Rinku, Ishan, and Suryakumar excel in India’s final-ball victory

Suryakumar Yadav’s explosive 42-ball 80 on his captaincy debut, his 112-run partnership with Ishan Kishan (58 off 39 balls), and Rinku Singh’s heroics were all crucial to India’s thrilling two-wicket victory over Australia on Thursday (November 23) in the opening match of the five-match T20I series in Kolkata. Australia amassed a formidable 208 thanks to Josh Inglis’ explosive 47-ball century, which also put India at 22/2. However, India was able to take control because to the stand-in skipper, Ishan, and Suryakumar, who nearly batted through the chase. Rinku maintained his composure to send India through off the final ball despite a late collapse that threatened a robbery.

For Steve Smith, a first Although he has been around for a while, Australia’s top batter did not open the innings in his career until November 23, 2023. Smith did not exactly time his boundaries early on, but he did have a few. Australia started steadily as his opening partner Matthew Short also hit three boundaries.

Australia’s openers were off to a strong start, so Suryakumar quickly adopted a spin strategy. Leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi made a breakthrough, but Axar Patel’s opening over was not successful. A cunning googly dipped and whirled past Short’s swipe over the line, upsetting the wood.

Josh Inglis’s skill really shines in Twenty20 cricket, but he didn’t get many chances to show it during the ODI World Cup. Arriving at number three, Inglis did not take long to adjust to the pitch’s pace and exploited India’s bowling. There were shots everywhere, and Inglis took full advantage of the limited size of the field. Even though Spin was difficult to handle, he handled it expertly while Smith had trouble with timing the entire time. With his century off just 47 balls, Inglis maintained the momentum and set Australia on track for a total of 200 or more.

India’s bowlers were all given the rough treatment, and although Axar Patel was also frugal, he was given some extra attention in his later overs. But Mukesh Kumar distinguished himself with his well-thought-out strategies and execution, giving India some respite with just 29 runs conceded in four overs, including just five in the twentieth over.

Ruturaj Gaikwad was the unfortunate recipient of a diamond duck, which is priceless, after a major miscommunication with opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal. Early in the second half, Australia gained a gift-wrapped wicket, and a straightforward run-out followed. In an attempt to boost the ante, Jaiswal fell after hitting a couple of boundaries and a six, putting India at 22/2 in the third over.

In his first captaincy appearance, Suryakumar showed no signs of nervousness as the top-ranked T20I batsman got right to work. Ishan gave Jason Behrendorff a rough start with a maiden, but as his captain hit them clean at the other end, the left-hander also eventually settled into a groove. The hilarious duo completely destroyed Australia’s bowlers, especially leggie Jason Sangha, who was repeatedly hit for sixes and boundaries. The absence of dew, which Suryakumar had expected while choosing to bowl at the toss, was the one factor working in Australia’s advantage. But this stance kept cheering India on in the pursuit.

In an attempt to immediately terminate the match, Suryakumar lost his wicket, which again allowed Australia a sniff to creep back in. With two vital boundaries, one off the final ball of the 19th over and the other to begin the 20th over, Rinku maintained the pace. These were invaluable in light of the events that followed. India had one ball remaining off the penultimate ball after Bishnoi was run out on the second run and Axar misplayed one straight up for Sean Abbott to collect the return catch. Two needed from three balls. Rinku maintained his composure to smash a six over long-on, but in the end, Abbott overstepped, meaning there was no ball.

Score Card – India 209/8 in 19.5 overs (Suryakumar Yadav 80, Ishan Kishan 58; Tanveer Sangha 2-47) defeated Australia 208/3 in 20 overs (Josh Inglis 110, Steve Smith 52) India win by two wickets.