Veteran Australian pacer Mitchell Starc triggered a shocking batting collapse of Team India as Rohit Sharma and Co. folded for a paltry total in the 2nd One Day International (ODI) of the three-match series on Sunday. Wreaking havoc in the series decider between India and Australia, pace ace Starc bagged a memorable five-wicket to put the visitors in the driving seat at Visakhapatnam. With Starc running riot in the 2nd ODI, Team India fans were quick to spark a meme fest on social media.
Indian batter Sanju Samson, who is not a part of the white-ball squad, received a noteworthy mention in several tweets on the microblogging site. “It’s time to get this Beast Sanju Samson permanent place in middle order in ODIs. He is miles ahead of Suryakumar Yadav in ODIs,” a fan mentioned in his tweet. “Without any doubts Sanju Samson is the no. 4 for ODI World Cup. Don’t test our patience anymore. #BCCI #SanjuSamson,” another fan added.
Premier batter Suryakumar was called out by netizens on Twitter after the white-ball maverick recorded another forgetful outing against Australia in the three-match series. Suryakumar, who is the top-ranked batter in the shortest format, was dismissed for a golden duck by speedster Starc in the 2nd ODI against India at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium. Starc had also handed a golden duck to Suryakumar in the series opener at the Wankhede Stadium.
Rattling Team India in the series decider at Visakhapatnam, Australia’s left-arm quick Starc bagged his 9th five-wicket haul in the 50-over format. Starc got the better of Rohit (13), Shubman Gill (0), Virat Kohli (31), Suryakumar (0), KL Rahul (9) and Mohammed Siraj (0) in the low-scoring contest. Kohli’s 35-ball 31 and Axar Patel’s unbeaten 29 off 29 balls lifted India to 117 in 26 overs.
Pacer Starc removed skipper Rohit and premier batter Suryakumar in the same over to trigger a shocking batting collapse of the hosts. Starc bowled 8 overs and picked up 5 wickets for Australia. The star pacer’s bowling heroics paved the way for Australia to register a comfortable win over India in the 2nd ODI on Sunday. Mitchell Marsh (66) and Travis Head (51*) slammed half-centuries as the Aussie openers remained unbeaten to help the visitors register a 10-wicket win over India. With the convincing win over India, Steve Smith’s Australia have levelled the ODI series 1-1. Rohit’s Team India will meet Australia in the 3rd ODI at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Wednesday.
