After a rain-interrupted game in Perth, fierce rivals India and Australia move to the iconic Adelaide Oval for the second ODI of the series on Thursday, October 23. Intermittent rains in the first half dealt India an unfair blow as Shubman Gill’s men found no momentum to their innings and finished with an underpar score, which the hosts chased down.
As the weather spiced up the pitch in Perth, premier seamers Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc found extra lift and seam movement off their deliveries. The duo ruined the comebacks of giants Rohit Sharma (8) and Virat Kohli (0), sending them back in the first eight overs of play.
While an in-form Gill seemed to have the measure of the conditions, he was unfortunate to edge one down the leg of third
seamer Nathan Ellis on 10.
From there, India never found any rhythm to their innings amidst frustrating weather conditions. The visitors were forced to up the ante immediately after each resumption due to the reduction in overs and lost wickets in the process.
Of the rest of the batters, wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul (38) and all-rounder Axar Patel (31) were the only ones who seemed to have some control.
Once India finished 136/9 off their 26 overs with the bat, the result was a foregone conclusion. Luckier of the two sides, Australia enjoyed the best of the weather conditions and could bat with a clear tempo.
Australia did lose Travis Head (8) and Matthew Short (8) early in the chase, but skipper Mitchell Marsh’s unbeaten 46 and free-flowing innings from Josh Philippe (37) and Matt Renshaw (21*) steered them through with the best part of five overs remaining.
The result in Perth has given Australia the chance to seal the ODI series with another victory in Adelaide, where India will be hoping to bounce back strongly.
Adelaide Weather Forecast
The forecast is for clear skies and only occasionally overcast scenes during the match hours in Adelaide. Temperatures are expected to hover between 11 degrees Celsius and 15 degrees Celsius in what are still very early days of the Australian summer, with humidity nudging close to 80 per cent and the wind exceeding speeds of 10 km/hour.
Fans can expect a full game, which gives the two sides a fair opportunity to showcase their mettle.
