3 Indian players who flopped in the 2nd ODI vs Australia
Riding on the back of a terrific spell from Mitchell Starc, Australia hammered Team India by 10 wickets in the second ODI in Vishakhapatnam on Sunday, March 19, to level the series.
There were barely any notable performances for the Men in Blue. Virat Kohli and Axar Patel were the only batters to cross the 25-run mark, while the latter was the only bowler to have an economy rate under 9.5. Several home players turned in miserable performances.
Here are three Indian players who flopped in the second ODI against Australia.
#3 Rohit Sharma
The Indian captain must take some responsibility for such a shambolic performance. Rohit Sharma took over the reins for the second ODI after missing the first but oversaw a terrible defeat that started with top-order failures.
Mitchell Starc was always going to set the Indian captain up with a concoction of inswingers and outswingers. Rohit survived 15 balls, which was the second-highest number in the top six, but eventually chased at one that was well outside off to nick it behind.
Just the ball before, the opener had left one that was angled across him alone. Rohit's dismissal left the Men in Blue in a spot of bother and also exposed Suryakumar Yadav to a rampaging Starc.
#2 Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill has nailed down his spot in India's ODI side, but his dismissals this series have been unbecoming of a batter of his caliber.
Gill has been almost identically dismissed by Starc in the two ODIs. He has spooned catches to Marnus Labuschagne at backward point after chasing full and wide ones without any foot movement. The opener hasn't been able to get close to the ball and has hit his drives very uppishly.
The fact that Gill got out in this fashion in Vishakhapatnam was made worse because it was in the very first over when he was well aware of the threat posed by Starc. The youngster needs to step up and weather the new-ball spell before attempting any loose shots in the decider.
#1 Hardik Pandya
Hardik Pandya surrended his captaincy to Rohit as the regular Indian skipper returned, and he also seemed to have lost his golden touch. The all-rounder made virtually no contribution with either bat or ball in the second ODI.
Hardik walked in to bat with the score reading 48/4 and desperately needed to play some sensible cricket. However, he is generally not the man you want out in the middle when the ball is moving around.
The right-hander carelessly fished at one outside off to edge the ball wide of first slip, where Steve Smith covered ground with a fabulous dive and plucked a one-handed stunner.
The Men in Blue slumped to 49/5 within the powerplay as Hardik failed to last more than three balls. He had the chance to slightly redeem himself with the ball, but his only over cost 18 runs as Mitchell Marsh smashed him for three huge sixes.
It was a disappointing outing for India's star all-rounder.