IND vs AUS: Virat Kohli, KL Rahul 10/10; Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan 0/10 In World Cup Opener
ODI World Cup 2023: On Sunday, Virat Kohli achieved his seventh fifty-score in the ODI World. His ninth century of the competition was lost. In their World Cup matchup against Australia, Kohli and KL Rahul's partnership emerged as the strongest.
India defeated Australia by six wickets in their opening World Cup match, which was an entertaining contest. The opening match was memorable because it revealed a sharp contrast between two sets of Indian batsmen.
Australia set a goal of 199 when they batted first, mostly because of the outstanding spin masterclass of Ravindra Jadeja. The Australians, however, were unwilling to give up their winning run in the first match of this quadrennial competition, which had stood uninterrupted since 1992.
After losing their openers, Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma, early in the game, India's innings got off to a rough start. After getting trapped in the slip cordon while attempting a cover drive, Kishan left the game without scoring any runs. Josh Hazlewood dismissed Rohit Sharma LBW, ending a close call that did not go in his favour. He was caught in front of the wicket due to his incorrect assessment of the line.
It looked like a difficult challenge for the Indian squad, with the scoreboard showing a perilous 3 runs for the loss of 2 wickets. But out of this early defeat, two legends—Virat Kohli and KL Rahul—rose to prominence. Both seasoned players demonstrated their sophistication and depth of cricketing knowledge.
A match-winning partnership followed by a warm hug 🤗
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 8, 2023
Well played, KL Rahul & Virat Kohli 👏#CWC23 | #INDvAUS | #TeamIndia | #MeninBlue pic.twitter.com/aVdbkVHekz
Rahul and Kohli combined to score an astounding 165 runs, winning the match together. With an incredible 85-run innings, Virat Kohli spearheaded the effort; yet, he was fortunate to be dropped after just 12 runs. As a result, Kohli became more circumspect.
KK Rahul finished his innings with 91 runs, falling short of a century despite matching Kohli's technique with some stunning drives and cuts. A boundary and a six would have propelled him to his ninth ODI century, with just five runs needed to win. Rahul was left stunned at 97 not out when Pat Cummins' lofted drive cleared the boundary and secured the victory for India.
Rohit and Kishan will be considering their strategy for the next games as the Indian team celebrates their outstanding win, which was made possible by the contributions of the Kohli-Rahul combination. With a lengthy tournament ahead of them, both batters will be eager to get things right.
A match-winning partnership followed by a warm hug 🤗
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 8, 2023
Well played, KL Rahul & Virat Kohli 👏#CWC23 | #INDvAUS | #TeamIndia | #MeninBlue pic.twitter.com/aVdbkVHekz