India vs Australia 2019: 5 reasons that led to India's failure in the ODI series
When India finished the first two ODI games of the series with two straight wins, no one would have expected the shocking results that followed. The moment Kohli nicked the ball to the keeper, everyone in the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium were left disappointed knowing the outcome of the game and eventually the series.
The team, that won many limited-overs series in the recent past across different countries, faced a heartbreaking loss at home against the same opposition whom they thrashed at their own backyard not so long ago.
On the other hand, Australia would be a happier bunch after securing a comeback win from being 2-0 down.
Even though the Indian team are still among the front-runners to lift the World Cup this year, we would like to have a look into the reasons that would have led to this shocking series defeat.
Here are five reasons behind India's unexpected ODI series defeat at home against Australia.
#5 Unsettled middle-order
The middle-order seems like a bigger issue for the Indian cricket team heading into the bigger tournament of the year. As many as three options have been tried at No.4 in the form of Rayudu, Rahul and Rishabh Pant in the series and no one grabbed the spot for themselves.
The performances of Vijay Shankar, Kedhar Jadhav and even Bhuvaneshwar in the last game gave a glimpse of hope for the Indian side. However, it is not the lower middle order which actually troubles Kohli and men in their scheme of things.
Rayudu was good in patches in the earlier series but failed to capitalize on the same in home series.
The fact that he was unable to score big even in his home ground made matters worse for him. KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant were given very limited chances comparing Rayudu though. With just the IPL left before the World Cup, it is a million dollar question on who would be played at No. 4.