Pune: After posting a mammoth total of 304 runs, Australia bowled out India for 232 in 49.4 overs to win the first match of the seven-match ODI series by 72 runs at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, here on Sunday.
Chasing the target, India lost in-form batsman Shikhar Dhawan (7) cheaply at a score of 26 in the seventh over. Thereafter, Virat Kohli joined Rohit Sharma and started rebuiliding the innings cautiously. The duo added 40 runs for the second wicket before Shane Watson struck for Australia, getting Sharma (42) caught by stand-in keeper Phil Hughes.
Suresh Raina and Kohli made sure that India were in the hunt and the left-right combo went on to 71 runs for the third wicket before Raina (39) was caught by Doherty off Faulkner. Yuvraj Singh, the hero of the T20 match which India won comprehensivley, could not do much as the southpaw was caught by Hughes off Mitchell Johnson for just seven runs. Kohli (61), who was going steady, too followed his senior back into the pavilion soon and that derailed India's chase of the mammoth total.
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Australia 304 for 8 (Bailey 85, Finch 72) beat
India 232 (Kohli 61, Faulkner 3-47) by 72 runs
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And once Ravindra Jadeja (11) and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (19) failed with the bat, it was all but over for the hosts.
For Australia, James Faulkner grabbed three wickets for while Clint McKay and Shane Watson chipped in with two wickets apiece. Mitchell Johnson, Aaron Finch and Adam Voges got a wicket each. Australia had lost by four wickets in the opening game of their short tour, the one-off T20 International at Rajkot on October 10.
The two sides now moved to Jaipur for the second ODI on October 16.
Earlier, opener Aaron Finch struck his second successive half-century of the tour while captain George Bailey scored a fine 85 as the Australia made mincemeat of the insipid Indian bowling attack to pile on a huge 304 for eight.
Finch was again in attacking form with a well-made 72 off 79 balls with eight fours and three sixes after Australia opted to bat. Finch and fellow opener Phil Hugues (47) got Australia off to a solid start with 110-run opening stand before India fought back through their left-arm spin twins Ravindra Jadeja (1 for 35) and Yuvraj Singh (2 for 34).
Thereafter Bailey, who made a duck in the T20 game that Australia lost by four wickets, kept the innings together with a superbly paced 82-ball knock, studded with 10 fours before he was caught at deep mid wicket off Ravichandran Ashwin.
James Faulkner (27 off 22 balls) struck breezily towards the end to help the visitors cross the 300-mark after a mid-innings stutter. The Indian bowlers, barring Jadeja and Yuvraj, looked off colour, particularly Ishant Sharma (1 for 56), who just like in the T20 game, gave away lot of runs for a late wicket. Even the ground fielding left a lot to be desired.