India vs Australia, 3rd ODI: India Player Ratings

India wrapped up the series in Indore after completing a 5-wicket win with 13 balls to spare. They have now extended their winning streak to 9 while Australia have taken their away streak of losses to 11. It was a rare off day for Virat Kohli during a chase but the other batsmen stepped up to take the responsibility.

Steve Smith made the right call at the toss and elected to bat first in Indore. His decision was vindicated when openers David Warner and Finch were off to a flying start. Warner fell to Pandya not before putting a stand of 70 for the opening wicket. Finch took his time initially but unleashed the big shots after getting his eye in. He hit the first hundred of the series on his comeback and put Australia in a very good position with 13 overs to go. His dismissal triggered a collapse as Australia ended up getting just 69 runs from the last 12 overs.

The hosts were off to a flying start too with Rohit Sharma looking in sublime touch. He smacked as many as 4 sixes in his innings. Rahane, who relies more on timing, followed up with another half-century. The duo added 139 for the first wicket in just 130 balls, their first 100 runs stand together batting at the top of the order. Their departure in quick session left India in a peculiar situation but Hardik Pandya’s 78 helped settle the nerves in the dressing room. Manish Pandey hit the winning runs remaining unbeaten on 36.

A look at the player ratings for the third ODI held at the Holkar Cricket Stadium:

Rohit Sharma – 8.5/10

The Mumbaikar entertained everyone with his effortless stroke play during the chase. He looked in a different zone when he came out to bat and smacked as many as four sixes in his knock of 71 which needed just 62 balls to complete. He also struck six boundaries, some of them very classical shots, but ended up losing his wicket while trying to clear the fence again. His knock gave India the right impetus at the start of the innings chasing a total of 294.

Ajinkya Rahane – 8/10

Like Rohit, Rahane too was in a different zone when he came out to bat. He played freely and hit boundaries at will to score his second consecutive fifty in the series. Shikhar Dhawan is soon expected to return to the side hence it was inevitable for Rahane to score a big hundred here. He fell for a fine 76-ball 70.

Virat Kohli – 6.5/10

Kohli started his innings in typical Kohli fashion. He was busy the moment he arrived at the center and hit a gorgeous cover drive to get his innings underway. Usually, these are daunting signs for the opposition but Kohli played a strange, uncharacteristic shot to be holed out in the deep for 28. His leadership won him a lot of accolades as he backed his wrist spinners despite them going away for runs.

Hardik Pandya – 9/10

Pandya is the next big thing in Indian cricket and he justified that by hitting a brilliant 78 batting at No. 4. He departed when the side was more or less home, needing just 11 to win from 5 overs. The six-hitting machine swatted 4 sixes in this game from his willow and bowled decently with the ball to return with 1/58.

Kedar Jadhav – 1/10

Jadhav must realize that his chances are limited because of the fierce competition for places in the middle order. He played a silly shot on the second ball he faced but somehow survived only to be dismissed two balls later. He is a fine player but his slowness in the outfield coupled with a few inconsistent performances with the bat might cost him his place in the next game.

Manish Pandey – 8/10

Pandey was demoted tonight to bat at No. 6 but did a great job for his side by remaining unbeaten when the last runs were knocked off. Pandey has his own style of getting the runs and played a few unorthodox ones during his 32-ball stay at the crease. His catch to get rid of Peter Handscomb was another reason why he is persisted with by the Indian think-tank.

MS Dhoni – 8/10

Dhoni did not have much to do with the bat, as he faced just 6 balls off which he scored 3 not out. He was terrific yet again behind the stumps claiming another fine stumping off Chahal to get rid of Maxwell. The 36-year old can expect a promotion in the batting order in the next two games.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar – 8/10

If you are going at less than 5.50 runs an over in an ODI these days then you have done a fabulous job and ‘Bhuvi’ did just that. His first spell read 5-0-20-0. The 27-year old bowled well with the new ball and was used in two more spells by the skipper later during the innings. His effectiveness at the death is a huge plus for India as it was an area the team struggled a lot in the last few years.

Kuldeep Yadav – 6.5/10

Yadav went for a lot of runs in this game but was still brave enough to keep looking for wickets. That is what the bowlers have been told to do from their skipper Kohli. Figures of 10-0-75-2 might not read too well but the chinaman bowler bowled better than that. He picked crucial wickets of Finch and Smith which hurt the visitors a lot in the end overs.

Jasprit Bumrah – 8.5/10

Bumrah isn’t your everyday new ball bowler but he is doing a decent job with the new cherry. His expertise lies in the middle overs and at the death, where he is deadly accurate. His figures of 2/52 from 10 overs were exceptional on the day.

Yuzvendra Chahal – 7.5/10

Chahal, overall, bowled well but went for runs early in his spell. He did a fantastic job in pulling things back. He got the wicket of his former Mumbai Indians teammate Maxwell for the third straight time in the series. He bettered his figures by giving away just 4 runs in his last two overs besides taking a wicket.