Glenn Maxwell hit an unbeaten 113 as Australia beat India by seven wickets in the second and final Twenty20 international to sweep the series in Bengaluru yesterday.
Chasing 191 for victory, the tourists rode on Maxwell’s 55-ball knock, laced with 7 fours and 9 sixes, to achieve their target in 19.4 overs.
Maxwell’s innings eclipsed Indian skipper Virat Kohli’s 72 off 38 balls that lifted the hosts to 190 for four after being put into bat first.
Put in to bat, the hosts rode on a century stand between Kohli and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who made 40 off 23 balls, to put up a challenging total at Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Kohli smashed two fours and six sixes in his 38-ball blitz to take the attack to the opposition bowlers.
Opening batsman K.L. Rahul gave the hosts a brisk start with his 47 off 26 deliveries but Australia hit back with a couple of wickets to check India’s surge. Fast bowler Nathan Coulter-Nile got Rahul, who scored a fifty in his team’s opening loss, with a change of pace as the batsman was caught out at deep third man.
Jason Behrendorff got Shikhar Dhawan for 14 and D’Arcy Short claimed Rishabh Pant for one with a brilliant catch from Jhye Richardson. Kohli then clobbered the bowling to all parts of the ground as he hit Coulter-Nile for three straight sixes in the 16th over to entertain a raucous home crowd.
Dhoni soon joined the party as the veteran wicketkeeper-batsman hit 3 fours and 3 sixes before falling to Pat Cummins.
India managed to get 91 runs from the last six overs with Dinesh Karthik also contributing with eight off three balls.
Meanwhile, Australia fast bowler Kane Richardson has been ruled out of the India tour with a side injury and will return home.
The 28-year-old suffered the injury at a training session before Sunday’s first Twenty20 and will be replaced by fellow paceman Andrew Tye.
“Kane reported some left side pain at training prior to the opening T20I in Vizag,” Australia team physiotherapist David Beakley said in a statement.
