Ashton Turner (84 not out) played a gem of an innings and helped Australia chased down the massive target of 359 with 13 balls to spare in Mohali ODI against India. By virtue of this victory, the visitors also levelled the ODI series 2-2 with one match still to be played.
Defending the daunting total, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah dented Australia by removing Aaron Finch (0) and Shaun Marsh (6) inside 4 overs. However, the tourists made a comeback into the contest with a 192-run partnership between Usman Khawaja (91) and Peter Handscomb (117). Later, Glenn Maxwell (23), Turner and Alex Carey (21) played important cameos to help Australia cross the line with ease.
Addressing the press conference after the match, India opener Shikhar Dhawan said they didn't expect dew to play such a big role in this match.
"We had expected dew would be a factor in the last game and it didn't come and here, we didn't expect dew in this game and it came very heavily," Dhawan told reporters.
"So of course, when you put such a totals on the board, it's always pressure for the other sides and not our bowlers and we were quite in control till 38th over. But then ball started coming so nicely and the bounce was true that you could play any shot on that surface," he added.
Opting to bat first, Dhawan (143) and Rohit Sharma (95) got India off to a dominating start, sharing a 193-run opening stand before the latter was sent back by Jhye Richardson. However, Dhawan from there on carried on his dominance as he scored 18 boundaries and three sixes in his 115-ball knock. The southpaw was also involved in a 61-run stand with KL Rahul (26) for the second wicket. Later, Rishabh Pant (36) and Vijay Shankar (26) played important cameos to help the hosts post 358/9 on the board.
The dew was so heavy that Indian spinners failed to get any grip from the surface.
"Because of the dew, the ball was not gripping and of course he (Ashton Turner) played really a good knock and took the game away. But he couldn't have played those shots had there been no dew," Dhawan said.
He also praised Ashton Turner for playing a special knock at the crucial juncture of the game.
"I would give credit to him (Turner) for playing with such composure and took the game away from us. All his shots were on the roof and yes, he played really well," Dhawan said.
