Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli stitched a crucial partnership to prevent Australia from completing a 3-0 clean sweep of India.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli turned the Sydney ground into a masterclass in the third match of the India vs Australia series, putting an end to any speculation surrounding their form. Together they scored an unbeaten 137 runs to give India victory and win the series 2-1. India easily achieved the target of 237 with just nine wickets in hand.
In this innings, Rohit Sharma completed 50 centuries in international cricket and scored an unbeaten 121 runs in his 50th century. With this hundred, he joined the list of great players who have scored 50 or more centuries in international cricket. Kohli had been dismissed for a duck in the previous two matches, so there was extra pressure on him this time. That’s why the relief and joy on his face after scoring his first run were clearly visible. Once he got going, he started scoring freely. Normally, Virat Kohli’s strike rate is usually around 60 to 70, but today he remained unbeaten on 74 runs at a strike rate of 91.36.
With this performance, he climbed to the second spot among the world’s highest run-scorers in ODIs, surpassing Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara. Only Sachin Tendulkar now stands above him — and Kohli seems determined to keep chasing that mark.
Mitchell Marsh won the toss and chose to bat first for only the second time in the last 27 matches. The last time he did that, Australia had scored a big total of 431 against South Africa. But today, Indian bowlers bowled really well and bowled out Australia for just 236 runs.
Harshit Rana was the star bowler, taking 4 wickets for 39 runs with great control and confidence. Washington Sundar and Axar Patel bowled tightly in the middle overs, and Kuldeep Yadav kept the Australian batters under pressure. Australia could never score freely, even though Matt Renshaw made his first ODI fifty and Mitchell Marsh scored a quick 41. After Renshaw got out on a review to Sundar, the rest of the team collapsed quickly and were all out for 236 in the 47th over.
The chase looked easy once Rohit and Shubman Gill started well in the PowerPlay. Gill got out early in the next phase, edging a ball from Hazlewood to the keeper, but that brought Kohli to the crease. The crowd cheered as he walked in with a smile and then full focus. Hazlewood tried to test him, but Kohli soon found his rhythm. His understanding with Rohit looked natural — quick running and perfect timing.
By the time Rohit scored his 33rd ODI century, the match was almost over. Kohli reached his half-century quietly, mixing singles with some lovely shots through the covers. He hit a ramp shot over fine leg to score the winning runs himself.
