In Stats: Records Tumble as Dhawan & Rohit Shine Against Australia

Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan added 127 runs for the opening wicket against Australia.

(Photo: AP)

Team India registered their second win in the World Cup 2019 when they defeated defending champions Australia by 36 runs on Sunday. At the Oval in London, Team India batted first and posted 352/5, the highest-ever total against Australia in World Cup matches and then dismissed the Australians for 316 in their run-chase. India’s win also halted Australia’s winning streak at 10 matches.

The foundation for India's mammoth total was laid by openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan, who added 127 runs before they were separated. Their partnership was India's highest opening stand in World Cup matches against Australia.

After Rohit Sharma, who became the quickest to score 2000 ODI runs against any particular opponent, was dismissed for a well-compiled 57, Team India continued to motor on through a 93-run partnership between Dhawan and captain Virat Kohli.

It was during the course of this partnership that Dhawan raised his 17th ODI hundred. It is incredible to note that of Dhawan's 17 three-figure scores in ODIs, 6 have been in ICC events; the left-hander has scored three hundreds each in the Champions Trophy and in the World Cup.

Dhawan’s 117 on Sunday was his third ODI hundred at the Oval; he had earlier scored 102 not out in the Champions Trophy in 2013 and 125 in the same competition in 2017, and as a result has an astonishing record at the venue.

During his knock on Sunday, Dhawan became the quickest to score 1000 runs in ODIs in England; he reached the milestone in his 19th innings in the country.

After Dhawan was dismissed in the 37th over, India continued to charge through the rest of the batting line-up. Captain Kohli made 82 before he was dismissed off the penultimate ball of the innings, while Hardik Pandya made a brisk 48 off 27 balls batting at number four. It was the first time ever in the history of the World Cup that a team’s top four had all made scores in excess of 45 in one innings. MS Dhoni (27 from 14 balls) and KL Rahul (11 not out from 3 balls) also chipped in towards the end.

The Indian innings was a carefully constructed one; credit to the openers for assessing the conditions and playing cautiously early on, and to the rest of the batsmen for not taking the foot off the pedal thereafter.

A mention has to be made about India’s incredible finish; India’s middle-order scored a total of 116 runs in the final ten overs – the most any team has scored against Australia in the final ten overs of a World Cup match.