Arshdeep Singh made a brilliant return to India’s playing eleven, answering critics and vindicating his reputation as a match-winner in T20 cricket. After missing the first two matches, he was back with the new ball and struck immediately, taking two big wickets in his first two overs. Travis Head was dismissed for just six, and Josh Inglis followed soon after for one, both victims of Arshdeep’s sharp swing and clever variation in length. The decision to leave out Arshdeep Singh for Harshit Rana in the first two matches, aimed at adding a bit more batting depth till No. 8, hadn’t gone down well with fans and former players. Many questioned the logic of sidelining India’s most reliable T20I wicket-taker for a marginal batting gain. Head coach Gautam Gambhir and the team management faced growing scrutiny, but Arshdeep’s impactful comeback with the ball reignited the conversation that you simply cannot drop your highest wicket-taker.
The experts on air felt this was a 200-run pitch, so India will be pleased to have restricted Australia to 186 for 6. Tim David and Marcus Stoinis were the standout batters, scoring 74 and 64 respectively. Australia suffered a brief collapse when Mitchell Marsh and Matt Owen fell in consecutive deliveries to Varun Chakravarthy, but Stoinis rebuilt smartly with Matthew Short. Arshdeep returned to dismiss Stoinis in the final over, finishing with 3 for 35. Varun and Bumrah were steady, while Dube was expensive but picked the key wicket of David. With Hazlewood missing from Australia’s attack, India will back themselves to chase down 187.
