India might have failed to stop Mitchell Marsh from leading Australia to a smooth seven-wicket win in Perth, but the home captain was almost (figuratively) bowled over by his own team.
During the run-chase, when the right-handed opener was batting at 38 and Australia needed 29 runs off 57 balls to win the rain-marred match, cramp trouble flared up. Marnus Labuschagne and Xavier Bartlett hustled in to get him on some fluids and seemed to provide him with a bottle of pickle juice and a sports gel.
He seemed fine after just the juice, but made a funky face after consuming the gel, which fans on X (formerly Twitter) picked up to be ‘What’s that… that’s off (stale)’. Watch the reaction from the 1:30 mark here in a Cricket Australia highlight package
of Marsh’s knock.
The skipper was asked whether he wasn’t a fan of pickle juice in the post-match presentation ceremony.
He replied: “I thought that was one of the sugar carb things. And they’ve done me like a dinner there, so that was awful, but it fixed my cramps to whatever company it was, it was great.”
Pickle juice is used to quickly stop muscle cramps. Its sour and salty taste triggers a reflex in the mouth and throat that disrupts the misfiring nerve signals, causing muscles to contract involuntarily — often working within a minute, before the body can even absorb and use the sodium or fluids.
Marsh carried on and remained not out at 46 (52) as Australia chased down India’s DLS-adjusted target of 131 in 21.1 overs.
“The weather played its part today,” Marsh said. “Big thanks to all the crowd that stuck around. I know these days can be really frustrating, but nice to get a win. It’s always nice to win at home. I love playing for Australia. The ball was swinging around a little bit. We knew that was going to be the case for both teams, so a little bit of a challenge to get through there. Proud of the way our young guys came out and took the game on.”
India and Australia will now play the second ODI of the three-match series in Adelaide on Thursday, October 23.
