India vs Australia: Virat Kohli lead India to a series-clinching win in the second T20I.© AFP
India skipper Virat Kohli set a new captaincy record in Australia after the visitors won the second T20I in Sydney to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the ongoing three-match series. Kohli became the first Indian captain and the second overall after South Africa’s Faf du Plessis to register series wins in all three formats of the game in Australia. Under Kohli’s captaincy, India won their first-ever Test series on Australian soil on their last tour Down Under in 2018-19 and won the One-day International series as well on that tour. The T20I series, though, was tied 1-1, but after winning the second T20I in Sydney on Sunday, Kohli added yet another captaincy record to his kitty.
Kohli’s tour of Australia is limited by the paternity leave granted to him by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) as he will leave for India after the first Test in Adelaide.
India made a strong riposte in the shortest format of the game by winning the first two T20Is in Canberra and Sydney after having lost the preceding ODI series 2-1.
Kohli won the toss on Sunday and put Australia in on what turned out to be yet another flat wicket at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).
Helped by stand-in captain Matthew Wade’s 58 and Steven Smith’s 46, Australia posted a challenging 194 for 5 in their 20 overs.
India posted a strong a reply with openers KL Rahul (30) and Shikhar Dhawan (52) adding 56 inside the first six overs before Kohli blitzed to 40 off just 24 balls with two fours and as many sixes.
Hardik Pandya (42 not out off 22 balls) provided the finishing touches to the match as India overhauled the Australian total with six wickets in hand and two balls to spare.
Promoted
India had won the first T20I by 11 runs on Friday. The final T20I will be played on Tuesday, also at the SCG.
With this series win, Kohli also became the first Indian captain to win T20I series in South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia – SENA countries.