"Bengaluru guys might be thinking that he should have played like that for them as well" - Aakash Chopra on Glenn Maxwell's knock in IND vs AUS clash
Aakash Chopra has noted that the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) supporters might wonder why Glenn Maxwell didn't fire for them in this season's IPL as he did for Australia in their 2024 T20 World Cup clash against India. However, he added that the Aussie all-rounder couldn't sustain his exploits for long enough to take his side to a win.
India set Australia a 206-run target after being asked to bat first in a Super 8 clash in Saint Lucia on Monday, June 24. Although some of the Aussie batters, including Maxwell, played enterprising knocks, the Men in Blue restricted them to 181/7 to register a 24-run win, a result which eventually knocked Mitchell Marsh and company out of the tournament.
Chopra reflected on Australia's innings in a video shared on his YouTube channel. He noted that Maxwell was in a belligerent mood before he was bowled by Kuldeep Yadav.
"Maxi came sitting in a flying taxi. He doesn't play with the straight bat. Bengaluru guys might be thinking that he should have played like that for them as well, that what happens to him as soon as he wears the Australian jersey, he destroys Afghanistan at times and runs after our team on other occasions. However, he got out. Kuldeep Yadav sent him back," he said (6:30).
The former India opener observed that Marsh also looked threatening while leading a charmed life before Axar Patel got rid of him with a spectacular catch.
"Mitchell Marsh came at No. 3. Luck was in his favor slightly. There was a catch, it seemed like Rishabh Pant might reach there but he didn't. Then Arshdeep Singh dropped a caught and bowled and he kept hitting. When he got out, fell prey to Kuldeep Yadav, it wasn't a great ball but what a catch. Axar Patel - I am saying it was the catch of the tournament. I think that was a game-changing moment," Chopra elaborated (5:35).
Marsh scored 37 runs off 28 deliveries with the help of three fours and two sixes. Axar took a brilliant one-handed catch at deep square leg off Kuldeep's bowling to send the Aussie skipper back to the pavilion.
"It seems like he has a personal rancor against our team" - Aakash Chopra on Travis Head
Aakash Chopra noted that Travis Head seemed to be playing his usual match-defining innings against India.
"What should we do about Travis Head? What does he do? He does incredible things. When he comes to bat, it seems like he has a personal rancor against our team. He didn't open his account off the first three or four balls but once he opens his account, he hits three fours, and then keeps hitting," he said in the same video (5:15).
The cricketer-turned-commentator added that Rohit Sharma avenged his dismissal in the 2023 ODI World Cup final by taking Travis Head's catch off Jasprit Bumrah's bowling.
"On 19 November 2023, Rohit Sharma was batting incredibly well and then he hit a shot off Maxi and Travis Head took an amazing catch. Here Bumrah came to bowl, Head was batting on 76, the ball went up in the air and who was the fielder at cover - Rohit Sharma," Chopra observed.
"When Rohit Sharma took that catch and Travis Head was the batter, I said the shoe is in the other foot now. We got some solace after the heartache Head had given us. There was something poetic about it," he added.
Head's dismissal reduced Australia to 150/5 after 16.3 overs. Arshdeep Singh then got rid of Matthew Wade and Tim David in the next over to virtually end the 2021 T20 World Cup champions' hopes of registering a win.