Hello and welcome to Sportstar's live coverage of the World Cup 2019 match between India and Australia at The Oval in London.
India excelled in all three departments. Dhawan hammered a hundred while Kohli (82) and Hardik Pandya (48) propelled India to 353. Rohit Sharma, too, chipped in with a fifty. In the bowling department, Bhuvi, Bumrah and Chahal strangled Australia's run chase in the middle overs after David Warner and Steve Smith struck fifties to raise hopes of a win. India next faces New Zealand on Thursday. That would be all from our side. Night!
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Bhuvi to bowl the last over. Wicket No. 9. Mitchell Starc is run out first ball. That's surely the match for India. W, 1, 0 so far. Bhuvi snaps up Zampa; his third wicket as India wrap up a comprehensive 36-run win.
Bumrah's last over. Three dot balls. The walls closing in on Australia's run chase. What an over that. Just three off it. Bumrah today: 10-1-61-3
Carey moves to 49 with yet another boundary. Bhuvi bowling his ninth. 50 up for Carey off just 25 balls. Nine off the over. Australia needs 44 in 12 balls.
GONE! Third wicket for Bumrah and Cummins is caught behind. A wicket to finish the over. Nine from it. AUS 300/8 after 47 overs.
Bhuvi back for his eighth. Carey is playing a lovely little cameo: he has moved to 42 off 20 balls with a boundary. Seven from it in the end. AUS 291/7 after 46 overs.
Bumrah back into the attack. Coulter-Nile perishes and it's Bumrah once again doing the damage at the death. Wicket No. 7 for the Aussies. Six off the over. Cummins joins Carey. AUS 284/7 after 45 overs.
Chahal bowls out. An expensive last over. 13 off it, Carey getting a maximum down the ground. Pandya back into the attack. Four runs off four balls before Carey flat bats one past the long-on fielder for four. Nine off that over. Australia needs 75 runs in 36 balls . Pandya too has bowled out.
Five overthrows. KL Rahul the culprit. Bumrah back into the attack. Nine from that over. Australia needs 97 runs in 48 balls.
Chahal back into the attack. Outside edge races away for four. Maxwell departs next ball. HUGE WICKET this in context of the match and it's Chahal with the breakthrough. AUS 244/6 after 40.4 overs. Nine from the over. Coulter-Nile joins Carey.
GONE! There's the breakthrough. Bhuvi traps Smith in front. Indian fielders appeal for lbw, umpire says no. Kohli and Co. review and replays show three reds. Smith has to depart. Stoinis joins Maxwell. Timber! Bhuvi cleans up Stoinis. AUS 238/5 after 40 overs.
Maxwell's in the house. He's made up his mind here: takes on Bumrah and clobbers a boundary. Runs coming thick and fast for Australia: this time an inside edge off Smith's bat races away for four. Another boundary. Boy, Smith and Maxwell are taking on India's best bowler! 13 from it. AUS 235/3 after 39 overs. Australia needs 118 runs in 66 balls.
Bumrah back into the attack. A very crucial spell this from India's point of view. Bowled' em! BOOM, BOOM Bumrah castles Khawaja. Maxwell in next. Gets off the mark with a boundary: easy as you like. Six runs and a wicket from that over. Bhuvi back into the attack. Maxwell greets him with a four to backward point. Four more: this time through third man. Another four, this time it's Smith. 15 from it. Australia needs 131 runs in 72 balls.
Seven from that Pandya over. Khawaja made the most of a short ball in that over, collecting a boundary. Kuldeep to continue. Khawaja ups the ante with a slog sweep for six. Follows it up with a boundary. 14 runs off tat over and 200 comes up as well for Australia. AUS 201/2 after 36 overs.
Meanwhile, Smith has brought up two back-to-back fifties with a boundary off Kuldeep. Pandya is back into the attack. Khawaja and Smith hold key for Australia. AUS 180/2 after 34 overs.
Aaron Finch has been run out. Slight hesistation on the skipper's part as he turned for the second run and a good throw from Kedar catches him short at the bowler's end.
Steve Smith joins Warner. Very crucial phase in the match. Both batsmen good at negotiating spin. Kuldeep and Hardik bowling in tandem at the moment. Warner departs after bringing up his slowest fifty. Chahal with the breakthrough.
Dots piling up. Bhuvi sneaks in another one-run over. His fugures so far: 4-0-7-0. Hardik Pandya has been introduced into the attack. A single and that's the first run off the bat in 20 balls. Five runs from it. AUS 24/0 after 8 overs.
Bumrah into his second. Finch collects two. Follows it up with a boundary to square leg. Bumrah erring in line there. A single to end the over. Seven off it. Just a one run off Bhuvi's third over. Bumrah to bowl the sixth over. A maiden from BOOMS! AUS 18/0 after 6 overs.
Dhawan isn't taking the field in Australia's chase. Five from that Bumrah over. Bhuvi continues. Two from it. AUS 10/0 after 3 overs.
The zing bails are at it again! Warner inside edges the ball on to the foot of the stumps of Bumrah but the bails wouldn't come off! The frustrated Indian players enquire the umpire.
Finch and Warner to start proceedings. Bhuvi with the new ball. Warner gets off the mark with a single. Now Finch opens his account with a glorious straightdrive for a brace. First over gone - three off it. Bumrah to share the new ball.
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KL Rahul hits a boundary off the last ball to take India past 350. This has been a terrific batting performance from India: Dhawan set the tone with a hundred, Kohli accelerated with Hardik but fell for 82. Not much joy in the bowling department for Australia. Finch and Co. need 353 to win. We will be back with the chase soon.
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Stoinis takes a stunning one-handed catch off his own bowling. Dhoni has to depart. KL Rahul comes to the crease. SIX! A full toss and KL has hit that over square leg for six. Kohli has been off strike for a while and he holes out for 82. India have lost a fifth wicket.
Dhoni goes bix, Dhoni gets six. Short ball and pulled away for four. 10 off the first two. Follows it up with a quick brace. 13 off the over. Starc: 10-0-74-1.
Stoinis back for his sixth over. Three runs and a wide and Stoinis bowls a slower short ball and Dhoni helps it past fine leg for four. Nine runs off that over. Excellent given the stage of the innings. IND 325/3 after 48 overs.
Kohli has launched Starc again, this time over covers for
four. errr ...six. Almost... Dhoni hurried into the pull shot and the ball just evades Carey and runs away for four. 15 off the over.
IND 316/3 after 47 overs.
Starc back into the attack. Beautiful. Kohli at his best. Launches him over long-on for his first six. Follows it up with a brace. 12 from that over. India nearing 300. Cummins into his last over. A four and a brace from Hardik takes India past 300. GONE! Hardik has hit a low full toss straight to Finch at mid-on. IND 301/3 after 46 overs. M.S. Dhoni joins Kohli.
Zampa is back. Three singles and Hardik's had enough. He hits his second six: a slog sweep over mid-wicket that. 10 runs from it. Cummins being taken to the cleaners here by Hardik. A six and a four so far. 14 from the over. IND 281/2 after 44 overs.
MAJESTIC! Coulter-Nile bowls length and Kohli lifts it over mid-off for four. India have gone past 250. But it's Hardik who finishes the over with a bullet drive for four. 11 off the over. Coulter-Nile: 10-1-63-1. Eight overs remaining.
Start of the third powerplay. Finch has gone back to Maxwell. 50th international 50 for Virat Kohli. WHAM! Hardik slams a full length ball for six over deep mid-wicket. IND 246/2 after 41 overs.
Kohli moves to 49 with a single. Meanwhile, Coulter-Nile takes the pace off the ball, goes short and Hardik pulls it for his first boundary. Six runs from the over.
DROPPED ! Coulter Nile induces an edge off Hardik and Carey has grassed a regulation chance. Five runs from it. Cummins back into the attack. Five from it in the end. IND 230/2 after 39 overs.
GONE! Dhawan has to go, and it's that man Starc who finally gets him out. The southpaw perishes trying to go for a big shot. He falls for 117. IND 220/2 after 37 overs. Hardik Pandya joins Kohli.
Dhawan gets to his 100 but not without drama. Sorry folks! Some technical snag there, holding us up. We are up and running again . While we were gone, India has cruised past 200 with Kohli nearing his 50. Dhawan's batting on 116.
Dhawan now 16 shy of 100. Cummins continues. Dhawan starts with a brace. He moves into the nineties with a boundary. Seven from the over. Dhawan moves to 96 with a four and a single off Maxwell. Marcus Stoinis is back into the attack. Kohli gets a couple of braces, and a single to get off strike. Dhawan moves to 97. Kohli brings up the 50-stand with a brace. Eight from it. IND 178/1 after 31 overs.
Pat Cummins returns into the attack. Four dots and a wide precede a Kohli slash over deep backward point for four. India have gone past 150. Maxwell is back into the attack. Four from his over. IND 157/1 after 28 overs.
Coulter-Nile into his sixth over. Another good over for Australia. Only four from it. Finch has a wide slip for Kohli: the ploy will be to try and make him go for the drive and get an edge early in the innings. SMASHED! Zampa goes full and wide, and Dhawan crashes it through covers for four. Another one: this time to long-on. 11 runs. IND 147/1 after 26 overs.
GONE! Rohit Sharma has perished; he is caught behind off Coulter-Nile and a much-needed wicket for Australia. Virat Kohli is in next. No runs and a wicket. Excellent over. Zampa continues. Kohli gets off the mark with a single. Five from the over. IND 132/1 after 24 overs.
Rohit brings up his fifty with a cracking square cut for four. 10 from that Starc over. Both batsmen are putting Australia's best bowler under pressure. Last five overs, India have collected 40 runs. Zampa's back. He's either too full or too short, is Zampa. Hasn't hit the right line and length. IND 127/0 after 22 overs.
Mitchell Starc back for another crack. Rohit brings up the 100-run partnership with a single. Four coming off that over. Dhawan's looking good now: slow, short but erred on the leg-side and the left-hander helps it over fine leg for four. Follows it up with a lofted hit over extra cover for second consecutive boundary. 11 off it. IND 111/0 after 20 overs.
SIX! A glorious pull shot from Rohit sails over fine leg for a maximum. Nine off that Coulter-Nile over. Finch has used six bowlers in just 17 overs. In comes Stoinis. Dhawan moves to 49 with a brace. Dhawan, popular among fans as 'Gabbar', gets to his half-century with a single. Six came from the over. IND 96/0 after 18 overs.
Now Marcus Stoinis has been introduced into the attack. Finch trying everything here, looking for that elusive wicket. But Dhawan greets Stoinis with a boundary: ramps it over the keeper's head for four. 16 overs gone, IND 81/0.
Both batsmen keep the scoreboard ticking. India cruising at the moment. Zampa goes for seven off his second over. Coulter-Nile back into the attack. Surprises Dhawan with a short ball, but the southpaw has managed to pull that one for four. Six from it in the end.
Maxwell continues. Rohit becomes the second Indian batsman to score 2000 ODI runs vs Aus: gets there with a four. Eight off the over. IND 62/0 after 13 overs .
Adam Zampa to bowl his first over. Starts with a rank short ball and Rohit pulls that away for four. And Dhawan brings up the 50 with an exquisite late cut for four. 11 off it. India in no hurry at the moment. they can afford a slow start with a deep batting line-up.
Coulter-Nile continues. Much better over this. Only two runs from it. Glen Maxwell has been brought into the attack. Start of the second powerplay. The pitch is offering precious little to the bowlers at the moment. Good start for him. Three from the over. IND 44/0 after 11 overs.
Cummins to continue. Whoa. That took off ... probably a cross seam delivery that. Another tight over: only three from it. IND 39/0 after 9 overs. Cummins has 0-15 from his five overs.
Nathan Coulter-Nile into the attack. Dhawan shimmies down the track and slaps it straight down the ground for four. Bad delivery: short, wide and Dhawan has cut that one away for four more. Now to square third-man; same result. 14 off the over.
Still no swing for Starc. How long before he goes round the wicket for Rohit? Three coming off it. Cummins into his fourth over. The right-arm seamer sticking to the channel just outside off stump. Good end to the over. IND 22/0 after 7 overs.
Dhawan starts the fifth over with a couple to long-on. Ripper from Cummins: pitched up and beats Dhawan's outside edge: good probing start from Cummins. SHOT! Wide from Cummins and Dhawan has carved that one through the covers for four. Five from it.
Cummins to continue. Just a single off the last four balls. One more off the last two. Two from it. Starc into his second over. He's cranking it up, is Starc. The third ball was bowled at 149 clicks an hour. End of the over. IND 11/0 after 4 overs.
Rohit gets off the mark with a brace. Solid start from Cummins. Only two off it. Starc to share the new ball. Dhawan's off the blocks with a brisk single. Two slips in place for him too. DROPPED! Coulter-Nile has dropped Rohit at short square-leg... tough chance but would've been a blinder! Four from the over. IND 7/0 after 2 overs.
Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan stride out.
Mitchell Starc Pat Cummins with the new ball. Rohit's 20 shy of becoming the second Indian batsman after Tendulkar to score 2000 runs against Australia.
Players march out to the middle for the National Anthems. First up, Australia. India, next. We are done with the formalities. Now to some pulsating cricket!
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TOSS UPDATE: Virat Kohli has won the toss and India will bat first at The Oval.
India (Playing XI): Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli(c), Lokesh Rahul, MS Dhoni(w), Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah
Australia (Playing XI): David Warner, Aaron Finch(c), Usman Khawaja, Steven Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey(w), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa
Virat Kohli : "We are gonna bat first, looks a nice wicket. It's been used before and it'll get slower. Best conditions to bat first and put some runs on the board. The bowling attack can put pressure on the opposition. The batsmen would be wary about the situation. With the sun out, it's a no brainer to bat first. It's been used before so there is not much moisture in the pitch. We think it's gonna play nicely and the bat will come on to the bat. We are playing with the same line-up because we have a nice balance."
Aaron Finch: "I would have batted first. It's a dry surface, might get slower later. I think in the World Cup you are playing against different oppositions."
PITCH REPORT| "It's a typical Oval wicket with a covering of thick grass. You can expect some tennis ball bounce from this pitch. It's a used wicket, so it has had some work. The rain in London means the surface may have retained some moisture. It'll do something as the match progresses. A 'win toss, bat first' pitch", reckons Michael Slater.
London’s black taxis are a common sight, but to drive one, one must complete a test called ‘The Knowledge’, which involves memorising every single street in England’s capital! Know your venue
Meanwhile, Team India will be wary of the Starc effect. Here's a detailed infographic on why Mitchell Starc is so crucial to Aaron Finch and Co| Starc Effect
Australia's Archie Schiller, a seven-year-old leg-spinner from Barossa Valley in Adelaide, is relentless. Having co-captained Australia alongside Tim Paine in the Boxing Day Test against India, Archie has set his sights on the World Cup 2019 trophy
This will be the 12th contest between India and Australia in all World Cups. Who has the better head-to-head record? Find out .
Smith and Warner have been scoring some runs after returning to the Australian side. Here's why booing or sledging them could be counterproductive .
With a World Cup title to defend, the time feels right for Steve Smith and David Warner to reintegrate into the national team and script a Hollywood-style narrative| Strong as usual after rocky phase
India’s batting has depth and the bowling, especially with fast bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah, can dent rival citadels in the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 | Primed for World Cup success
IND VS AUS MATCH PREVIEW: Batting will hold the key in the battle of bruisers
World Cups are largely about the macro-vision. It reflects an all-encompassing gaze, blends in a fierce desire to script fresh legacies, and always thrives upon a squad’s itch to prove its global credentials. Unfortunately for India and its larger footprint of Twitterati, fans and sections of the media, the focus was solely on an army insignia that M.S. Dhoni flaunted on his wicket-keeping gloves
The gesture reflected the former India captain’s fondness for the army but it violated the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) player-apparel rules. The subsequent brouhaha over the ICC’s reservations and the vitriolic utterances that marred the digital space, did a disservice to the fact that the Indian national cricket team had started its campaign on a winning note with a six-wicket triumph over the Proteas. Thankfully the ICC refused to budge and now that the controversy is on the wane, Virat Kohli’s men can get back to doing what they do best — play cricket.
It is time to take on Australia at the Oval on Sunday. The venue, with its quaint tiled, red-brick homes around its fringes, has history coursing through its edifice. Its corridor-walls feature photographs, most of them black-and-white and harking back to old heroes and their stirring sporting tales. Cut to the present, Saturday was about the teams limbering up in turns, India had an optional hit, and there was the slow assemblage of food-vans outside, promising traditional British cuisine like fish and chips, to be washed down with ale. Also sighted was a Gujarati truck, to tickle the Indian palate.
A few years ago, Indian cricket was like ‘when you are bored please play Sri Lanka’. But over the last seven months, that fixation has been centred around Australia. Kohli’s men and Aaron Finch’s feisty troops have clashed often since December. Down Under, India won the ODI series 2-1 and when the Australian national cricket team toured, the visitor prevailed at 3-2.
Adding depth
The latest episode has the added weight of Steve Smith and David Warner. The duo returned after serving a one-year ban following last summer’s ball-tampering controversy. The two have added depth and aura to the opposition outfit and played their parts in Australia’s winning start.
Warner remained unbeaten on 89 against Afghanistan while Smith etched a 73 in the contest involving the West Indies. Still, a few chinks have surfaced as Australia’s top-order was seen a touch fragile against the short-pitched bowling that the West Indians unleashed at Nottingham.
India’s Jasprit Bumrah and his fellow-seamers would be keen to probe any vulnerability.
However, in a battle of bouncers, Australia can dish its own version of the ‘perfume ball’. Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins can hustle the very best and if it is a question of middle-over skirmishes, the Aussies have regularly played spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav in the past.
India’s batting has to be top-drawer and thankfully most of its cogs performed at Southampton, especially Rohit Sharma, who was magnificent.
But more needs to be done on a pitch that was kept under wraps during Friday's rains, and was allowed to breathe once the sun peeped past the clouds on the game’s eve.
There is a 20 per cent chance of precipitation during the clash and the last thing the captains need is the weather adding its own wicked texture to a storied rivalry.
The match will be streamed live on Hotstar.
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