Big hitting Dhoni seems to be back. His superb 107-ball 124 was the foundation for India’s highest-ever total against Australia, a mammoth 354 for 7. Once India scored these many runs, it was always going to be difficult for the Aussies.

But the match slipped out of Australia’s grasp in the final 11 overs of the Indian innings. When the batting Powerplay was taken with the scoreboard showing 238 for 4, the run-rate had dipped close to six. But with 47 coming from those five overs, and the mayhem continuing unabated afterwards, Ricky Ponting’s decision to bowl first in view of the dew factor didn’t look too clever. Peter Siddle bowled with impressive pace and accuracy, while Nathan Hauritz was tidy, but the rest were taken to the cleaners on a day when Dhoni appeared to rediscover his big-hitting mojo.

Today Dhoni was hitting sixes with his famous twirl, but he received good support from Gambhir and Raina, both of them scored useful half centuries. When India’s bowling came, Praveen and Ishant took early wickets to ensure that Australia did not got off to a good start and the match was always in India’s control. Jadeja took 3 wickets in the middle overs to end the game.

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