India’s T20I captain, Suryakumar Yadav, recently found a humorous way to cope with his consistent toss losses against Australia. During the second T20I at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, after Australian skipper Mitchell Marsh won the toss and elected to bowl first, Suryakumar was caught on camera making a light-hearted gesture towards his teammates. He playfully suggested that perhaps it was time for the team to perform an ‘Aarti,’ a traditional Indian prayer ritual, to change their luck with the coin toss.
This amusing moment, captured as presenter Ravi Shastri continued his post-toss interview with Marsh, quickly went viral, spreading laughter across social media. Former Australia captain Aaron Finch, who was part of the commentary team, quipped, ‘I wouldn’t take Suryakumar Yadav to a casino. That’s crazy.’
Indeed, India’s fortune at the toss during their tour of Australia has been dismal, with the visitors failing to win a single toss across all three ODI matches and the first two T20Is.
Before the match commenced, a somber note was struck as players from both sides wore black armbands. This was a tribute to 17-year-old Australian cricketer Ben Austin, who had tragically passed away earlier in the week after being struck by a ball during training.
Once play began, India’s struggles extended beyond the toss to their batting performance. Josh Hazlewood’s fiery opening spell dismantled the Indian top order, leaving the visitors reeling at 32/4 within the powerplay. Only Abhishek Sharma managed to offer significant resistance, delivering a counter-attacking innings of 68 runs off just 37 balls. He found some support from Harshit Rana, who contributed 35 runs from 33 deliveries. Together, they forged a 56-run partnership, helping India to a total of 125 all out in 18.4 overs. Hazlewood and Nathan Ellis were instrumental for Australia, skillfully exploiting the movement and bounce on offer, ensuring regular wickets and preventing India from building any substantial momentum despite Abhishek’s valiant effort.