Twitter reacts as Maxwell's century blasts off Australia to their first ever T20I series win in India
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The first T20I at Vishakapatnam against India and Australia was a low-scoring thriller and Glenn Maxwell's half-century ensured that the visitors edged past the line. Just like the first match, Maxwell was Australia's savior as he scored an unbeaten century, which helped Australia sweep the series 2-0.
Australia, once again, won the toss and chose to bowl first with an unchanged XI. India, on the other hand, made three changes - Shikhar Dhawan in for Rohit Sharma, Siddharth Kaul in for Umesh Yadav, and Vijay Shankar in for Mayank Markande.
Indian openers Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul got off to a decent start with the latter playing the role of an aggressor. In his 26-ball 47-run innings, Rahul hit a total of four sixes and compensated for Dhawan's slow-paced approach. The duo added 61 runs for the first wicket but could not bat deep into the innings.
Rishabh Pant, who came in next, could not create much impact as a stunning catch by Jhye Richardson put an end to his innings. The three quick wickets did not have much effect on the innings as India's batting stalwarts, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni, blasted the Australian bowlers to all parts of the ground.
The experienced duo added 100 runs off just 50 balls and helped India post a massive total. While Dhoni got out off the first ball of the last over after scoring a 23-ball 40, Kohli remained unbeaten and ensured that India the innings on a high by hitting a six off the last ball. The Indian skipper was the team's highest scorer with 72 runs to his name.
During the chase, Siddharth Kaul and Vijay Shankar sent back the dangerous Marcus Stoinis and Aaron Finch in the third and fourth over respectively. The two wickets meant that Maxwell joined Darcy Short in the middle. For the third wicket, the duo added 73 runs before Short got out in the twelfth over for 40 off 28 balls.
Even the departure of his partner did not affect Maxwell's batting. The Victorian batsman plundered the Indian bowling unit to all parts of the ground and registered his third T20I hundred in just fifty balls. With this century, he became the first Australian to reach triple-digit scores thrice in the shortest format of the game.
Here's how Twitter reacted to India's series loss: