By BD Naraayannkar
Raipur, (UNI) Ravi Bisnoi and Deepak Chahar bowling performance and hurried knocks by Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma fired India to wrap up the 5-match T20I series 3-1 against Australia in the fourth match at Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium here on Friday.
India had lost the third match at Guwahati, after notching up two victories in the first two matches at Visakhapatnam and Thiruvananthapuram.
Sent into bat, India managed to score 174/9 and Australia could manage only 154/7, falling 20 runs short of crossing over the target.
Rinku and Jitesh stitched a very crucial 56 runs partnership for the fifth wicket in five overs. They took the score from 111/4 to 167 in 18.4 overs.
Just when the duo was looking to accelerate, Australia came back and restricted India to 174/9.
India got off to a good start, making fifty runs in six overs. Jaiswal got off the mark with a boundary in the second over after India scored just a run in the first.
The Mumbaikar helped himself with another boundary in the same over of Jason Behrendorff who conceded 11 runs.
Jaiswal then sent Ben Dwarshuis to the cleaners to gather 12 runs with three cracking boundaries in the third over.
He also tore apart Chris Green with a boundary and a six, ending his first international over by giving away 14 runs.
Aaron Hardie broke the 50-run opening partnership between Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad by getting the Mumbai batsman caught by Ben McDermott, after scoring 37 off 28 balls with 6 boundaries and a six.
Iyer did not last long, and was caught by Chris Green off leg-spinner Tanveer Sangha for 8 off 7 balls.
India were in serious trouble with the scorecard reading 63/3 with Suryakumar nicking one behind the stumps to Wade for 1 off 2 balls. But Gaikwad and Rinku added 58 runs for the 4th wicket, and brought some respectability by helping the hosts reach 111 runs in 13.2 overs.
Jitesh came in and smacked debutant Chris Green for two sixes in the 15th over. After a sedate 16th over by Tanveer Sangha, Hardie conceded 13 next before Rinku’s heroics saw India get some stability.
Dwarshuis claimed a brace in the 19th over before Jason Behrendorff finished well.
For Australia, Dwarshuis picked 3/40 and Behrendorff and Sangha two wickets each, and a wicket by Hardie.
India would be disappointed with the last two overs, just 13 runs scored and 5 wickets lost.
In reply, Australia got off to a flier with Travis Head (31 off 16) smashing at 200 and offering a solid score in the powerplay.
Unfortunately for them, only Wade (36 not out) managed to strike in excess of 120 while the rest struggled to get going against the spin duo of Axar and Bishnoi. They came up with an excellent spell and Chahar too made a good comeback as he picked up the key wickets of Tim David and Matt Short during crucial junctures.
He conceded 29 off his first 2 overs and then kept it tight by picking 2/15 in his final 2.
