India vs Australia Highlights, 2023 World Cup: 3 moments that generated buzz among fans in Match 5
India overcame a tricky hurdle to complete a comfortable win in the end over Australia by six wickets in their 2023 World Cup opener at the Chepauk on Sunday, October 8.
A stunning top-order collapse saw the Men in Blue in a precarious situation at 2/3. However, thanks to the good work done by the bowlers, they were only chasing 200 to win. Star batters like Virat Kohli (85) and KL Rahul (97*) stepped up to ensure that they got over the line without any further hiccups.
Australia will be disappointed with the way their batters applied themselves against the spinners on what was certainly not a rank-turner in Chennai. They had India on the mat with the ball, but just couldn't quite get the job done.
On that note, let's take a look at three moments from the game that grabbed the attention of fans on social media:
#3 Ravindra Jadeja triggering Australia's collapse
The pitch in Chennai had a bit of grip in it for the spinners with the odd ball turning a bit. This was just the kind of surface that made Ravindra Jadeja twice the bowler he is.
Jadeja ended up with sensational figures of 3/28 in his 10 overs with the big wickets of Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, and Alex Carey. Smith could only smile in disbelief as Jadeja turned him inside out to get clean-bowled by an absolute peach.
Labuschagne was done by extra bounce while Carey was trapped in front, pegging Australia back further. Both these wickets fell in the same over and that made it almost certain that the Aussies weren't going to get to a massive score that the platform laid by David Warner and Steve Smith suggested.
#2 India's top-order collapse, again!
The horror show of the 2019 World Cup semifinal in Manchester seemed to be happening again as India got off to the worst possible start to their chase of 200. Four years ago, they were 5/3 against New Zealand, and that proved to be one of the main reasons why they lost the semifinal.
There was a feeling of deja vu among the fans when India slumped to 2/3 and it seemed like Australia would run through their batting line-up. Ishan Kishan tried to go for an expansive drive and could only edge it to Cameron Green in the slips for a duck.
Rohit Sharma couldn't get bat to ball as he was trapped in front by Josh Hazlewood. The tall pacer struck twice in his over as Shreyas Iyer also followed after hitting straight into the hands of David Warner at short cover. The shock was evident among fans in the stadium as well as on social media as the scars of Manchester resurfaced.
#1 KL Rahul's reaction after winning runs
An outstanding partnership of 165 runs between Virat Kohli and KL Rahul helped India recover from a horrible start and beat the Aussies comfortably. The duo absorbed all the pressure and once the ball got softer and the pitch eased out under lights, they began playing their shots with more freedom.
While Kohli got dismissed for 85, Rahul had a chance to get to his hundred. However, with five needed to win, he timed a ball so well that it went for a six over cover. Rahul's reaction went viral as he had mixed feelings about having won the game but also having missed out on a World Cup hundred.
Fans tried to relate Rahul's 97* with the 97 runs that Gautam Gambhir had made in the 2011 World Cup final and praised the Indian wicketkeeper-batter for his incredible effort.
To watch the highlights of the game, click here.