Vijay Shankar bowled India to an eight-run win in the second ODI at VCA Stadium in Nagpur by taking two wickets in the final over, with Australia needing 11 runs for victory.
Vijay trapped Marcus Stoinis lbw on the first ball of the over and castled Adam Zampa on the third ball with a yorker to seal the win for India.
Vijay celebrated the wickets by punching the air and the decision to make him bowl the final over, after he had been taken for 13 runs in the only over he had bowled previously, proved to be a masterstroke.
Speaking after his last-over heroics, a delighted Vijay said, "Yeah, I definitely enjoyed bowling the final over. It was an opportunity for me to make up for the expensive first over."
The Tamil Nadu all-rounder said the key was to be mentally clear, while he also said he was "ready" to bowl the last over.
"It's very important for me to deliver when the team needs it. It (defending 10 in the last over) was just about being mentally clear, just wanted to execute the right balls and hit the hard length. I think when you play for the country, you have to be ready for whatever the team asks of you. I was just ready for it."
Explaining the decision to have Vijay bowl the final over, winning captain Virat Kohli, who won the man of the match award for notching up his 40th ODI century, said, "I spoke to Rohit (Sharma), MS (Dhoni) and thought if we should bowl Vijay Shankar around the 46th over. They said 'we might as well take it till the last over'. He showed great composure with the ball and with the bat, it was a great game for him."
Kohli also said that winning the second ODI in the manner India did was "important" for the team going forward.
"It's very important to scrap for wins, rather than win comfortably. We'll fight till the end and tonight was an example of that," said Kohli.
India is now 2-0 up in the five-match series, with the third match scheduled to be played at JSCA Complex in Ranchi on Friday (March 8).
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