Visakhapatnam, March 19 Left-armed premier quicker Mitchell Stark scored his ninth five-run in 50-plus appearances in cricket and a major Australian build The division, beat India by just 117 runs in 26 runs in the second ODI of the three-match series at the YS Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Sunday.
Starc opted for a wicket in Mumbai’s first ODI, and he produced another stunning early swing bowling display to get through the top order before taking out Mohammed Siraj for 5/53.
Sean Abbott was great in his 3/23 and Nathan Ellis provided strong support in 2/13. India conceded four wickets in a power game for the first time since their ODI World Cup semi-final loss to New Zealand in 2019, with Kohli and Aksar Patel leading the score with 31 and 29 strikeouts respectively.
A disappointing batting performance for the hosts, with four batsmen knocked out and others left with no answers to Starc & Co’s pointed questions, led to their fourth-lowest total at home.
Starc’s stellar performance starts right from the start, with Shubman Gill delivering a full and wide delivery straight to the point. Starc found some inward movement but Rohit Sharma clipped him off the quad leg on the last ball of the opening over.
He and Virat Kohli each received boundaries from Cameron Green’s half-volley in the next over, before the latter teed off and hit Starc in the third. Stark bounced back in the fifth to entice Rohit to chase a wide pitch, and Steve Smith caught a thick rim on the first slip.
On the very next ball, Starc’s infielder rounded out Suryakumar Yadav on the inside edge, trapping the right-hander lbw for a second straight Golden Duck. Starc’s inswinger then knocked out KL Rahul, who looked to flick but was hit on the front pad in front of the stumps.
India lost their fifth wicket in the tenth innings when Hardik Pandya shoved a pass from Sean Abbott without any footwork, while Smith dived to the right with a right hand He caught the scream with one hand.
India had no respite as Nathan Ellis struck out in the second over of the 16th over, trapping Kohli lbw with a straighter pitch as he tried to cross the line. Ellis got his second wicket after four rounds when his long delivery got extra bounce and sent the thick side off the glove to keeper Alex Carey.
Axar and Kuldeep Yadav try to put up some resistance. But Abbott lures Kuldipula into the ball, which finds itself in the hands of the striker’s square legs. On the very next pitch, Mohammed Shami delivered a full throw and cut behind Carey.
In the 26th over, Axar hit Starc’s delightful six on the ground and back legs. But the left-arm pacer completed a brilliant five wickets through the top of the rattling Mohammed Siraj’s stumps to end the game.
Brief score: India 117 for 26 (Virat Kohli 31, Axar Patel 29 not out; Mitchell Starc 5/53, Sean Abbott 3/23) vs Australia
–IANS
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