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After shining with the bat, Steve Smith pulled off with a spectacular catch to give Australia an important breakthrough in the second ODI against India at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Sunday.
Chasing a massive 390, India lost their openers Shikhar Dhawan (30) and Mayank Agarwal (28) in quick succession. However, then India’s chase came on the right track thanks to Virat Kohli (89) and Shreyas Iyer (38).
Both the players were looking set to take their side over the finish line. But, a jaw-dropping effort from Smith in the 24th over of India’s innings ruined all plans of the visiting side.
It all happened on the first ball of the 24th over bowled by Moises Henriques when Iyer went for a pull shot on a slower short delivery towards mid-on. Smith, who was positioned at short-midwicket, flew to his right and took a stunning catch to end Iyer’s innings as well as the 93-run stand between Kohli and Iyer.
Here is the video:
Just try and keep him out of the game!!! #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/DWEORwOaaV
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) November 29, 2020
Later, Australia defeated India by 51 runs to seal the three-match series 2-0 with one game to go.
Hitting balls subtlety has worked for me: Smith
Earlier, Smith scored his second consecutive century in the ongoing ODI series against India. He spoke about his knocks after the match and said that unlike the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020, he tried playing the balls with bit ease which has worked well for him.
“Against India, you need to score big totals. It was just about taking the game on. Fortunately, it’s come off in the last couple of games. I tried to whack the ball a bit too hard in the IPL; now I have started to hit the ball with a bit more finesse which is probably working better for me,” said Smith at the post-match presentation.
The former Australian skipper gave credit to Aaron Finch and David Warner for giving the team a solid start. Smith said that the foundation provided by Finch and Warner enabled himself and Glenn Maxwell to score runs freely.
“I felt good from ball one. Got myself in and went hard. It was another great foundation set by Finchy (Aaron Finch) and Davey (David Warner). That enabled myself and Maxi (Glenn Maxwell) to go hard at the back end. It’s just summing up conditions and what’s in front you,” added Smith.
