India vs Australia 5th ODI, SCG: Player Ratings

The stars for India finally dazzled at the Sydney Cricket Ground and they dazzled through the newest star that they discovered on the day- Manish Pandey- who scored an unbeaten 104, his first ODI hundred in only his 4th international match to guide India to the highest successful chase against Australia, and the second highest chase overall on Australian soil, that of 331/4, thereby gifting India the victory by 6 wickets.

The game also drew curtains on the Victoria Bitter ODI series which Australia won 4-1. Pandey, for his breathtaking effort, was adjudged the man of the match, while Rohit Sharma, with two centuries, and a 99 in this game- an aggregate of 441 runs- was given the man of the series award.

India needed one victory in the 5-match series to retain their No. 2 position on the ICC ODI Rankings table, and with this win, they have managed to do so. The two rivals meet next in a three-match T20I series starting January 26 at the Adelaide Oval.

Here is how the players fared:

Australia

Aaron Finch: 4/10

The Australian opener couldn’t find his mojo in this game, despite coming fresh from a hundred in the last game, as he was trapped leg-before by Ishant Sharma in the 1st over for 6.

David Warner: 8/10

Warner might have flinched in the last game for sure, but he made sure that he went on to complete his 5th ODI hundred as he scored a marvellous 122 off just 113 balls with 9 fours and 3 sixes.

Steven Smith: 6/10

The No. 1 dementor for India across formats now, Steve Smith, didn’t find his timing right in this game as he could manage only 28 off 37 and was the first ODI victim for Indian debutant Jasprit Bumrah. His part-time leg spin too couldn’t do anything for his side as he was taken for 20 runs off 2 overs.

George Bailey: 4/10

Bailey had been in supreme form coming into the match, but couldn’t carry it on, as the Indians got to see his back quite early when a leading-edge off his bat was caught by Ishant Sharma to give Rishi Dhawan his first ODI wicket.

Shaun Marsh: 6/10

Marsh had come into the playing XI when Warner was given a paternity leave, and made the most of it with a timely 71 at Brisbane. He was, however, run out cheaply in this game while attempting an over ambitious second run, and the catch that he dropped to give Rohit Sharma a lease of life also added to his miseries. However, he had already made up to an extent, for the catch he was going to drop later on, when he had taken perhaps the catch of the series to send back Shikhar Dhawan.

Mitchell Marsh: 7.5/10

If there was a doubt about Mitch Marsh’s batting prowess, it was cleared in this game, as Marsh hit his maiden ODI century after coming in to bat at 117/4, with his side in a tough situation. He shared a 118-run stand with Warner for the 5th wicket to help Australia put up a challenging total. However, he lagged behind when it came to showing the prowess with the ball, as he was taken for 77 off 9.4 overs including the 13 runs that India needed to win from the last over which the Western Australian player bowled.

James Faulkner: 5/10

The perfect finisher, as touted by some, couldn’t finish the game for his side as far as this game is concerned, as he was bowled for 1 by Bumrah and couldn’t impress with the ball either.

John Hastings: 8.5/10

Hastings has perhaps been the best bowler for Australia in this series. While Kane Richardson effected the dramatic collapse that happened in last game, it was Hastings who had started it with Shikhar Dhawan’s wicket. He did it again in this game as well as he first sent back Dhawan, courtesy a brilliant catch by Shaun Marsh, and then quite cleverly set up Virat Kohli with a couple of short balls before forcing the Indian vice-captain to nick off in the same over. Hastings wasn’t done there either, as he dismissed Rohit Sharma, who was batting on 99 to bring Australia well and truly back into the game.

Scott Boland: 6/10

Boland couldn’t pick a wicket in his 10 overs and was taken for 58 runs.

Nathan Lyon: 5/10

On a track that had very less in it for the spinners, Lyon struggled as he created chances but couldn’t manage a wicket. A catch that he dropped to give a life to MS Dhoni only increased his woes.

India

Rohit Sharma: 8/10

Rohit continued his good run in the series and did the lion’s share of the work before being disappointingly dismissed for 99. In the process he also crossed 5000 ODI runs. He shared a vital 123-run opening stand with Shikhar Dhawan to lay down the perfect platform for the Indian chase.

Shikhar Dhawan: 8/10

Dhawan was at his attacking best today as he smashed 78 off 56 with 7 fours and 3 sixes. While Rohit at the other end started slowly, Dhawan started hitting from the word go and shifted the momentum in India’s favour.

Virat Kohli: 4/10

Kohli couldn’t click today as he fell to Hastings’ trap and was dismissed for 8.

Manish Pandey: 9.5/10

Manish Pandey finally came good in the series and he did it in some style, as after Dhawan's and Rohit’s dismissal, he was the one who shepherded the Indian innings towards the target and completed perhaps the most important, the most magnificent and the most timely century that has been hit by an Indian batsman for a long long time. He hit a four off the 3rd ball of the last over when there were six runs needed, a shot that also brought up his century, and then lofted the ball over the infield on the next ball to give India their first victory of the series.

MS Dhoni: 7/10

The India No. 7 gets a seven and deservingly so. His stats from the game might read 34 off 42 with 1 four and 1 six, but what you read above about the prodigy that India now has, was possible because there was a quiet guardian playing around him, after Rohit Sharma got out. He hit a six off the first ball of the 50th over when there were 13 runs required from the over. That six was as much a turning point of the game as was Pandey’s unbeaten hundred.

Ravindra Jadeja: 6.5/10

Although Jadeja couldn’t pick up a wicket, he was the second most economical bowler for India as he conceded only 46 runs from his 10 overs.

Rishi Dhawan: 6/10

Dhawan got his first ODI wicket in this game, but he was expensive, especially towards the death, as he was taken for 74 runs in his 10 overs.

Jasprit Bumrah: 8.5/10

If Pandey was the surprise with the bat, Bumrah was with the ball. With almost all kinds of deliveries in his arsenal, of which he showed plenty of examples today, he displayed some brilliant bowling skills for a debutant and picked up 2 wickets in his 10 overs while giving away just 40 runs out for a score of 330. He dismissed Steve Smith with a well-directed short ball and then bowled Faulkner with a dead straight yorker.

Ishant Sharma: 7.5/10

India’s prime bowler hasn’t quite lived up to his expectations. He went for 60 runs and took 2 wickets in his 10 overs. However, the 50th over of the Australian innings, which was bowled by Sharma saw only 4 runs coming off it. Those runs proved out to be difference between the sides in the end, as India got home with just 2 balls to spare.

Umesh Yadav: 2/10

If there is an epitome of a child caged in an adult’s body, it has to be Umesh Yadav. It was the most disappointing show by any Indian bowler on this Australian tour, as Yadav played with utter indiscipline and complete lack of acknowledgement for the field that his captain gave him. He was hit for 72 runs in 7 overs and played a major part in Australia getting to 330.