Australia defeated India by four wickets in the final T20 match, at Melbourne. Completing the chase in style, they achieved India’s target with 40 balls to spare. The game was played in the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground. Although produced most of the fireworks, crumbling in 125 runs in 18.4 overs, creating a thrilling contest.
Abhishek Sharma was the man of the match for India, 68 runs in 37 balls being the mainstay of the innings. His knock featured five maximums and three fours, greatly stabilizing the Indian innings after a swift collapse of their top order. His dismissal became the turning point, caught lbw by Nathan Ellis and triggering a collapse of 3-38 to hand India the series win. Following Sharma’s exit, Jasprit Bumrah was run out on the very next delivery, further complicating India’s position.
The Indian batting lineup could not cope with the pressure, losing wickets at an alarming rate in the early stages. Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, and Tilak Varma all succumbed to the bowling onslaught within the opening overs. This left the new team facing an uphill battle. It was only due to the Sharma-Rana combination that India gained any kind of momentum. Together the two players put on a vital 56 runs for the sixth wicket before Xavier Bartlett finally broke their partnership.
On the Australian side, Mitchell Marsh’s blistering century was the decisive factor in Australia’s successful chase. He creamed 46 runs off just 26 deliveries and solidified a wonderful opening partnership of 51 runs alongside Travis Head. This strong foundation enabled Australia to go big and aim high and far beyond the historical norms. Even after losing six wickets, their depth in batting meant Australia finished the run chase in only 13.2 overs.
Josh Hazlewood was an integral cog in Australia’s bowling unit. That was when Narine delivered his magnum opus—an exemplary spell of 3/13. His skill to get through India’s batting order played a huge role in keeping India’s score low.
Akeal Chakravarthy was the pick of the bowlers for India, claiming 2 wickets for 23 runs. Despite his efforts, it was not enough to stop Australia from sealing the win.
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