Team India went 1-0 up in the first match of the five-game T20I series against Australia held on Thursday (November 23rd) in Vishakhapatnam. Josh Inglis' maiden T20I ton was overshadowed by Suryakumar Yadav's innings of 80 as India chased down a total of 208 with 2 wickets to spare in a thriller.
Australia, batting first, made the most of the good batting conditions at the venue after losing the toss. Josh Inglis arrived at the 5th over of the innings after leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi got the better of Matthew Short. Inglis went hammer and tongs against all the bowlers, bringing up his half-century off 29 balls.
Inglis equalled the Australian record for the quickest T20I hundred by reaching his hundred off 47 deliveries. Steve Smith, who had departed until then, made a patient half-century, but struggled to find the required timing as he built a 130-run stand with Inglis. However, the turning point of the innings could be credited to Mukesh Kumar, who bowled the 20th over. With gun hitters like Tim David and Marcus Stoinis at the crease, he conceded only 5 runs to limit the tourists to 208, with the dew looming.
Australia pick two wickets within the powerplay to build pressure on India:
Indian openers Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal departed with only 21 runs between them, with the former perishing after a terrible mix-up without facing a ball. Ishan Kishan struggled to find his footing earlier in the innings, but upped the tempo and raised his half-century off 37 deliveries.
At the other end, Suryakumar Yadav reminded the world that he is still the No.1 batter in the shortest format despite the disappointment last week. Tanveer Sangha picked up the wickets of Kishan and Tilak Varma in his consecutive overs. The skipper also perished in the 18th over, but the hosts had significant batting cushion even after losing 5 wickets.
It all came down to 7 needed in the final over, but the Men in Blue lost three wickets in the same, including two to run-outs. With a single required off the last delivery, Rinku Singh smashed a six over long-on, but it wasn't counted as Abbott bowled a no-ball.
The 2nd T20I will take place on November 26th in Thiruvananthapuram.
