India vs Australia 2nd T20: Australia were chasing 191 runs vs India in Bengaluru. (Source: AP) India vs Australia 2nd T20: Australia were chasing 191 runs vs India in Bengaluru. (Source: AP) India vs Australia Highlights, Ind vs Aus 2nd T20: India were undone for a second straight T20I by the ‘Maxi Show’ as Glenn Maxwell scored an unbeaten 113 from 55 balls to take Australia past the 191 run target in the last over. After seeing Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni bulldoze the Aussie bowlers, Maxwell took heart from Chinnaswamy’s small boundary and took the attack to India. Despite losing Stoinis and Finch early, Australia continued confidently with Maxwell and D’Arcy Short. Even when Short fell, Maxwell continued unabated and got the team past the winning line with Handscomb by the side. Earlier, India scored 190/4 from the 20 overs with Kohli and MS Dhoni upping the ante in the last five overs. As things slowed down following the dismissal of KL Rahul, who played another sublime knock, India were provided the charge by the two ‘biggies’ of Indian cricket. They put together 100 runs for the fourth wicket in no time to suggest the 126 runs in Vizag were just a blip. With the win, Australia have sealed the T20Is series by 2-0 margin and inflicted first home defeat for Virat Kohli as captain across formats.<doc-sep>As it happened | Scorecard BENGALURU: The contrast between Australia and India could not have been starker in the run-up to the two-match T20 series. The visiting side is a work in progress and hadn't won a T20 series in 12 months. Virat Kohli and his men, on the other hand, have been on a high and were favourites considering they hadn't lost a T20 series to Australia in more than a decade.However, the wait ended for Australia on a sultry Wednesday night as they made light of India's challenging yet gettable total of 190, romping to a seven-wicket victory with two balls to spare.After scoring a match-defining half-century in the first match, the big-hitting Glenn Maxwell had said he wasn't sure of his place in the Australian side for the World Cup. But the all-rounder made a huge statement of intent with his unbeaten 55-ball-113 (7x4, 9x6) which ensured Australia crossed the finish line without much ado.Maxwell stunned the packed home fans to silence with his awe-inspiring performance. He took a few balls to get himself in and following the quick exit of Marcus Stoinis and skipper Aaron Finch, whose dry run with the bat continued, he focussed on settling down with D'Arcy Short (40, 28b, 6x4) and milked runs effectively yet with caution.But once he cut loose, there was no stopping the right-handed batsman. He was at his entertaining best as he whacked, swept and made optimum use of the small M Chinnaswamy stadium boundary during his stay at the crease which lasted over an hour. Fittingly, he finished with a flourish, scoring a six and a winning four.Earlier, KL Rahul (47, 26b, 3x4, 4x6), skipper Virat Kohli (72 n.o, 38b, 2x4, 6x6) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (40, 23b, 3x4, 3x6) helped India to a competitive 190 for four.While the visitors went in with an unchanged squad, India made three changes bringing in Shikhar Dhawan , Vijay Shankar and Siddharth Kaul for Rohit Sharma , Mayank Markande and Umesh Yadav.Put into bat by the visitors, India were off to a rather quiet start before Rahul dispatched Jason Behrendorff to the boundary to set the tone for his entertaining knock. Playing in his backyard, Rahul reduced his opening partner Dhawan, who struggled to time the ball, to a spectator as he went about dismantling the Australian bowling attack.Rahul fell short of his second consecutive half-century as he holed out to Behrendorff at third man off the first ball of Nathan Coulter-Nile.Dhawan looked ill at ease at the crease and struggled to time the ball. His stay at the crease came to an end in a rather contentious way. The opener was caught by Stoinis at sweeper cover off Behrendorff. Television replays suggested the ball had grazed the grass before Stoinis got his hands on it. With the umpire's soft signal saying out, after a length deliberation, third umpire Nitin Menon went with the field umpires' call.Rishabh Pant did himself no favours during his brief visit to the crease which ended with Richardson running in from long-off to take a breathtaking catch off Short.Pant's exit brought together two of India's finest cricketers and what followed was pure magic as they attacked the bowlers with gusto with a 49-ball 100 partnership.Use your cricket knowledge to play CricPlay, India’s first free fantasy cricket app<doc-sep>Glenn Maxwell scored 113 not out off just 55 balls as Australia beat India by seven wickets in the second Twenty20 on Wednesday, clinching a 2-0 series win. Glenn Maxwell scored 113 not out off just 55 balls as Australia beat India by seven wickets in the second Twenty20 on Wednesday, clinching a 2-0 series win. Maxwell hit seven fours and nine sixes as Australia finished with 194-3 in reply to India’s 190-4, wrapping up their first T20 series victory on Indian soil after taking the first match by three wickets on Sunday. “We haven’t had a lot of success here of late. To come over here and perform like this, we have started off well on this tour,” Maxwell said. “It helped that we played a big bulk of T20 cricket back at home (in the Big Bash League). Having confidence in my game also has helped a lot, and it feels great to contribute to two special wins.” Glenn Maxwell slammed nine sixes against India (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi) Virat Kohli (72 not out) and MS Dhoni (40) had put on 100 runs for the fourth wicket to rescue the hosts from 74-3 at one stage. Put into bat, India made a quick start thanks to KL Rahul, who hit three fours and four sixes in his 47 off 26 balls, helping his side cross 50 in the sixth over. But Australia applied the brakes after the powerplay ended. Maxwell finished on 113 not out. Rahul first holed out to third man off Nathan Coulter-Nile, and Shikhar Dhawan (14) was caught by a diving Marcus Stoinis off Jason Behrendorff. Rishabh Pant then managed just one run before he was caught at long on off D’Arcy Short attempting a big hit. At that stage, Kohli and Dhoni came together, and they hit nine sixes in total to take India to a challenging total. Peter Handscomb and Glenn Maxwell embrace at the end of the innings. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi) Their 50-partnership came off 29 balls, while Kohli also reached his half-century off 29 balls. The duo continued attacking Australia’s bowlers and brought up their 100-run stand off only 49 balls. Dhoni fell in the final over as Pat Cummins was carted around, but Kohli finished the innings with a six. Glenn Maxwell and Virat Kohli embrace at the end of the match. (Photo by Manjunath KIRAN / AFP) / In reply, Australia got off to a rocky start and was reduced to 22-2 in the fourth over. Siddarth Kaul bowled Marcus Stoinis (7) and then Aaron Finch (8) fell cheaply, caught off Vijay Shankar. D’Arcy Short (40) and Maxwell came together then, and their 73-run partnership changed the game in Australia’s favor. While Short was caught off Shankar in the 12th over, Maxwell motored along and reached his half-century off 28 balls. The boundaries didn’t stop coming for him, as he put on 99 runs with Peter Handscomb (20 not out) for the fourth wicket. Maxwell reached his third T20 hundred off 50 balls as Australia closed in on the finish line. Even Jasprit Bumrah (0-30) failed to produce his usual good spells, and struggled with the wet ball, as Maxwell took Australia home with two balls to spare. “Australia outplayed us in all departments and deserved to win the series,” India captain Virat Kohli said. “(Scoring) 190 is a good total on most grounds but if there is so much dew as there was tonight, and when you have an innings like what Glenn Maxwell played, nothing much you can do.” SCORECARD India K.L. Rahul c Richardson b Coulter-Nile 47 S. Dhawan c Stoinis b Behrendorff 14 V. Kohli not out 72 R. Pant c Richardson b Short 1 M.S. Dhoni c Finch b Cummins 40 D. Karthik not out 8 Extras (lb3, w5) 8 Total (4 wickets, 20 overs) 190 Fall of wickets: 1-61 (Rahul), 2-70 (Dhawan), 3-74 (Pant), 4-174 (Dhoni) Did not bat: V. Shankar, K. Pandya, Y. Chahal, S. Kaul, J. Bumrah Bowling: Behrendorff 3-0-17-1, Richardson 4-0-45-0 (w1), Coulter-Nile 3-0-33-1 (w2), Cummins 3-0-40-1 (w2), Zampa 4-0-23-0, Short 3-0-29-1 Australia (target 191) D. Short c Rahul b Shankar 40 M. Stoinis b Kaul 7 A. Finch c Dhawan b Shankar 8 G. Maxwell not out 113 P. Handscomb not out 20 Extras (lb1, w4, nb1) 6 Total (3 wickets, 19.4 overs) 194 Fall of wickets: 1-13 (Stoinis), 2-22 (Finch), 3-95 (Short) Did not bat: A. Turner, N. Coulter-Nile, P. Cummins, J. Richardson, J. Behrendorff, A. Zampa Bowling: Shankar 4-0-38-2 (w1), Bumrah 4-0-30-0, Kaul 3.4-0-45-1 (nb1), Chahal 4-0-47-0 (w2), Pandya 4-0-33-0 (w1) Toss: Australia Result: Australia won by 7 wickets Series: Australia sweep two-match series 2-0 Umpires: Anil Chaudhary (IND), C.K. Nandan (IND) TV umpire: Nitin Menon (IND) Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (SRI)<doc-sep>Bengaluru’s Chinnaswamy Stadium . File Bengaluru’s Chinnaswamy Stadium . File “At Bangalore, I sometimes challenge the batsmen to hit a four instead of a six! As it’s easier to hit a six in Bangalore stadium,” Yuzvendra Chahal says in half-jest about the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. During match four of the IPL 9 three years ago, Chinnaswamy became the first venue of the T20 league to witness 650-plus sixes. Last year, as Chennai Super Kings chased down 205 against Royal Challenges Bangalore, Chinnaswamy had a record 33 maximums hit in an IPL game. RCB had 16 hits over the fence, and CSK bettered it by hammering 17. It is at the six-hitting haven of the Chinnaswamy Stadium that Virat Kohli’s team will try to salvage the two-match T20 series after the last-ball defeat to Australia in Visakhapatnam. It’s not a large stadium but not that small either, with the side boundaries measuring 70-71 metres. Why then does the white ball fly? Robin Uthappa, a batsman who grew up in Bangalore, reckons it’s a combination of two factors: the altitude (nearly 900 metres above sea level) and the black soil used in the pitch. Shikhar Dhawan plays a shot during a practice session at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Tuesday. (PTI) “It’s nearly 900 metres above sea level, like Johannesburg for example,” Uthappa tells The Indian Express. “What it means is when you hit the ball in the air, it stays hit – it takes a long time to come back! It also has an interesting effect on the psyche – you know if you hit it decently, it’s going to go, and as a batsman that somehow makes you go for shots more for balls you might not try elsewhere.” Then there is the soil composition. How does black soil help? “The thing with black soil is it remains a great batting track for a short while. As black-soil pitches hold up nicely for a day. It might not be great for a Ranji Trophy (game) or Test where as the days go, hitting the ball might not be as easy in Bangalore. But these T20 games or ODIs are just for a day. That helps,” Uthappa explains. Batsmen might make merry as the likes of Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers have done on numerous Bangalore nights but what about the poor bowlers? Jaydev Unadkat, the Saurashtra captain who played recently in a Ranji Trophy semifinal at the venue, talks about the architecture of the stadium which creates an illusion in the minds of batsmen that the ground is smaller than it really is – and how that affects their psyche. “I think it has something to do with the way the stadium is built. The seats start straight after the boundary, which makes it (playing area) look much smaller than it actually is. So it gives batsmen that added belief to hit the ball out of the park. That belief is the key to me,” Unadkat says. R Vinay Kumar, who has been playing for Karnataka for nearly 15 years, echoes Uthappa’s views about altitude. “The air is thinner and the ball travels far,” Vinay says. The other reason he reckons is the even bounce that the surface offers. “The Chinnaswamy pitch; especially with the white ball, the ball comes really well on to the bat with a good bounce. There’s no uneven bounce. It’s like even bounce throughout the match. It gives the batters the confidence to have a go from ball one. In that way, I think everything is tilted towards the batsmen at Chinnaswamy,” Vinay says. According to Vinay, the key to success at this venue is to bowl the “Test-match length” and make early inroads. “Everything here helps the batsmen. But the bowlers, too, can dominate, especially the fast bowlers. It happens very rarely, but it happens. If the bowlers keep it in good areas and look to bowl the Test-match length and get early wickets, then they can definitely put pressure on the batting side. From a bowling point of view, it’s imperative to make early inroads. Otherwise, if the batters start to dominate, then it becomes even more difficult,” Vinay says. “T20 is all about the first six overs, and the batters nowadays start to go from the very first over. If they hit two fours or a six in the first three balls, given this venue’s reputation as a batsman’s paradise, it affects the mindset and the bowlers start doing things that they are not used to doing. With the new ball, you need to hit the right areas and bowl the Test-match length consistently, looking for caught-behinds, LBWs or bowled… Under pressure, the bowlers tend to forget that and go for yorkers, short balls and slower deliveries… Normally this is the mistake they do.” Ex-India seamer Venkatesh Prasad tells how Chinnaswamy leaves the bowlers with very little margin for error. “The pitch is a beauty to bat (on). The ball always tends to come on to the bat irrespective of movement. So the margin of error for the bowlers is very minimal. All these (factors) give the batsmen a psychological edge. They trust the bounce and swing,” Prasad says. Sporting pitch About a couple of seasons back, when the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) had re-laid the ground, the Chinnaswamy pitch suddenly became slower and lower. Teams struggled to post 150s in the IPL, notwithstanding the fact that the centre square had been untouched. According to a source, because of some issues with the Sub Air system – the vacuum underneath the surface that is connected to the drainage piping – the pitches retained extra moisture. The state association worked on that and matters improved. KSCA secretary and former Karnataka cricketer Sudhakar Rao informs that a sporting pitch has been laid out for Wednesday’s game. “We have worked on this pitch for the last three months and it will be a good, sporting wicket. We have raised the centre strip by three-four inches, putting one more coat of soil. The curators did a fantastic job.<doc-sep>
Glenn Maxwell has powered Australia to its first limited-overs series win in over a year, overwhelming India with an unbeaten freewheeling T20 century in Bangalore. Maxwell, having also top-scored in the tour opener at Vizag, continued his hot form with an astonishing array of sweetly-timed sixes, funky footwork, textbook boundaries and switch-hits. It was going to take something special to top Virat Kohli’s masterful unbeaten 72 off 38 balls, which had piloted India to an imposing total of 4/190. Maxwell duly delivered. The innovative batsman finished on 113 not out from 55 deliveries, smacking nine sixes and seven fours as his team wrapped up a seven-wicket win in 19.4 overs. On current form it’s not a question of whether the Victorian will be in Australia’s World Cup squad, as he self-effacingly pondered earlier this week, but where he will bat in the order. Maxwell strode to the crease at 2/22 following yet another cheap dismissal from Aaron Finch, who has now played 19 consecutive white-ball innings for his country without reaching 50. The right-hander put on a 73-run stand with D’Arcy Short, who also backed up his promising performance in the first T20 with 40, then sealed the deal alongside Peter Handscomb to make all sorts of history. Maxwell became the first Australian to register three international T20 centuries, reaching three figures in the penultimate over but holding off on celebrations until victory was assured. Kohli’s superb innings left the tourists with a required run-rate of 9.5 from the outset, underlining just how incredible Maxwell’s man-of-the-match effort was in Australia’s fourth-highest successful T20 chase. Amazingly, according to stats provider CricViz, the Victorian didn’t play one defensive shot in his entire innings. Glenn Maxwell did not play a single defensive shot in his stunning match-winning century. He scored 22 off 18 rotating shots and blitzed an astonishing 91 runs from 37 attacking shots. #INDvAUS pic.twitter.com/TKWqe7tzd6 — The Cricket Prof. (@CricProf) February 27, 2019 “Anytime that you can win any kind of series against India in India is truly special. Glenn Maxwell was truly sensational tonight,” Finch said after the momentous win. “We’ve been on a journey for the last 10-11 months building up to the World Cup and there has been some pain during the journey. “We’ve done well to take the blows but also have made some progress, hoping to peak at the right time for the World Cup.” The result, coming after Pat Cummins’ last-ball heroics in Vizag, meant Australia won its first T20 series over India. It was also Australia’s first limited-overs series triumph since February 21 last year, when caretaker captain David Warner celebrated a T20 tri-series title in Auckland. The shock result marked the wrong kind of history for India as Virat Kohli suffered his first series loss at home as captain across any format in 16 efforts. “Australia outplayed us in all departments and deserved to win — 190 is a good total on most grounds,” Kohli said. “But if there is so much dew as there was tonight and when you have an innings like what Glenn Maxwell played, nothing much you can do.” The two teams now meet in a five-match ODI series, which starts in Hyderabad on Saturday and will ultimately hold more pointers regarding their World Cup plans and prospects. Kohli, having recently led India to its maiden Test series win in Australia but also T20 and ODI series wins on the same tour, starred with the bat yet again. Kohli exhibited trademark composure during a collapse of 3/13 then lashed out with the sort of incredible timing that has been a hallmark of his productive career. He spanked six sixes — the most he’s ever hit in a single T20 innings — but it wasn’t enough. Leg-spinner Adam Zampa, who recorded economical figures of 0/23, was the pick of Australia’s bowlers.