Top 5 bowling performances by Indians in ODIs vs Australia ft. Sachin Tendulkar
India will play Australia in a three-match ODI series starting tomorrow. The matches will be played at Mohali, Indore and Rajkot. The two teams will also play their opening World Cup match at the Chepauk Stadium in Chennai.
This rivalry is still heavily lopsided (82-54) in Australia's favour, although it has been very competitive in the past decade. We have witnessed several classics over the years, with some of the best players in the world competing against each other.
On that note, we look at the five best bowling performances for India against Australia in the 50-over format.
#5 Sachin Tendulkar - 5/32, Kochi 1998
India won the toss and elected to bat first in the Pepsi Triangular Series. Despite losing the openers Sidhu and Tendulkar cheaply, the team posted a brilliant first-innings total of 309/5. Ajay Jadeja (105*), Mohammad Azharuddin (82) and Hrishikesh Kanitkar (57) were the major contributors to India's innings.
Australia were cruising along at 203/3 in the 32nd over of the innings. However, Sachin Tendulkar stepped up big time with the ball in hand. He bowled a mixture of off-spin and medium pace, causing problems for the Australian middle order.
Australia collapsed to 268 all-out in the next 13 overs. Tendulkar took the wickets of Bevan, Waugh, Lehmann, Moody and Martyn. He was adjudged the Player of the Match for his game-changing effort with the ball.
#4 Ravi Shastri - 5/15, Perth 1991
Left-arm spin bowling all-rounder and former India head coach Ravi Shastri has had his fair share of iconic moments on Australian soil. However, this is definitely one of his standout bowling performances in limited-overs cricket. India won the toss and elected to bat first in the Benson & Hedges World Series.
They scored 208/7 in the first innings, as Kris Srikkanth top-scored with a run-a-ball 60. In response, Australia were never really in the game as they kept losing wickets throughout their innings. Shastri's fifer helped clean up the lower middle order and the tail, starting with Steve Waugh and Ian Healy. India won the match by 107 runs.
#3 Yuzvendra Chahal - 6/42, Melbourne 2019
Wrist-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal was a key part of the Indian ODI team in Virat Kohli's captaincy. His partnership with Kuldeep Yadav proved to be a menace for the opponents - home and away. The visitors won the toss and elected to bat first in the final ODI of the series, which was the series decider.
Australia were comfortably poised at 100/2 in 23 overs after losing two early wickets. However, Chahal dismissed both Shaun Marsh and Usman Khawaja in the 24th over. He followed it up with the wicket of the dangerous Marcus Stoinis. He also got rid of Jhye Richardson, Peter Handscomb, and Adam Zampa in the death overs - cleaning up the tail effectively.
India were able to chase down the target of 231 runs successfully with seven wickets and 4 balls to spare. Chahal was announced as the Player of the Match for his game-changing spell in the middle overs of the innings.
#2 Ajit Agarkar - 6/42, Melbourne 2004
Ajit Agarkar is the only fast bowler to make this list. The current chief selector of the Indian team is one of the highest wicket-takers in India's ODI history. While he was not the most economical bowler, he was certainly a strike bowler besides being a handy lower-order batter.
Australia won the toss and elected to bat first. They were batting aggressively right from the start of their innings. However, Agarkar's spell meant they lost 3 wickets in the space of just 11 deliveries - Gilchrist, Hayden and Martyn. At the death, he again dismissed the top-scorer Andrew Symonds and then cleaned up the tail.
The visitors eventually lost the game by 18 runs despite half-centuries from Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar. They collapsed from 168/2 to 270 all-out, failing to finish the chase despite a terrific start at the top.
#1 Murali Kartik - 6/27, Wankhede 2007
Murali Kartik held the record for the best bowling figures by a left-arm spinner for over a decade until Kuldeep Yadav eventually bettered it. The left-arm orthodox spinner played 37 ODIs, where he took 37 wickets. The hosts lost the toss and were asked to bowl first.
Australia started off extremely well despite Clarke's dismissal off the first delivery of the game. They were cruising along at 117/2 in the 20th over of the innings. However, Kartik dismissed Brad Hodge and Andrew Symonds off consecutive deliveries. He was extremely economical throughout his spell, giving nothing away to the visitors.
Kartik later dismissed Brad Haddin, Brad Hogg, Brett Lee and James Hopes after the first 30 overs of the innings. This did not allow Australia to recover from the middle overs collapse at any stage of the game. India went on to win the game by just 2 wickets and 4 overs to spare. The series ended 4-2 in Australia's favour.