IND vs AUS 2022: 5 memorable T20I bowling performances by Team India against Australia
After a forgettable Asia Cup 2022 campaign, Team India will be keen to make amends when they take on Australia at home in the upcoming three-match series. The Men in Blue will face the Aussies from September 20 to 25, with three T20Is to be played in Mohali, Nagpur, and Hyderabad.
The T20I series will be crucial for Team India to figure out their best playing combination, considering only a handful of matches are left before the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia. The ICC event will get underway on October 16 and end on November 13.
A majority of Indian players named in the 15-member T20 World Cup squad will be part of the Australian series. As such, they will be keen to come up with impressive performances and boost their confidence ahead of the mega tournament.
India and Australia have so far taken on each other in 23 T20Is. The Men in Blue have a slight edge in the head-to-head race, having won 13 games, while Australia have won nine. One of the T20Is between the teams produced no result. At home, India have won four and lost three of their seven matches.
As Team India gear up to take on Australia, we look back at five impressive T20I bowling performances by the Men in Blue against the Aussies.
#5 Jasprit Bumrah (3/16) - 1st T20I in Visakhapatnam, February 2019
Team India speedster Jasprit Bumrah returned with impressive figures of 3/16 in Visakhapatnam in the first T20I of the two-match series in 2019. Bumrah’s excellent effort was in vain, though, as Australia chased down the target of 127 off the last ball with three wickets in hand.
While Glenn Maxwell smashed 56, Bumrah gave the Aussies some nervous moments in the chase, trapping opposition skipper Aaron Finch lbw for a golden duck.
Peter Handscomb (13) then top-edged the pacer to the keeper, while Nathan Coulter-Nile (four) was knocked over by a yorker. However, Pat Cummins (seven*) and Jhye Richardson (seven*) took Australia over the line in a tense finish.
#4 Krunal Pandya (4/36) - 3rd T20I in Sydney, November 2018
Left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya impressed with figures of 4/36 in the Sydney T20I during the 2018/19 series. Australia won the toss and batted first in the third match of the three-game series. Krunal’s brilliance restricted the hosts to 164/6 in 20 overs.
Krunal trapped the well-set D'Arcy Short lbw for 33 off 29 balls. He was on a hat-trick as Ben McDermott (0) missed his sweep and was also given out leg before. Maxwell’s (13) attempted big hit off the left-arm spinner ended in the hands of the long-on fielder. Krunal had his fourth when Alex Carey (27) smashed a tossed-up delivery to deep midwicket.
For his superb figures of 4/36, Krunal Pandya was named Player of the Match in the third T20I between Australia and India.
What a spell from the newbie! https://t.co/uELZwHyq7N
Chasing 165, Team India were guided home by Virat Kohli (61* off 41). Shikhar Dhawan smashed 41 off 22 at the start, while Dinesh Karthik contributed an unbeaten 22 off 18. The Men in Blue eased home to a six-wicket win with two balls to spare.
#3 Yuzvendra Chahal (3/25) - 1st T20I in Canberra, December 2020
When the first T20I of the 2020-21 series began in Canberra, leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal was not part of India's playing XI. However, an injury to Ravindra Jadeja (44* off 23) during his batting stint saw him being substituted by the leg-spinner. It proved to be a blessing in disguise as Chahal claimed 3/25 to star in Team India’s 11-run victory.
After India put up a competitive 161 for seven batting first, Chahal’s heroics restricted the Aussies to 150/7. The leg-spinner ended the opening partnership of 56 by having Finch (35) caught with a lobbed-up delivery outside off-stump. He then got the other big fish of Steven Smith (12), who slogged the spinner, only to be brilliantly caught at deep midwicket.
Chahal had his third when Matthew Wade (seven) top-edged a sweep to deep midwicket. Debutant left-arm seamer T Natarajan also claimed 3/30 as India’s bowlers dominated the Aussie batters to take the crucial 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
#2 Jasprit Bumrah (3/23) - 1st T20I in Adelaide, January 2016
Bumrah claimed 3/23 on his T20I debut as Team India thumped the Aussies by 37 runs in Adelaide in the first T20I of the three-match series in 2015-16. The Men in Blue were sent into bat after losing the toss, after which Kohli’s 55-ball 90* lifted them to an impressive 188/3.
Bumrah then picked up three wickets as the Aussies were bowled out for 151 in 19.3 overs. Australia got off to a blazing start in the chase, adding 47 in five overs. Bumrah broke the dangerous stand as David Warner (17) dragged a pull to mid-on.
#OnThisDay in 2016, 2 Member of @mipaltan
@hardikpandya7 and @Jaspritbumrah93 made their T20I debut against Aus.
Bumrah made an immediate impact with 3/23. Pandya got the wickets of Lynn and Wade while conceding 37.
Pandy caught Boyce on Bumrah bowling.
We won by 37 runs⚡⚡ https://t.co/gS5yXpT3eL
He returned at the death to clean up James Faulkner (10) with a yorker. Bumrah ended the game by having Cameron Boyce (three) caught at mid-off off a slower ball. Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, and fellow debutant Hardik Pandya also chipped in with two scalps each.
#1 Ravichandran Ashwin (4/11) - T20 World Cup group match in Mirpur, March 2014
Seasoned off-spinner Ashwin claimed superb figures of 4/11 as Team India thumped Australia by 73 runs in the 2014 T20 World Cup group clash in Mirpur. The Aussies sent India into bat, after which Yuvraj Singh’s 60 enabled the Men in Blue to post 159 for 7.
Ashwin’s four-wicket haul saw Australia crumble to 86 in 16.2 overs in the chase. The off-spinner struck early as Finch (six) top-edged a slog towards mid-on. A struggling Warner (19 off 21) attempted to break free against Ashwin, but only managed to drag a catch to deep midwicket.
The smart offie had his third scalp when Maxwell (23 off 12) completed missed a reverse sweep and was bowled. It was Ashwin who deservedly put the finishing touches on a dominant display, having James Muirhead (three) caught behind.
Also Read: IND vs AUS 2022: “Hard pitches with true bounce” - Wasim Jaffer’s suggestion for Team India’s upcoming home T20I series