsman contributed to India’s steady pursuit, striking an unbeaten 75 from 91 deliveries. He established a 108-run partnership with Ravindra Jadeja, who hit an unbeaten 45 off 69 and lead India to a five-wicket triumph. Importantly, the great all-rounder was named Match Player.
Rahul lauded Jadeja’s performance in the first ODI against Steve Smith’s team, saying the all-rounder came out to bat and troubled the Australian spinners. He also lauded Mitchell Starc of Australia, calling him a “dangerous bowler.”
“(We) saw three wickets come down early, Starc was swinging the ball brilliantly and when he pulls the ball back in, he is a dangerous bowler. I just attempted to play standard cricket shots. I was able to remove a few restrictions, which calmed my anxieties. I took turns batting with Shubman, Hardik, and Jadeja. The talk was that there was assistance on the wicket, but we didn’t want to go into our shell and play out a certain bowler,” Rahul remarked after the game.
“We wanted to stay positive and put the loose balls away. We may perform well if we improve our footing, and it was great batting with Jadeja. I retrieved a couple of stray balls as soon as the left-hander stepped in. Even the greatest bowlers experience this. The left-hander walked in and that worked for us. Jaddu batted well and ran hard between the wickets. He’s in fantastic shape and understands exactly what to do in such circumstances,” he continued.
