Indore: Virat Kohli, who has had a very good time as the Indian skipper is on the verge of equalling MS Dhoni’s record when his team takes on Australia in the third ODI in Indore on Sunday.
If India manage to win the match, then Kohli would have nine consecutive ODI wins as captain, a feat which his predecessor Dhoni had achieved way back in 2008-2009. They had last lost an ODI against the West Indies in Antigua and ever since then, the Men in Blue have been on a rampage in the 50-over format, blanking Sri Lanka 5-0 and already having secured a 2-0 lead against the mighty Aussies at home. Ever since the 28-year-old has put on the captain’s hat for India, he has shattered records and has taken the team to new heights and he would look to cross another major milestone in his career when India play Australia tomorrow.
As a team, the Indians have been performing extremely well of late with everyone putting in their contributions when it mattered the most. In the first ODI in Chennai, Hardik Pandya and MS Dhoni stepped up when the rest of the batting failed and ensured that a decent total is put on the board. In the second game, it was Kohli who played a captain’s knock and when Australia were batting in pursuit of India’s 252, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal starred with the ball to bamboozle the Australian batsmen and leave them 2-0 in the series.
In the third ODI, the hosts would want to keep things simple and perform the same way they’ve been doing so till now. But for the Australian side, things haven’t been going in the right track at all. While their bowling unit has performed well in both the matches, restricting the batting heavy Indian side to under 300, their batsmen have failed miserably.
In the first game in Chennai, they couldn’t chase down 164 in 21 overs, and in the second, they failed to cross the line once again as they fell short by 50 runs. Their batting hasn’t complemented their bowling performance and that is perhaps the reason why they now find themselves 2-0 in the series with the third match on Sunday being a do-or-die game for them.
Smith would look to put aside the team’s recent failure in ODI’s outside Australia and aim to perform well in all the departments of the game if they are to challenge India in the series. The batting unit needs to fire as a unit and complement the bowling effort if the world champions are to make a comeback in the five-match ODI series.
A lot is at stake for the Australians when they take the field in the third ODI on Sunday. Virat Kohli, on the other hand would aim to keep on doing the good work he has done so far with the team and not let a golden chance of sealing the series go in vain. An exciting contest awaits us.