2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by India in the 1st ODI vs Australia

Team India's World Cup 2023 preparations intensified in Mohali as they beat Australia by five wickets in the first ODI on Friday, September 22.

Mohammed Shami was the star of the show for the hosts as he recorded an impressive five-wicket haul, with Jasprit Bumrah sending down an encouraging spell as well. Shami was adjudged the Player of the Match for his inspired bowling performance.

The Men in Blue did manage to tick off a few boxes in the series opener, but they are still a bit away from deciding their ideal playing XI. They have a couple of questions to answer in various departments and will want to keep a close eye on their displays in the lead-up to the World Cup.

Here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by Team India in the first ODI against Australia.

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#3 Mistake - India's fielding was a letdown

KL Rahul had a tough day behind the stumps

This is becoming a real concern for Team India, with quite a few games in the recent past being stained by poor fielding. In the first ODI, it cost them at least 15-20 runs as the Aussies benefited from the hosts' sloppiness on the field.

Shreyas Iyer had a tough day, dropping a straightforward catch at mid-off in Shardul Thakur's very first over. David Warner went on to score the Aussies' only half-century of the match.

Captain KL Rahul, who is usually a reliable keeper, had a tough day behind the stumps. He let several balls slip through his gloves and missed a stumping as well as a run-out, with Marnus Labuschagne's dismissal being a stroke of luck.

India need to get their act together in that department.

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#2 Masterstroke - The Men in Blue were as assured as they could have been in the chase

Shubman Gill set the tempo in the chase

Despite the match not going down to the wire, it wasn't an easy chase by any stretch of the imagination for Team India. Not only were they without three of their first-choice top six batters, but they also had to scale down the 277-run target against a versatile bowling attack.

The Men in Blue, though, were almost perfect in the chase. The openers, Shubman Gill and Ruturaj Gaikwad, set the tone for the second innings, recording a 142-run opening partnership filled with delightful strokes and sensible cricket.

After a brief blip in the middle overs, when India lost three wickets for nine runs, Ishan Kishan and Rahul steadied the ship for a bit before Suryakumar Yadav took over with an excellent knock under pressure. Rahul and SKY took the side to the cusp of victory before the former held his nerve and finished things off.

This is the kind of masterful performance India will need to dish out during the World Cup.

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#1 Mistake - India's team selection didn't seem to have the bigger picture in mind

India's Asian Games captain opened the batting in the first ODI

While India's unorthodox team selections did pay off, with Gaikwad and comeback man Ravichandran Ashwin giving them some definite takeaways, they didn't seem to have the bigger picture in mind.

The hosts called up Washington Sundar to the Asia Cup 2023 final as a replacement for Axar Patel, but didn't give the young all-rounder the chance to make a case for himself in the first ODI. They instead fielded Ravichandran Ashwin, who was not in the picture a week ago.

The right thing to do would've been to field Ashwin and Sundar in tandem if they wanted to identify their frontline off-spinner. That would've meant that Gaikwad, who isn't in the reckoning for the World Cup, would've missed out, with Kishan opening the batting.

Hopefully, India will put out a different side for the second ODI before the regulars return for the final contest of the series.