Indians ride on Yuvraj blitz to edge Australia

It was India’s first match of the new season, and they were expected to fire on all cylinders. They didn’t produce a perfect effort, but still secured a six-win in the lone T20 against Australia here on Thursday.  Perhaps, they were struggling to come to terms with the news of Sachin Tendulkar announcing his retirement from international cricket. While chasing a formidable 202, they mastered those emotions and a set of persistent Australians. The visitors had made 201 for seven in 20 overs after opener Aaron Finch made a brisk 89 of 52 balls. It was mandatory for one batsman to make a big score while trying to scale down a target of this proportion and comeback-man Yuvraj Singh did that job, galloping his way to an unbeaten 77 off just 35 balls. Indians chase appeared in shambles after they lost top four for even 100 in the 12th over, but the home side survived those tremors once Yuvraj entered in his zone. The stylish left-hander made a mockery of Australian bowling, carting them to all parts of the ground and added 102 runs with skipper MS Dhoni for the unbroken fifth wicket in just 8.3 overs. The knock also contained a clear message - Yuvraj is back. Earlier, Indian bowlers were a clueless lot after Aussie batsmen unleashed powerful assault on them from the start. Openers Finch and debutant Nic Maddinson added 56 runs in 4.5 overs to give the visitors a perfect start. Offie R Ashwin suffered the most during that frenetic phase, getting hammered for 17 runs in his first over, third of the innings. Later he leaked 24 runs in his second over (10th of the innings) to end a modest night for him. Maddinson was the lead act during that partnership as the 21-year old left-hander from New South Wales was severe on Indian bowlers. But R Vinay Kumar, who went for some runs early, broke the bludgeoning alliance when he breached the defence of Maddinson. But that dismissal only aggravated the woes of Indian bowlers as Finch found his range. Yuvi’s tribute Later, Yuvraj paid tributes to Tendulkar. "I can't imagine a dressing room without Sachin. I am going to fall at his feet and beg him not to leave. Sachin is God's gift to Indian cricket. When you spend a lot of time with Tendulkar on and off the field, you'll learn a lot about life and game and yourself as a person. He has guided me a lot in my career since I joined the Indian team. He's a special person for me. I would like to dedicate this knock to two persons. To Tendulkar and to my mother (Shabnam). She has gone through a lot to take me where I am now.”   Deccan Herald