Rohit Sharma struck his 50th international hundred and Virat Kohli played a time-bending knock in possibly their last outing in Australia, propelling India to a consolation nine-wicket victory in the third ODI here on Saturday.
After Harshit Rana-led (4-39) bowlers restricted Australia to a below-par 236, Rohit (121 not out) and Kohli (74 not out) stitched a 168-run alliance in just 170 balls to take India to 237-1 in 38.3 overs.
Australia win series 2-1
Australia won the three-match series 2-1, but Rohit and Kohli gave the ecstatic Sydney crowd precisely what they wanted, while unfurling archetypal innings and in the process saved the team from an embarrassing whitewash.
Player of the Match and Player of the Series Rohit was all fluency and wholehearted shot-making, and Kohli resembled a mathematician solving a puzzle with meticulousness.
Shubman Gill
Once skipper Shubman Gill returned to the hut after helping his senior partner to milk 69 runs for the opening wicket, Rohit took over the chase in his inimitable manner and went on to produce his 33rd ODI century.
Rohit brought up his fifty in 63 balls, and the next 50 flowed in 42 balls as he batted with panache and aggression in equal measure.
Gill hailed Rohit and Kohli for the knocks: “We had a near-perfect game. The chase was pleasing to see. Rohit and Kohli have done it for so many years, and it was a delight to watch,” said Gill.
Ro-Ko’s tight embrace
Kohli, who made his fifty off 56 balls, soon had his old mate in a tight embrace as Rohit went past his 33rd ODI hundred in 105 balls. A few overs later, Kohli slammed Nathan Ellis for a four to take the match to its logical conclusion, and the Australian players crowded around him and Rohit to congratulate them.
Pacer Harshit Rana celebrates an Australian wicket during his 4-39 in Sydney on Saturday. PIC/Getty Images
Australian skipper Mitchell Marsh applauded Rohit and Kohli, but rued the fact that they could not convert a good platform of 195-3 with around 15 overs remaining. “We’ve seen Rohit and Virat do that over 10 years against lots of teams,” said Marsh.
‘No matter what accolades we’ve achieved, we still enjoy our cricket’
Rohit Sharma has always cherished playing in Australia and after a challenging ODI series against the old rivals, the former captain on Saturday admitted that there might not be another trip for him and Virat Kohli to their cricketing heartland.
“Always love coming here and playing here. Fond memories of 2008. I’m not sure if we’ll be coming back to Australia, but we enjoy our cricket no matter what accolades we gave achieved ni the past,” Rohit said after being named Player of the Match and Player of the Series.
Rohit hit a magnificent 121, while Kohli produced a 74-run knock in India’s victory. Kohli echoed the sentiment. “You might have played international cricket for a long time, but the game teaches you something at every stage. Situations in the middle bring out the best in me,” he said.
Shreyas Iyer to be out of action for minimum 3 weeks
India’s new ODI vice-captain Shreyas Iyer might be forced to remain out of action for minimum three weeks if not more after he sustained a “jerk” on his left rib cage while taking Alex Carey’s catch off Harshit Rana’s bowling during the third ODI in Sydney on Saturday. As of now, it can’t be ascertained whether he will be fit in time for India’s first ODI against South Africa in Ranchi on November 30.
Brief scores
Australia 236 all out in 46.4 overs (M Renshaw 56, M Marsh 41, M Short 30; H Rana 4-39, W Sundar 2-44) lost to India 237-1 in 38.3 overs (R Sharma 121*, V Kohli 74*; J Hazlewood 1-23) by 9 wickets
202
Total runs scored by Rohit Sharma in the three-match ODI series vs Australia, the most by any player @ 101.00
50
No of international centuries scored by Rohit Sharma (33 in ODIs, five in T20Is, and 12 in Tests)
14,255
Total number of runs scored by Virat Kohli, surpassing Kumar Sangakkara (14,234) to become the second-highest run-scorer in ODIs
12
No of 150-plus run stands between Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in ODIs — the joint-most with Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly
This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever