MS Dhoni comes back with his ardent finishing abilities as India thrashes Australia again, now in the 50 overs format

After a wonderful Test series Down Under, here comes the limited overs format which went underway today at the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground. It was the time for the Aussies to forget their test series vows and make a fresh start in the ODI series, where they succeeded wonderfully, beating the visitors in the first ODI by 34 runs. But, their happy days were cut-short by the visitors again in the second and third ODI as India again inflicted a victory in the final two ODIs thus clinching the series 2-1.

Before going into the much awaited World Cup, these ODI series are the most important platforms for each teams to try out their best possible team combinations. It is needless to say, at the end of the series, India have many things sorted, especially the middle order batting. On the other side, the Aussies needs to sort out many things before going into the mega event in June, 2019.

Coming to team India's present condition and performance, many worries for the team has been sorted. Before this series, there were too many headaches regarding the middle order batting of the men in blue in the 50 over set up. Only the two opening batsmen, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma were consistently scoring runs along with the skipper, Virat Kohli at no.3. Apart from them Ambati Rayadu and Dinesh Karthik were scoring runs but they were not so confident. Team's another worry was the ex-Captain, MS Dhoni. There was a point of time when the critics were actually forced to consider MS as a liability in the team as he was really struggling with the bat and we don't even remember when he had scored his last half-century before this Australia series. On the other hand, the team couldn't afford to drop the best wicket-keeper in the world, at present and being an ex-captain his presence in the field would be a greater psychological advantage for captain Kohli. At the end of the ODI series, MS Dhoni himself has cleared all the doubts as he scored 3 consecutive half centuries in all the three matches with scores of 51(96), 55(54) and 87(114), finishing the series as the oldest player to be the Man of the series. Although his utterly slow innings in the 1st ODI had cost the visitors, the match, but from the 2nd ODI, his heroics was in display as in both the occasions he took the team over the line being unbeaten in both the innings. Dinesh Kartik and Kedar Jadhav had also contributed in a hamdsome manner, providing great support to MS Dhoni in the finishing business. Thus, 4th, 5th and 6th batting postions' worry have been solved to a certain extent.

Now, coming to the all-rounder spot. After the controversial, Hardik Pandya issue, the allrounder spot in the team is still in worries. Although, Vijay Shankar has been drafted into the team, who also appeared in the third and final ODI, down under, but his past performances doesn't validate him as a perfect replacment for Pandya. Hardik Pandya always provides an extra fast bowling option and his perfct batting abilities always provides captain Kohli with more options and better flexibility in the team selection. On the spinning options, Yuzevendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav  have already cemented their spots for the mega event in England later this year. Ravindra Jadeja will also be considered in the squad due to his good performances in the 50 over format.

India's fast bowling line up was again on point. Mohammed Shami made a brilliant comeback into the ODI side as he ended the series with 5 wickets in 3 matches. Bhuvaneswar Kumar was again brilliant with the ball. With Jarprit Bumrah in the ranks, India'a first bowling line up looks more than good for the world cup although they still lack that 4th fast bowler in the squad as both Md. Siraj and Khaleel Ahmed couldn't make a mark in the ODI series as both of them leaked too many runs. Keeping in mind the fact, the world cup will be played in a round robin format for nearly 2months, India certainly needs suitable back up options in each and every department. Thus, in the upcoming series against New Zealand and the home series against the Aussies, Indian team management really needs to work out the backup options of the 4th fast bowler, fast-bowling alrounder and reserve top order and middle order batsmen.

Coming to the Australian side, a lot needs to be looked after, if they really needs to defend their WC title. Among the batsmen, Peter Handscomb and Shaun Marsh were the only 2 consistent batsmen for the Aussies in this recently conculded series. Apart from them, Usman Khawaja, Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell also performed well for the hosts in patches.Opener and stand-in ODI captain Aaron Finch, was really out of his own form and he was highly struggling to get big scores against his name. The whole Indian assignments proved, that the Aussies were really missing the services of their suspended captain, Steve Smith and the  Vice-Captain, David Warner in all the three formats of the game. The earlier they come back, the more benificial it will be for the Aussies as they prepare to defend their WC title.

In the bowling department, the Aussies really needs to work out hard before the World Cup. Jhye Richardson was the pick of the bowlers among the Aussies who ended the series with 6 wickets in 3 matches. Jason Beherendorff and Marcus Stoinis also fared well with the ball. Peter Siddle who made a comeback into the 50 overs format, couldn't prove himself effective for the team. Spinners Nathan Lyon and Adam Zampa were also highly inneffective in this series. The Aussie bowling line up really needs more hard work before they fly off to England in June.

Overall, India finished their campaign Down Under on top without giving away any of the series in all the three formats of the game. This was the most successful campaign by any Indian team on the Australian soil as they claimed both the Test and ODI series 2-1 in each format and they shared the T20 series at 1-1. This wonderful display of cricket by the Indians on the Australian soil will be remembered for long by the ardent Cricket lovers all over the world.

Photo Source: Indian Cricket Team

Writer: Avirup Roy

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If you missed any articles of Border-Gavaskar series, here is the highlights:

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2ND TEST PREVIEW: PERTH PREPARED FOR THE BREATHTAKING GRAPPLE STARTS ON FRIDAY
2ND TEST REVIEW: AUSSIES RULES THE ROOST AND LEVEL THE SERIES BY THRASHING INDIA AT PERTH

3RD TEST PREVIEW: HIGH STAKE BOXING DAY TEST MATCH IS GOING TO BAKE OFF TOMORROW AT MCG

3RD TEST REVIEW: EMERGING OF BUMRAH AND DREAM DEBUT OF MAYANK CORROBORATE INDIA'S HISTORICAL WIN AT MCG

4TH TEST PREVIEW: RATTLED AUSSIES WILL TAKE ON TRANQUIL INDIA IN THE FINAL BATTLE AT SCG

4TH TEST REVIEW: THE PINK TEST ENDS IN A DRAW, AS INDIA TRIUMPHED OVER KANGAROOS IN THEIR OWN DEN

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