Australia blown away by Indian batting masterclass, questions over tactics in the run chase

Despite contributions from Steve Smith, Usman Khawaja and Alex Carey, Australia were unable to chase down the 352 set by India's batting masterclass, a chase which moved at glacial speed early on despite the vast total needed. 

• Kohli's classy act in defence of Smith
• 'Only a matter of time before somebody is killed'

Australia's conservative batting game plan failed miserably against India with the slowest half-century of David Warner’s career summing up a run chase that never seriously threatened.

Warner took 77 balls to score 50 runs and, unlike Steve Smith, is yet to find his mojo since returning from his ball-tampering ban.

Smith’s 69 (70) delivered him half-centuries in seven out of his past eight World Cup games.

There has been little evidence of Warner’s reputation as one of the world’s most destructive white-ball players at the World Cup with the blaster still struggling with his footwork and facing 14 consecutive dot balls.

David Warner never got going in an usually restrained innings from the opener

While coach Justin Langer’s gameplan overhaul last December focussed on retaining wickets through the middle overs, the bizarre chase had Australia requiring 11 runs per over with eight wickets remaining in the 37th over.

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The wickets in hand then quickly disappeared when Australia lost 3/6 in seven balls as Steve Smith, Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell all departed.

Tournament favourite England prefers to go hard from ball one and the contrasting styles are likely to be hotly debated over the next month.

By the time Maxwell (28 off 14) and keeper Alex Carey (unbeaten 50 off 25) came out with all guns blazing, the match was effectively over.

Carey had faced just two dot balls when he posted his half-century.

Alex Carey took the attack to India but ran out of partners late in the chase.

“We were getting to the 40-over mark and we’re usually five or six wickets down, which doesn’t give us a launching pad to finish off the innings,” Langer recently told the Herald Sun of the new focus.Australia’s loss leaves New Zealand (3-0) and India (2-0) as the only unbeaten teams. South Africa and Afghanistan (both 0-3) are the only winless countries.

It was just Australia’s fourth loss from its past 47 World Cup games, a streak which has included trophies in 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2015.

It was also Australia’s first loss while chasing at a World Cup since a surprise early defeat at the hands of Pakistan in 1999, when Wasim Akram and Saqlain Mushtaq ripped through the batting order.

Australia was exposed with the ball, too. Every bowler conceded plenty of fours and one six, except Mitchell Starc, who conceded plenty of fours and three sixes.India’s 5/352 was the biggest score Australia has ever conceded at a World Cup.

SPIN WINS

This might be the stat that sums up Australia’s rapid improvement the best.

Last year Australia was an embarrassment in ODI cricket, largely because of its inability to face spin bowling. But after 12 months of intense focus the wheels are turning on turning deliveries. In 2018 Australia averaged 30.8 runs against spin. In 2019 Australia is averaging 49.6 runs against spin.

Against India they fared OK. Kuldeep Yadav went wicket-less and cost more than a run a ball while the dangerous Chalal claimed 2-62.

HYPHEN OUT?

Nathan Coulter-Nile is in danger of becoming the first player dropped from Australia’s World Cup team as the absence of injured quicks Jhye Richardson and Josh Hazlewood looms as major problem.

Indian openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan coolly survived against Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins and then thrived against third-seamer Coulter-Nile last night in a batting display rivals would’ve studied closely.

India’s textbook innings helped set a target of 359, which was the largest World Cup score ever conceded by the Aussies, in front of a sea of blue fans, with barely any Australian supporters in a sold-out crowd at London’s The Oval.

A selection change for Wednesday’s clash against Pakistan in Taunton would see one of Nathan Lyon, Jason Behrendorff or Kane Richardson make their World Cup debut.

Left-armer Behrendorff appears the most likely inclusion given his ability to swing the new ball and take early wickets, although coach Justin Langer is keen to blood Lyon at some stage. But Taunton’s short straight boundaries are likely to count against the off-spinner in Australia’s fourth World Cup game.

Jhye Richardson – who had dismissed Indian captain Virat Kohli four times from six games against India – withdrew from the World Cup after failing to overcome a dislocated shoulder last month. Hazlewood declared himself fit for the tournament after suffering a double stress fracture in his back but was not considered by selectors because he had played just three white-ball games for Australia in 18 months.

Australia’s lack of a third heavy duty bowler to support Starc and Cummins was exploited by India.  

The opening bowlers sent down 29 dot balls and conceded just one boundary in the first seven overs while a leaping Coulter-Nile almost held on to a superb catch that would’ve removed Sharma for two runs.

But Coulter-Nile conceded 14 runs in the eighth over, giving him figures of 0/30 from his past 10 balls at that stage.

Nathan Coulter-Nile had another difficult day with the ball in hand.

The powerful seamer – who made a record 92 runs batting at No.8 in Thursday’s win against West Indies – fought back to remove Sharma for 57 (70). It was the fourth time Coulter-Nile had dismissed Sharma in nine matches.

He has 1/169 after 28 World Cup overs although was unlucky not to pick up a second wicket last night when keeper Alex Carey put down Hardik Pandya on his first ball. The drop proved costly as Pandya creamed 48 (27).

Coulter-Nile feared after his blazing knock against West Indies he could still be in the selection gun, because he was in the team to take wickets and failed to do so in Australia’s first two wins.

WARNER LOSES HIS WHACK

David Warner has posted two half-centuries this World Cup, and they are the two slowest of his career. Against Afghanistan it took Warner 74 balls to reach the milestone and against India it took 77 balls.

That dynamic edge is missing, and so is Warner’s footwork with the batsman struggling to adapt after 14 months on the global T20 circuit.

He faced 14 consecutive dot balls against India and played a part in captain Aaron Finch getting run out. Yes, Australia’s new ODI gameplan places a premium on wickets, but that’s not the destructive Warner we know.

CLOSE YOUR MOUTHS AND OPEN YOUR EARS

Indian fans love Virat Kohli but they certainly don’t listen to him. Kohli told his fans to clap Steve Smith – instead of boo him – in a marvellous show of sportsmanship in the first innings. Did they listen? Nope.

Virat Kohli's calls for Indian fans to go easy on Steve Smith fell on deaf ears.

Smith was booed heavily as he came out to bat, despite Indian fans loving the former captain just two months ago when he was lighting up the Indian Premier League.

“Cheater, cheater, cheater” they relentlessly chanted in spite of Kohli’s instructions. Respect for Kohli, although you have to wonder, if he can’t get through to Indian cricket fans, who can?

COOL YOUR JETS ON ADAM’S WARMERS

A video of Adam Zampa is doing the social media rounds questioning what the legspinner has in his pocket.

“Are Australia up to old tricks again?” the post reads, with a video of Zampa putting his hand in his right pocket and then back on the ball. The short clip has 85,000 views and has sent fans across the globe into a spin.

But they can all relax. Zampa keeps hand warmers in his pockets, and always has. Nothing untoward was happening.

MELBOURNE’S SHIKHAR DHAWAN ON SONG

Shikhar Dhawan was unstoppable for India. The opener smashed his third World Cup  century at a venue he averages more than 100 at.

Dhawan cut three fours off Coulter-Nile’s first over to set up his magnificent 117 (109), which was his 16th ODI century Dhawan took an early blow to the thumb, courtesy of Pat Cummins. He responded by going the knuckle on the bowlers, pulling, cutting, driving, and, this being a one-dayer, ramping.

When he’s not playing international cricket he lives at Melbourne’s Fountain Gate.

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Originally published as Australia blown away by Indian batting masterclass, questions over tactics in the run chase