Young India humbled World champions Australia by 19 runs in the fifth game of the VB tri-series at the Gabba on Sunday.
Chasing 304 for victory, Australia were bowled out for 284 in the final over of the match.
Rookie pace bowlers Lakshmipathi Balaji, who picked four wickets, and Irfan Pathan, who claimed three, ran through the vaunted Australian batting order.
Despite a blistering hundred by Matthew Hayden, India's total of 303 was a tad too much for the home side.
In a high-scoring game, Pathan and Balaji --- with five games between themselves before this match -- picked seven wickets for 112 runs in their 20 overs.
VVS Laxman was named man of the match for his superlative century earlier. It was his third one-day century. Co-incidentally all three hundreds have come against Australia.
India's score of 303 was the highest ever for India in Australia in the abridged version of the game and the highest total ever at the Gabba.
It was revenge of sorts for India, who suffered against Brett Lee the last time they were in Brisbane in 1999-2000. Today, he was smashed with disdain by the Indian batters and his 10 overs cost 83 runs with a wicket off the last ball in his quota of overs.
But the day belonged to Laxman, who was involved in two 100-run stands with Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, who both helped themselves to half-centuries.
Laxman's innings was precision-like; 53 runs in his score of 103 were singles. With only 43 dot balls in his innings, which was laced with eight fours, he made sure India were on target for a total pf 300.
Indian innings:
Sourav Ganguly won the toss and decided to make first use of the Gabba wicket, which was laid flat by the curator for another batting exposition.
Changes in an Indian playing eleven always invite speculation and excitement. Today was no different, with Rohan Gavaskar, son of Indian great Sunil Gavaskar, set to don national colours for the first time.
With Virender Sehwag and Ajit Agarkar out injured, Ashish Nehra and Rohan Gavaskar got an opportunity to display their wares. Nehra, playing his first one-dayer of the series after a pallid showing in the Test series, was picked ahead of Amit Bhandari, clearly due to his ability to swing the ball prodigiously in obliging conditions.
Australia fielded their best possible attack, with Jason Gillespie and Brett Lee back in the side.
Ganguly walked out to open with Sachin Tendulkar and there was drama right from the first over. Gillespie swung one that dipped on Adam Gilchrist after passing Ganguly. The Indian skipper smacked the third ball from Gillespie straight to backward point, where Damien Martyn dropped the simplest of catches.
And that reflected the weariness of the Aussies with the vulgar amount of time they have spent on the field these last two months.
Brad Williams, who got the ball ahead of Brett Lee, was sending the ball down at searing pace, shaping the ball and illustrating the art of pitching the ball on the same spot consistently. Not experimenting too much, Williams justified partnering Gillespie with the new ball.
In the seventh over, Ganguly got a chance to free his arms and he sent Gillespie one bounce over the extra cover fence. Next ball from Gillespie was in the same spot and this time Ganguly did one better as he sent the ball crashing into the advertising boards on the full.
Ganguly, playing on the ground where he made his international debut as a 19-year-old in 1992, was looking to get a good score as opener and was striking the ball beautifully, cover driving Williams to the fence.
But Williams dug one short, aimed at Ganguly's ribs and was rewarded. Ganguly fended the ball, which ballooned in the air for Williams to swallow. Pacing past Ganguly, the burly Williams laughed at the Indian skipper. Maybe, an evening date with the match referee would do well for Williams's manners.
Laxman joined Tendulkar, who was struggling with a twisted ankle after running a single. After ten overs, India were 44-1, yet there was no momentum in the innings.
Enter Brett Lee, fresh and confident after the successful stint against the Zimbabweans, and the Indians could not have asked for anything better.
Laxman pulled him to the mid-wicket fence with contemptuous ease and followed it up with a straight drive down the ground for another four. Ten runs had been scored of the first Lee over and Tendulkar had yet to dip into him.
Struggling with his right ankle, Tendulkar was determined to ground the Lee challenge. Each of Lee's first three overs was taken for ten runs, with two boundaries per over. Suddenly the Indian batting had gained impetus and was tearing into the Australian bowling challenge.
Laxman was matching Tendulkar's stroke play, employing his supple wrists to good effect. Red in the face and soaking in sweat, Williams walked off the ground after his first spell exhausted.
The 50-run partnership between Laxman and Tendulkar came off a mere 41 balls and India wee 89-1 after 15 overs.
Tendulkar, unable to put any weight on the back foot, was in pain but that did not stop him from reaching his 66th fifty off 53 balls.
With Lee hit out of the attack, Ponting turned to Ian Harvey and part-timers Andrew Symonds and Michael Clarke.
With the field spread and the boundaries drying up, Tendulkar and Laxman concentrated on maneuvering the ball around the park for easy pickings.
Tendulkar called for a runner and seeing Ganguly come out to do the honours, he changed his mind. After all, Ganguly isn't the greatest of runners between the wickets.
Without much ado, the pair wove a 100-run stand for the second wicket off just 112 balls with Tendulkar scoring 67 of those runs.
India were on course for a 280-plus total at 137-1 after 26 overs. Symonds surprised Tendulkar with one that hurried onto him. Tendulkar slapped the ball straight back to the bowler and was gone 14 short of another one-day hundred.
His 130-minute stay at the wicket had exposed the feeble Australian attack, and when he departed with the score reading 147-2, India were not panicking.
Dravid got off the starting blocks almost immediately, cutting the first ball he faced from Symonds for s single. With confidence on his sleeve, he seems to be in control at all times in this series and he forced Laxman to up the ante and score briskly.
Laxman got his fifty in the 37th over of the innings off 74 balls with just three fours. Without resorting to slam-bang cricket, the duo got their fifty-run partnership at a run a ball.
In the 38th over, Dravid survived a run-out chance, when a Williams throw missed the non-striker's end.
After 40 overs, the Indians were sitting pretty at 215 for 2, eyeing the 300-run mark.
Gillespie, Australia's best bowler on display, bowled his ten overs for forty runs while Lee was in danger of not completing his full stint of the reel.
Dravid got his half-century off 49 balls with the help of just one four and that illustrated how well he has mastered the vocabulary of the one-day game. When he was caught for 74 at the long-on fence in the dying moments of the Indian innings, he had 35 singles, 10 twos, a three and only four boundaries against his name.
Yuvraj Singh was dismissed for five and Rohan Gavaskar was tested to face the last over of the innings on debut. Minutes later, he was facing the second last ball of the innings with Laxman on 99 at the non-striker's end.
A well-judged single got Laxman on strike and allowed him to heave Ian Harvey to the mid-wicket fence for his century. 88 runs were scored off the last ten overs.
Australia will have to get off to a screaming start from Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist under the Gabba floodlights to hunt down the Indian total.
Australian chase:
India, fielding a rather inexperienced attack, were always going to be under fire against the opening pair of Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist, who blasted the Zimbabweans with a dashing 172 in the last encounter of the series.
With Ajit Agarkar also out of the attack, Nehra and Pathan opened the bowling and were met with crisp drives and rasping cuts from the two left-handed openers.
Not a single bouncer or slower ball was attempted until the fifth over, by which time the Australian score was already nearing the 50-run mark.
Pathan is a quick learner and while he did swing the ball and beat the bat on the odd occasion, he was always struggling to stall the flow of runs on a batting paradise. Despite the magnitude of the task at hand, his shoulders did not droop and he persisted relentlessly. He was rewarded with the prized scalp of Gilchrist, caught at mid-on by Balaji for 21.
Ricky Ponting joined Hayden, who seemed to be in a tearing hurry to get to the total. It seemed he had decided that he would get Australia to the total inside 40 overs to collect the bonus point.
After ten overs, the Australian total was 78 for 1 and the hefty Queenslander had scored 49 of those runs.
An interesting duel was taking place between Hayden and greenhorn Pathan, and in
what is a departure from the Indian attitude, the 19-year-old rookie pacer did not take a step backwards, giving back as good as he got from Hayden.
In what is a reassuring trend for India on this tour, seniors apart the youngsters have also displayed the right fighting attitude, which is the blueprint for success in these parts.
Hayden got his 50 off a mere 38 balls with seven scintillating boundaries and India were falling short of ideas to break through the Aussie line-up.
Ponting failed to stay at the wicket for long. He was gone playing a wild heave across the line to Balaji, and offering a high catch off the leading edge to Laxman in the slips.
The ball took a good amount of time to return to planet earth and Laxman, who had called to take the catch despite Dravid closing in on it with the gloves, made a tough catch look simple.
Ponting was gone for seven and the out of form Damien Martyn walked out to the middle with Australia 86 for 2.
A confident Balaji had Martyn caught at backward point by Yuvraj Singh for one.
The match was placed on a knife's edge with the Aussies scoring well above the asking rate and India taking wickets at regular intervals.
Andrew Symonds and Hayden continued with the blitzkrieg and the loss of two quick wickets had been countered.
A healthy partnership was taking the game away from India when skipper Ganguly made one of those mercurial moves and brought Rohan Gavaskar to turn his left-arm around for some spin.
Off the fifth ball of Rohan's first over, Symonds struck the ball straight back to the bowler, who took a spectacular catch, inches off the ground. Symonds was gone for 20 and what seemed to be the partnership that would steer Australia to safety was terminated after adding just 47 runs together. (141-4)
At the halfway stage, Australia were 150 for 4 whereas India at that stage were 132-1.
Hayden, unruffled by the fall of wickets at the other end, continued to defy the bowlers and closed in on his third one-day hundred. There was drama when he celebrated his hundred, only to be called by the umpire for taking a short run.
Next ball, he strolled across for a single and registered his century in just 98 balls and eleven boundaries.
Michael Clarke, at the other end, was busy running the singles and rotating the strike. His handling of the spinners was commendable. Stepping out, he never let them get on top, taking their deliveries on the full and never failing to punish the bad balls.
The Hayden-Clarke partnership put together the 50-run partnership in the 32nd over with the score reading 191 for 4.
The threat of a thunderstorm had passed and the match was on song for a 50 over contest.
Ganguly's handling of his bowlers was first-rate and the changes were spot-on. Each time he rang in a change, he was rewarded.
In the 33rd over, with Clarke and Hayden running away with the match, he brought Pathan back on. Off the first ball, Hayden whipped him to long-on only for Balaji to drop a regulation catch that crossed the boundary.
Pathan had his hands on his head and that said the story, with exactly 100 runs required for victory. Hayden's dropped catch could well mean the match lost.
Two balls later, never-say-die rookie Pathan induced an edge off Hayden's bat to Dravid. The danger man was gone for 109 and in a match of changing fortunes every five overs.
India were in the driver's seat. (204-5)
Buoyed by the wicket of Hayden, Pathan struck again when Clarke chased a wide delivery straight into Dravid's gloves. (224-6)
Australia kept the asking rate within striking range but lost one wicket too many for the final fling.
Michael Bevan, who has failed to fire in the series so far, was joined by Ian Harvey and
put up a brief partnership with him. But Harvey was caught at deep square leg off Ashish Nehra.
Australia, at 249-7 in the 43rd over. would need another Bevan special if they were to seal an improbable win.
Balaji picked two quick wickets, that of Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie in the final overs, to sound the death knell for the Aussies. His figures of 4 for 48 clinched the match for India.
In the last over of the match, Australia required 23 runs but managed to score just two before Dravid ran out Brad Williams. Australia were bowled out for 284 runs.
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