"Back spasm loading for Axar Patel"- Fans react after Ravichandran Ashwin's impressive match-winning spell in 2nd ODI vs Australia ahead of World Cup
Team India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin put on a match-defining performance in the second ODI against Australia on Sunday (September 24) in Indore. He picked up three crucial wickets in the second innings to help India register a comfortable 99-run win against the Australian side.
On the back of centuries from Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer, India notched up 399/5 in 50 overs after being asked to bat first. KL Rahul (52) and Suryakumar Yadav (72*) also chipped in with blazing knocks.
In response, Australia reached 56/2 in nine overs when rain intervened. After resumption, their revised target was 317 in 33 overs (DLS method). Ravichandran Ashwin then troubled the batters consistently with turn and also his variations.
He picked up crucial wickets of Marnus Labuschagne, David Warner, and Josh Inglis in a couple of overs to reduce Austalia to 101/5 in a steep chase. The visitors failed to recover from there and went on to lose the match by 99 runs.
Fans were highly impressed with Ashwin's magnificent spell in the second ODI and called for his inclusion in the ODI World Cup squad. Here are some of the best reactions on X:
"The quality of finger spinners in your team does help you"- Indian captain KL Rahul on Ashwin and Jadeja's spells in 2nd ODI
At the post-match presentation, KL Rahul hailed Ashwin and Jadeja for dismantling the Australian batting line-up by extracting a considerable amount of spin in the chase. He said:
"I didn't think the wicket would spin this much when I went into bat or saw the wicket in the morning. The quality of finger spinners in your team does help you. Defending 400 gives you a bit of confidence and It was a different game after it started spinning."
On the team's fielding issues, Rahul continued:
"We dropped a couple of catches and it's hard to get used to the lights when you are traveling every two days. Fielding is directly related to how fit and fresh you are."
On team composition for the next game, he added:
"It's a headache for the coach and Rohit when he comes back. The roles are clear whoever gets picked up. Sitting out can be hard after scoring a lot of runs and that's how it works. "
India and Australia will meet in the third and final ODI of the series on Wednesday (September 27) in Rajkot.