India were totally outplayed by Australia in the first ODI at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Tuesday. The visitors thrashed hosts by 10-wickets and registered an enormous victory. David Warner and Aaron Finch scored centuries as ‘yellow brigade’ chased down the target in just 37.4 overs.
Earlier, Virat Kohli dropped himself down to number four position to accommodate Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, and KL Rahul in the batting line-up, but it clearly backfired as the skipper only managed to score 16 runs; Indian team capitulated to the pressure and got all out for 255.
Kohli presented his views on his experiment in the post-match presentation and gave a hint that he might have to re-think about the decision to change the batting order.
“We’ve had this discussion in the past. Because of the way KL has batted, we have tried to have him bat up in the line-up. We might have to think about this. Every now and then, it’s about putting people up there and testing them,” said Kohli.
The 31-year-old also requested India fans to relax and not panic with one game.
“It’s about giving some guys opportunities. Every now and then, it’s about putting people up there and testing them. People need to relax and not panic with one game. I am allowed to experiment a little bit and fail at times. Today was one of the days it didn’t come off,” added Kohli.
Kohli pointed out the mistakes Indian batters did and praised the Aussies for their dominating performance.
“We were totally outplayed in all three departments. It’s a very strong Australian team, and if you don’t play well enough, they will hurt you. In phases, we were too respectful against their bowlers and didn’t take the game by the scruff of the neck. It’s another challenge to bounce back from here,” Kohli added further.
