On Saturday (October 25), the Indian cricket team avoided their first-ever whitewashing defeat to Australia in the history of the bilateral series. Thanks to Harshit Rana’s 4-fer that restricted Australia’s first innings total to 236.

However, Rohit Sharma’s unbeaten century, complemented by Virat Kohli’s 74-run knock, steered their team to a 9-wicket victory at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).

Ro-Ko turned back the clock to their vintage days by building yet another century partnership for the third wicket. Kohli’s rediscovery of his red-hot form silenced critics about his inclusion in the forthcoming ODI World Cup in 2027.

Unfortunately, Shubman Gill had a grueling run in his maiden stint as ODI captain by losing the 3-match series with a 1-3 scoreline. Hadn’t Rohit and Kohli played their match-winning knocks in a 237-run chase, Gill could have added a humiliating record of a clean-sweep loss to his white ball captaincy.

Core Contributions from Marsh and Renshaw

Opting to bat first after winning the toss, Australian skipper Mitchell Marsh gave a decent start to his team by scoring a 50-ball 41-run knock (including 5 fours and 1 six). He batted at a strike rate of 82.00 and built a steady 61-run opening partnership with Travis Head.

Matt Renshaw scored his maiden ODI fifty, having accumulated 56 runs from 58 balls (including 2 fours) at a strike rate of 96.55.

Marsh and Renshaw together played a pivotal role in steering their team to 236 in 46.4 overs.

Harshit Rana’s 4-Wicket Haul and Washington Sundar’s 2-Fer

Indian pacer Harshit Rana recorded his career-best bowling figures in ODIs with his 4-wicket haul. The 23-year-old proved to be devastating against the Aussies by recording 4/39 in 8.4 overs. Although he conceded a single wide, but maintained an economy of 4.50.

Rana claimed four wickets of these Australian batters at crucial moments:

• Alex Carey (24 Runs from 37 balls— including 1 four).
• Cooper Connolly (23 runs from 34 balls— including 2 fours).
• Mitchell Owen (1 run from 4 balls). 
• Josh Hazlewood (0 from 2 balls). 

While Washington lent a helping hand to Rana by claiming 2 core wickets of Matt Renshaw (56 runs) and Matthew Short (30 runs).

Mohammed Siraj (1/24 in 5 overs), Prasidh Krishna (1/52 in 7 overs), Kuldeep Yadav (1/50 in 10 overs), and Axar Patel (1/18 in 6 overs) made handy contributions to restrict Australia below 250.

Rohit Sharma’s Unbeaten 121-Run Knock

Former Indian ODI captain Rohit Sharma played a masterclass knock, scoring 121 runs out of 125 balls (including 13 fours and 3 sixes).

Following Shubman Gill’s dismissal (24 runs from 26 balls), Hitman maintained his composure and ensured to take calculated risks by scoring runs through boundaries.

This was indeed the 50th international ton and 33rd ODI century for Rohit, thereby becoming the tenth test cricketer to smash 50+ triple-digit scores across all formats of international cricket.

Virat Kohli’s Gritty 74-Run Knock

The 3rd ODI match between Australia and India saw Virat Kohli rekindling his best form at the SCG. The veteran batter scored 74 runs off 81 balls (including 7 fours) at a strike rate of 91.36.

Following back-to-back ducks in the series, the 36-year-old made a classy comeback and shattered several records by maintaining an unbeaten 168-run stand for the third wicket.

Rohit Sharma’s Third 50+Score for India at SCG in Winning Cause

Interestingly, this was the third instance where Rohit Sharma’s 50+ score contributed to a match-winning cause for India in ODIs played against Australia at the SCG:

Most 150+ Partnerships in ODIs by Batters ft. Rohit and Kohli

This was indeed the 12th time Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli built a steady 150+ partnership. The duo levelled the record of legendary batters like Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly, who achieved this rare feat on 12 occasions.

Most Runs by any Batter in Limited Overs Internationals (LOIs) ft. Virat Kohli

Having compiled a fifty-plus score against Australia in ODIs for the 24th time, Virat Kohli achieved a unique feat by topping the charts as the leading run scorer in limited-overs internationals (LOIs), which includes ODIs and T20Is.

The right-handed batter outbeat the Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar’s tally in the elite list and once again proves to the world that he is the King of White Ball Cricket:

• Virat Kohli (INDIA): 18,437 Runs
• Sachin Tendulkar (INDIA): 18,436 Runs
• Kumar Sangakkara (SRI LANKA): 15,616 Runs
• Rohit Sharma (INDIA): 15,589 Runs

Mahela Jayawardene (SRI LANKA): 14,143 Runs