Rinku Singh blazed away to a 29-ball 46 while Jitesh Sharma smashed 35 in 19 balls before Australia pulled things back to stop India at 174 for nine in the fourth T20 International in Raipur on Friday. Cruising at 167 for four in 18.3 overs, India lost five wickets for only seven runs in the last two overs, thanks to Ben Dwarshuis (3/40) and Jason Behrendorff (2/32) after Australia opted to bowl first. Aaron Hardie started the match with a maiden over before Yashasvi Jaiswal (37 off 28 balls) got off the mark with a lovely cover drive Jason Behrendorff. The 21-year-old Jaiswal launched into Ben Dwarshuis in the third over, hitting the left-arm seamer for three boundaries to set the tone for the hosts.
Ruturaj Gaikwad (32 off 28 balls) watched the action from the other end as Jaiswal went after the bowling and when the former did get strike for the first time in the fourth over, he employed the cut shot off a Behrendorff delivery to open his account with a boundary.
Fastest to 4,000 runs (by innings taken) in Men’s T20 cricket
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Jaiswal continued with his aggressive ways and played debutant spinner Chris Green through the off-side for a four before smashing him over the midwicket fence for a six.
Recalled into the attack to stem the flow of runs, Hardie was hit straight down the ground for a four by Jaiswal, but the decision to bring him back ended in a success as Australia got their first breakthrough in the left-handed opener.
Going for one too many, Jaiswal could not connect well enough and Ben McDermott completed a good catch running from mid-on, as India reached 50 for one at the end of powerplay.
Joining the side after a small break following the World Cup, vice-captain Shreyas Iyer (8), looking to hit leg-spinner Tanveer Sangha out of the ground, could not get enough power or elevation and Green took the catch at long-on.
Skipper Suryakumar Yadav (1) casually edged Dwarshuis to the keeper, leaving India at 63 for three in the beginning of the ninth over and the crowd at Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium silent.
The partisan spectators were however not required to keep quiet for long as Rinku Singh got going straightaway, his customary powerful strokes aiding him.
Rinku and Ruturaj added 48 runs for the fourth wicket before the latter was dismissed by Sangha. But that did not deter Rinku from playing his natural game and he found an able ally in Jitesh, the two adding 50 runs in just 29 balls to lift India’s run rate.
Jitesh, however, fell when he was looking good to add a few more runs to his total.
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