India vs Australia 2017, 2nd ODI: Kuldeep Yadav Made MS Dhoni’s 300th ODI Even More Special

India vs Australia 2017, 2nd ODI at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata was another show of strength for the hosts as they made full use of their bench strength to register a doubtful yet respectable total of 252 runs and then squashing the Australian batting lineup to end the day with a huge 50-runs victory.

Virat Kohli‘s class-defining 92, as well as his 101-run partnership with Ajinkya Rahane (55), set up the game for India, followed by an all-round show from the bowling attack which wrapped up a 2-0 lead for the hosts. While a near-unplayable first spell from Bhuvneshwar Kumar (6.1-9-3) laid down the foundation, Yuzvendra Chahal (10-34-2) and Kuldeep Yadav (10-54-3) followed it up to mark India’s dominance in the format as well as taking the team to the No.1 ICC ODI rankings.

Kuldeep Yadav took the center-stage after securing a hat-trick on his IPL home ground, bowling a perfect delivery to Pat Cummins which induced a sharp edge which carried to MS Dhoni. Chahal and Yadav have turned out to be the best bets from the selectors as they have shown their potential time and time again in the Sri Lankan tour as well as the ongoing India vs Australia series.

Watch: Kuldeep Yadav’s Hat-Trick Against Australia at Eden Gardens Here

Moreover, the Chinaman bowler, Kuldeep Yadav went on to making history with his hat-trick and on that note, here are some of the statistical highlights from the match.

• Kuldeep became the first spinner to register a hat-trick for India in One Day Internationals, as well as the first spinner to do so against Australia in the same format.

• Yadav also became the third Indian, overall, to take a hat-trick in 50-overs cricket, after Chetan Sharma (in 1987) and Kapil Dev (in 1991).

• Kuldeep is also the seventh spinner to take a hat-trick in 50-overs cricket, the last one being Sri Lanka’s Wanida Hasaranga, who achieved this feat against Zimbabwe earlier this year.

• Since Kuldeep already had a hat-trick in the 2014 U-19 World Cup, he became the fourth International player to take three wickets on consecutive deliveries at the U-19 level and the senior level. The other three are Damien Fleming, Abdul Razzaq, and Jermaine Lawson.

• This was the fifth time when Virat Kohli got out in his 90s and the last time this happened was against Australia at Perth last year.

• Steve Smith became the sixth Australian cricketer to score 50 or more runs in his 100th ODI. he also became the 27th Australian to feature in 100 or more ODIs.

• MS Dhoni became the sixth cricketer to feature in 300 ODIs for India. He has played a total 303 ODIs, out of which he played three for the Asia XI in 2007.

• With the 50-run win over Australia, Virat Kohli has now captained the squad to eight consecutive ODI wins, thrice.

• Australia has now lost their last ten away matches in ODIs, a victory against Ireland in September being their last win in the format in away conditions.

• Virat Kohli is now the third Indian skipper after Mohammad Azharuddin and MS Dhoni to have played 11 50+ knocks in a single calendar year.

Apart from these records, the India vs Australia 2017, 2nd ODI was a high-octane clash in which the Indian lower order added some substantial match-winning runs when the game was going south for the hosts.

During a 35-run partnership for the 7th wicket, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (20) and Hardik Pandya (20) not only put an end to the spree of falling wickets, they played with so much intent that the latter ended up being on the receiving end of Kumar’s loft in the 47th over.

Watch the video here.

Thankfully, Hardik Pandya avoided a major injury and what we liked the most was, despite being hit by the ball, he still showed his mind-presence by putting his bat on the crease in order to prevent a runout. And when he stood on his feet, the crowd roared with excitement, the moment itself might have sent chills down the spine of many!!