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In a tight opening series, Josh Inglis hit his first
T20I century, but Suryakumar Yadav replied brilliantly in his leadership debut
to lead India against Australia.
In batting-friendly circumstances in Visakhapatnam,
just four days after playing a part in Australia’s World Cup victory, Inglis
destroyed a redesigned India attack with 110 off 50 balls.
Along with Steven Smith, who hit 52 and was the only
other Australian player to make it past the World Cup final, he controlled a
second-wicket stand of 130.
However, Suryakumar also dismissed World Cup fatigue
with a fierce 80 off 42 balls. Following Suryakumar’s demise, there was a
dramatic turn of events as India lost a number of wickets and need one run from
the last delivery.
Both clubs having subpar squads has served as a
constant source of ridicule for the tight scheduling of this series. However,
there were a lot of players with a lot on the line, especially with the T20
World Cup little over six months away.
Inglis and Smith had arguments to make. Smith enjoyed
a grassless pitch and a speedy outfield with three boundaries when he opened a
Twenty20 international for the first time. However, he was utterly surpassed by
a rampaging Inglis, who entered at No. 3 following the loss of opener Matthew
Short in the fifth over. As a specialist batter, Inglis began with a boundary
off the first ball, and he didn’t let up. Captain Matthew Wade took the gloves.
He used his entire arsenal of strokes to tease with
the quicks and spinners around the wicket. Inglis’ excellent knock was
accentuated by his precise placement, and he showed that he enjoyed digging
deep into his crease to hit over extra cover.
After reaching his century in 47 balls, Inglis matched
the record held by Aaron Finch, which was established ten years prior.
Suryakumar, who was captaining India for the first
time after leading Mumbai in domestic cricket 36 times across forms, had a
difficult initiation.
In the powerplay, he took the initiative to rotate his
bowlers, bringing spinners Axar Patel and Ravi Bishnoi into the attack. But in
the face of Inglis’s assault, Suyakumar had to resort to giving his team a pep
talk during the drink break because nothing was working.
In the World Cup final, Suryakumar did not relish
batting on a sluggish Ahmedabad surface. He could do little to counter
Australia’s cunning plan of bowling slower bouncers.
Suryakumar, who was up against a subpar Australian
onslaught, much appreciated this harsher surface. After knocking out Ruturaj
Gaikwad without facing a delivery and Yashasvi Jaiswal early on, he smashed two
sixes off his opening six balls to put India back on track.
Ishan Kishan, a wicketkeeper-battler who only
participated in two World Cup games, provided him with strong support. After
Kishan was removed, they hammered out a 112-run partnership, with Suryakumar
leading the way with his signature onslaught to every part of the pitch. In an
unforgettable leadership debut, he also conquered cramping.