Zeenews Bureau
Brisbane, Feb 03: S The ODI between India and Australia was called off on Friday due to rain here. The match was the tri-series opener between India, Australia and Sri Lanka. Both teams got two points each from the tie. Earlier Brett Lee rattled Indian batting to claim his seventh five wicket haul in ODIs.
India batted poorly through a rain-interruption to be all
out for 194 from their curtailed 45 overs and then their
bowlers raised hopes as australia lost three wickets on way to
51 from 7.2 overs before rain washed out the remainder of the
match.
Ishant sharma and S Sreesanth were breathing fire,
managing lift and movement, which made Australia`s target of
141 runs from 26 overs off a revised Duckworth Lewis system
not as straightforward as it looked at one time.
Australia were 33 for one from four overs when the first
interruption occurred and the resumption lasted only 3.2 overs
before the final heavy downpour came.
Earlier India made a disappointing 194 from their 45
overs.
Both the teams got two points each from the abandoned
tie.
India meet Sri Lanka in their next outing on Tuesday.
Earlier, India chose to bat first on winning the toss and
only a late flourish in the final eight overs that yielded 66
runs brought them this far.
Pace man Brett Lee with five for 27 was the main destroyer
for the Australians.
India were 128 for six from 36 overs when rain stopped
their innings for close to an hour before it relented and the
match was reduced to 45 overs a side.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who had pottered for 14 runs from
41 balls till the break, flourished thereafter to make 37 from
61 balls with one four.
Dhoni shared two important stands of 45 runs with Irfan
Pathan (21) for the seventh wicket and 42 runs with Harbhajan
Singh (27) for the following wicket.
Harbhajan, who received now his customary booing on
arrival at the crease from the stands, struck a valiant 27
from 19 balls with three fours.
He took 15 runs in the final over from left-arm paceman
Nathan bracken.
Dhoni holed out at mid-off and Harbhajan slashed, both
wickets falling to lee who got only the seventh five-wicket
haul of his 161-match career.
The one significant stand earlier was of 65 runs from 78
balls between Gautam Gambhir (39) and Rohit Sharma (29) for
the third wicket that repaired India`s early damage of losing
both the openers for 26 runs.
The sight of Sachin Tendulkar (10) and Virender Sehwag
(6) striding out to open offered a degree of comfort and when
the latter lofted lee straight down the ground, it offered
hope.
Sehwag then once again tried to cut a delivery which was
too close to him, and rising, and the under-edge rattled his
leg-stump.
Tendulkar deliberately steered Nathan bracken past slips
for a four but he then he went too back to lee and strode on
to his stumps to have India reeling at 26 for two in the
seventh over.
Gambhir and Sharma repaired the damage to an extent and a
few of their strokes were from the highest drawer.
They took a heavy toll on newcomer Ashley Noffke, hitting
him for two fours each in his first two overs.
Gambhir greeted his first delivery with a square cut four
and then slashed hard at home which hit the point pickets
after two bounce.
Sharma, on his part, played two dazzling shots in
Noffke`s next over, driving through covers off the front foot
and then square cutting him for similar effect.
Gambhir had two reprieves off successive deliveries on
24, dropped in slips by Michael Hussey and Ricky Ponting off
left-arm paceman Mitchell Johnson.
He then drove Johnson straight down the ground for a four
before missing the line of a straight delivery to be adjudged
leg before wicket. He made 39 off 51 balls with four fours.
It started a slide for the Indians who lost four wickets
in a space of 11 runs.
Sharma departed close on heels, attempting a square cut
off a lee delivery and edging a catch behind the stumps. He
made 29 from 43 ballls and smashed five fours.
Debutant Manoj Tiwary struggled to find his bearing and
lee put him out of misery with a yorker which went past his
defensive bat on to the stumps.
India were soon six down for 102 when Robin Uthappa (5)
played off the backfoot and the bouncing ball took a slice off
his bat to loop up for Michael Clarke at point.
Australia began well with James Hopes (17) and Adam
Gilchrist (14) scoring at a brisk pace before the Australian
stumper-batsman walked after a Sreesanth delivery had kissed
his gloves en route to Dhoni.
Ishant then castled hopes with a peach of a delivery and
Sreesanth returned Ricky Ponting (0), who was caught by Sehwag
in the slips.
Teams:
India: Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Rohit Sharma, Manoj Tiwary, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, S Sreesanth, Ishant Sharma
Australia: Adam Gilchrist, James Hopes, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke, Andrew Symonds, Mike Hussey, Brad Haddin, Brett Lee, Nathan Bracken, Ashley Noffke, Mitchell Johnson
