Hardik Pandya put up a great show smashing 90 runs, his personal best. Still, the Australian team outperformed India in every sector of the game-winning the opening match of the ODI series.
Highlights:
- Australia won the first One Day International cricket match of the series beating India by 66 runs.
- The 20,000-strong crowd enjoyed every moment of the match reacting to all the happenings on the ground.
- Aron Finch and Steve Smith scored centuries for their team.
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Charged environment
Over 20,000 fans were present in the stands with a 50 per cent capacity rule in place due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
However, with fans cheering for their teams, Indian and Australian flags hurling in the stands and audiences dancing to the tunes of music, it was a charged environment in the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Most of the fans were happy that cricket is back after a pandemic-ridden winter.
"We are so happy to be back in the stadium," one fan told SBS Radio.
"I have been yearning for the cricket to restart. I am so happy to see my favourite players on the ground."
During the match, from 'Kohli Kohli' chants to roars when David Warner was given out, fans made their voices heard in the stands.
Source: Vivek Asri/SBS
Finch and Smith received standing ovations for their centuries while Mitchel Starc was booed for a full-toss ball which was not given a 'No-ball'.
Players and the fans together paid their tributes to the late Dean Jones and Phillip Hughes.
Shikhar Dhawan of India drops Aaron Finch of Australia at the SCG in Sydney, Friday, November 27, 2020. Source: AAP
Indian players' poor performance
First, with the ball and then with the bat, Indian players performed poorly in all sectors of the game.
Indian ballers proved ineffective in front of Australian batsmen leading the Aussie team to score a massive 374 runs. Star batsmen Aron Finch and Steve Smith scored centuries. Smith's 105 runs came only in 66 balls with 11 fours and 4 sixers.
Almost all of the Indian ballers failed to contain the runs with YS Chahal topping the list of expensive ballers. Australian batsmen scored 89 runs in his 10 overs losing only one wicket to him.
Shikhar Dhawan of India tries to stop the ball with his foot from hitting the wickets during the first ODI cricket match. Source: AAP Image/Dean Lewins
Md Shami was the best among the worst giving 59 runs in 10 overs for 3 wickets.
Chasing a huge target, the Indian team started with a bang scoring an electrifying 50 in just 5 overs; and all the batsmen maintained the momentum throughout with a high run rate. However, they failed to save their wickets with India losing its 4 wickets in just about 100 runs, leaving the middle-order batsmen under massive pressure.
Hardik Pandya put up a great show and scored 90 runs in 76 balls. Through a long and stable partnership with opener Shikhar Dhawan, he boosted the confidence of the Indian fans that it could be a close game. The pair played almost 20 overs taking the score to 229 runs for 4 wickets. However, first Dhawan and then Pandya succumbed to Adam Zampa's flighted deliveries.
Hardik Pandya of India during the first ODI cricket match between Australia and India at the SCG in Sydney, Friday, November 27, 2020. Source: AAP Image/Dean Lewins
"Indian batsmen are still in T20 mode," some fans could be heard saying in the stands.
Virat Kohli congratulates Jasprit Bumrah of India for taking the wicket of Aaron Finch at the SCG in Sydney, Friday, November 27, 2020. Source: AAP
The great Australian show
From scoring a massive 374 runs and then stopping India at 308, Australian players outperformed Indian team. They gave Australian fans many opportunities to cheer and enjoy the first international cricket game of the summer.
"I am happy the cricketing summer has started with full colours," an Aussie fan told SBS.
Post-match, Indian skipper Virat Kohli said the body language of his side was not disappointing.
Steve Smith of Australia celebrates his 100 during the first ODI cricket match between Australia and India at the SCG in Sydney, Friday, November 27, 2020. Source: AAP Image/Dean Lewins
"We got enough time to prepare, I don't think there's any excuses on the field when you don't pull up as a side. Probably the first long game we've played in a while.
"I think body language on the field after 25-26 overs was disappointing. We have to find ways to get few big innings part-timers. We wanted to play positive cricket. We just needed to have a big innings from the top three, 130 or 140, which didn't happen, unfortunately," said Kohli.
Indian supporters celebrate after taking the wicket of David Warner at the SCG in Sydney, Friday, November 27, 2020. Source: AAP
Anti-Adani protesters halted the game
The much-awaited cricket match was briefly stopped when two anti-Adani coal mine activists ran onto the pitch at the Sydney Cricket Ground holding 'Stop Adani' banners.
Players immediately stopped the game as the two protesters held a banner up to spectators.
The protestors called on the State Bank of India to rule out loaning Adani $1 billion for its Carmichael coal mine in central Queensland's Galilee Basin.
Some spectators cheered for the protestors while others booed them.
Aaron Finch of Australia looks on as a pitch invader protesting against the Adani Coal Mine stands in the middle of the SCG during the first ODI cricket match. Source: AAP Image/Dean Lewins
The incident happened when 7th over was in progress. Navdeep Saini had bowled 5th delivery of the match when the first protester came running towards the players.
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