Aussies wrap up series win

Watson and Hussey set up victory for tourists

Last updated: 9th November 2009   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Aussies wrap up series win

Bollinger: five wickets

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Sixth One Day International
Guwahati
India 170 (R A Jadeja 57, P S Kumar 54 no, D E Bollinger 5-35) v Australia 172-4
Australia beat India by 6 wkts

Australia cruised to a six-wicket win in the sixth One Day International in Guwahati to take an unassailable 4-2 lead in the seven-match series.

It is India's first defeat in a bilateral series since their 4-2 loss to Australia in 2007-08.

Doug Bollinger claimed a five-wicket haul as the hosts were dismissed for just 170.

Seamers Bollinger (five for 25) and Mitchell Johnson (three for 39) reduced India to 27 for five with a destructive new-ball partnership.

Ravindra Jadeja (57) and Praveen Kumar (54 not out) were able to partially rebuild the innings but the total never looked good enough, and so it proved.

Shane Watson smashed a run-a-ball 49 and Michael Hussey made a steady unbeaten 35 as Australia overhauled the target with 8.1 overs to spare.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss, but his decision to bat first in early-morning conditions and on a moist surface was immediately undone by the loss of early wickets.

Johnson bowled opening batsman Virender Sehwag with an inswinger and removed one-drop batsman Gautam Gambhir with the last ball of his first over.

Bollinger began with a maiden from the other end and he then got in on the act, claiming the prized wicket of Sachin Tendulkar by holding a sharp return catch.

Yuvraj Singh was quickly snared in bizarre fashion.

Bollinger rapped the left-hander on the pad, but the ball looped up over the batsman's right shoulder and Yuvraj knocked it back onto his stumps while attempting to regain the crease.

Johnson then claimed Suresh Raina wicket with a tame dismissal, as the batsman chipped straight to Nathan Hauritz at short mid-on

That was five down inside nine overs but Dhoni (24) and Jadeja revived the innings with a painfully slow 48-run stand for the sixth wicket, before Bollinger returned to knock over Dhoni, winning a dubious lbw decision.

Faltered

India faltered again as Harbhajan Singh fell in the same over, but Praveen joined Jadeja and the two held India together with a 74-run stand for the eight wicket.

The partnership was eventually ended by Bollinger, the left-arm seamer claiming Jadeja for his fifth victim in the final over of the batting powerplay.

Praveen, who had hit Clint McKay for a six and a four in an over that yielded 14, eased India past the 150 mark and continued to bat with aggression as he reached his maiden half-century in just 48 deliveries.

Australia lost Shaun Marsh early to give India some hope, but Watson, who had begun in a blaze of boundaries, then put Australia on course with a 61-run stand for the second wicket with skipper Ricky Ponting (25).

Harbhajan, however, provided another twist by taking the wickets of Watson and Ponting in quick succession, but Hussey and Cameron White (25) rebuilt the innings with a 53-run stand for the fourth wicket.

White was trapped in front by Raina, but with just 28 needed the game was already up and Hussey and Voges (23 not out) saw the tourists home to victory in the match and series.