Steven O’Keefe with 12 wickets earns the Man of the Match
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Steven O’Keefe took 12 wickets for the Aussies in the first Test match in Pune. Image Source: BCCI[/caption]Internet Desk: Australia recorded a massive 333 runs win against hosts India to go 1-0 up in the 4 match test series in Pune. The win also ended India’s dream run of being unbeaten for 19 tests at home. The hosts collapsed for 107 runs in just 33.5 overs after tea. Left arm spinner Steven O’Keefe was the most successful bowler for Australia with 12 wickets. It also earned him the Man of the Match.
Australia set a huge target of 441 runs with the help of skipper Steve Smith’s brilliant batting on a pitch which was assisting the world-class spinners like Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.
It was a poor batting show by the World No.1 Test side, who were totally outran by the Aussies in all departments of the game and they further added their miseries with poor shot selection, sloppy fielding and poor use of DRS.
Captain Virat Kohli had faced a rare batting failure in a Test match where he scored just 0 and 13 in both innings of the game.
Kohli was out in the second innings shouldering arms to an angled delivery from O'Keefe which dashed India's minuscule hopes of a miraculous comeback.
Indian captain Virat Kohli has termed the defeat as a learning experience for him. According to Virat, “It was a big learning experience for me as captain.”
India capitulated in both innings, just managing to score a little over 100 runs in both innings against the spin of Steve O’Keefe and Nathan Lyon. The left arm spinner returned with a match haul of 12 wickets.
“Australia deserved to win the test and go 1-0 up in the series. Our batting has let us down in the match,” said Virat after the loss in Pune.
Talking about the embarrassing loss Kohli said, “It’s an aberration for my side, losing the test in 3 days.”
As many as six Indian batsmen failed to reach double figures with only Cheteshwar Pujara showing some stomach for fight with a score of 31.
After Smith's superb 109 his 18th Test ton on a spiteful pitch, there was no comeback for India as both openers KL Rahul and Murali Vijay made a mess of DRS when it was the umpire's call.
With demons of the turner working overtime on their minds, the Indian batsmen were unable to negotiate the turner which boomeranged on them.
The loss at Pune has been the fourth largest defeat in terms of runs for the Indian team in tests and the second heaviest on Indian soil. The following are the top five heaviest defeats India had so far in their history of test cricket:
2004/05: 342 runs vs Australia at Nagpur.
2006/07: 341 runs vs Pakistan at Karachi.
2007/08: 337 runs vs Australia at Melbourne.
2017/18: 333 runs vs Australia at Pune.
1996/97: 329 runs vs South Africa at The Eden Gardens.
The Indian captain did sound confidence in his team about making a strong comeback in Bengaluru.
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