Australia’s combination of youth and experience were lethal in Melbourne as they won their first game convincingly against India by 65 runs. Debutant Matthew Wade scored an impressive half century and was followed by an impressive 45 from M Hussey and a scintillating 61 off just 30 balls by his brother D Hussey.
After India won the toss, it put Australia in to bat on a cloudy afternoon in Melbourne. Everyone were little surprised at the toss when Dhoni said Sehwag was rested and Sachin Tendulkar takes his place. It was even more surprising that India fielded only 2 fast bowlers on a wicket that looked like it will help the seamers especially with the overhead conditions.
The rain-affected clash was reduced to 32 overs a side. Australia, after a slow start pushed their score up to 5 for 216 and the total remained unchanged under Duckworth-Lewis, but it was the sort of target India should have felt was quite manageable. But two early wickets to the left arm seamer Mitchell Starc, followed by a couple of strikes in Clint McKay’s first over left India expecting too much of their captain MS Dhoni and the lower order.
Australia has started off their tri series campaign with a bonus point and on their way anticipating a successful campaign. On the other hand, India will look for any kind of motivation to come back in this series as they take on Sri Lanka on 8th Feb at WACA, Perth.
