Australia cruised to a comfortable victory over India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, taking a 1-0 lead in the five-match series without breaking a sweat. The platform was set early by Josh Hazlewood, whose fiery new-ball spell of four overs yielded three wickets for just 13 runs.
Only Abhishek Sharma and Harshit Rana managed to reach double figures as India crumbled for 125. The chase was virtually sealed in the powerplay itself, thanks to Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head’s aggressive start — Marsh’s blistering 46 off 26 balls left Australia needing only 39 runs from the remaining 12 overs.
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The hosts then seized the chance to send Tim David up the order, offering him some valuable time at the crease, though India countered with the crafty spin duo of Varun Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav, setting up a tactical duel.
As a helmetless Tim David took guard against Varun in the ninth over, captain Suryakumar Yadav cleverly placed a slip and called for a helmet for Tilak Varma at short leg — a psychological ploy to unsettle the batter. David observed the field adjustments calmly and tapped a length ball for a single, flashing a sly grin as he sensed the contest of wits unfolding. But the satisfaction was fleeting.
When he faced Varun again, the same attacking field awaited him. Expecting a repeat of the setup, David opted for a solid front-foot defence, only for Varun to subtly pull his length back and turn the ball just enough to kiss the inside edge and lob back for an easy catch — a trap perfectly sprung.