INDvAUS 1st ODI Match Report: KL Rahul and Jadeja's partnership take India home after Shami-Siraj rattle Aussie batters

India won the first match of the INDvAUS ODI series at Wankhede by wickets. Indian bowlers dominated the first inning as Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami took three wickets each. Although Indian batters faced an early setback, they managed to pull things back in the second inning to complete the chase of 189 runs. KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja's 108-run partnership took India over the line by five wickets in the first ODI of the INDvAUS series.

Indian stand-in captain Hardik Pandya won the toss and decided to field first on a Wankhede pitch that always favoured chasing. For Australia, David Warner and Alex Carey had to stay out of the team due to injuries as Mitchell Marsh came out to open the inning for the first time in his career. KL Rahul and Josh Inglish were named the wicket-keepers of India and Australia respectively.

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INDvAUS | 1st Inning: Indian bowlers dominate after a blistering inning from Mitch Marsh

India started the first inning very well. Mohammed Siraj provided an early break for them removing Travis Head's stumps in his first over. But, Mitchell Marsh and captain Steve Smith counter-attacked Indian pacers as the ball stopped moving. Hardik missed a trick by not introducing spinners early in the game. As a result, Marsh was able to play freely and complete his 13th ODI fifty. He, then, latched on to anything that was offered by the Indian bowlers. Meantime, Hardik Pandya got rid of Steve Smith on 22. Smith tried to cut the ball but only managed to produce an edge to KL Rahul who took a diving catch to establish his wicket-keeping skills.

With 77/2 in just 12.2 overs, Australia were looking for a big score in the first inning. However, things started changing after Hardik introduced spin from both ends. Jadeja first sent dangerous-looking Marsh back to the pavilion after a well-made 81 from 65 balls. Then, a brilliant catch from Ravindra Jadeja sent Marnus Labuschange back to the dressing room. Kuldeep Yadav with the wicket this time.

Post that, it was all about Indian bowlers as the visiting batters could not put up any resistance against Indian pacers. Mohammed Shami's second spell proved to be the game-changing one. Shami cleaned bowled Josh Inglish and Cameron Green in space of two overs. Then, Marcus Stoinis edged one from him and Shubman Gill took a good catch in the slips to give Shami his third wicket of the first match of the INDvAUS ODI series.

After that, it was Siraj who cleaned up the Australian tail. Australia were bowled out for 188 which looked below par on that Wankhede pitch.

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The Chase: KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja's partnership takes India home

India's chase took an early setback as Mitchell Starc and Marcus Stoinis struck early for the team from down under. Starc is always dangerous when the ball swings and that happened for him at the Wankhede. First, Stoinis trapped Ishan Kishan in front. The DRS taken by him could not save him either. Then it was all about Starc.

The big left-arm pacer first hit Kohli's pad from over the wicket and Kohli did not even bother to take the DRS. After that, he trapped Surya Kumar Yadav in front of the wicket. Though the umpire was in favour of Surya, the DRS ruled him out. Shubman Gill looked solid for his 20, but Marnus Labushcange took a brilliant catch at point to remove him. Starc with his third wicket of the match this time.

Suddenly, the scoreboard said 39 for 4 and the crowd at the stadium looked stunned. But, then, Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul consolidated the inning and tried to build a partnership. Hardik looked confident and hit boundaries whenever he was given an opportunity. His 25 from 31 gave India a platform for Jadeja and KL Rahul to take India home. Hardik perished to a short ball from Marcus Stoinis as we all got to see the batsman Jadeja in action.

Meantime, after a great day with the gloves, KL Rahul looked determined with the bat in hand. He negotiated the good balls from bowlers like Cameron Green and Sean Abbott. Moreover, he went after Adam Zampa to not let the leggie settle in. The right-hand-left-hand combination also worked well for India in the first match of INDvAUS series.

Soon, Rahul completed his 13th ODI fifty and Jadeja (45*) kept on hitting the ball in the gap. In the end, everything looked easy for the batters as their 108-run partnership proved to be the most important one for team India.

Playing ODI cricket after eight months, I was just looking to adapt to the format as early as possible. Luckily I got two wickets, and with the bat I was only looking to build a partnership with KL. We were playing Test cricket so the line and length is different here. You can't keep bowling one pace. I was just looking to bowl in good areas. Also I was getting a little bit of turn, so I thought I need to bowl in the right areas and the wicket will do the rest.

Ravindra Jadeja after winning the "Player of the match" award.

Score Summary | INDvAUS, 1st ODI

Australia: 188/10 | Marsh 81, Shami 3/17, Siraj 29/3

India: 191/5 | KL Rahul 75*, Ravindra Jadeja 75*, Starc 49/3

"We were under pressure in both the innings, but we kept our composure, and found ways to come out of those situations. When we got the momentum our way, we didn't let it go. I am really proud the way we played today. Jaddu did what he was supposed to do coming back after eight months away from ODIs. I enjoyed my bowling and batting, would have loved to finish it off, but the way KL and Jaddu batted, it was calming to those watching from the outside," Hardik Pandya said in the post-match presentation.