Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper, was handed first defeat at home in ODIs as captain after India’s 35-run loss against Australia in the fifth and final ODI.
Chasing 273 for victory, India were bundled out for 237 by the rivals, who won the series 3-2. Men in Blue suffered their first ODI series loss at home since 2015. It was also the first time India lost three consecutive ODI matches under Virat Kohli’s leadership.
Australia beat India by 35 runs to win the fifth and final ODI on Wednesday and secure a 3-2 victory in the series.
It is the first ODI series’ win for Australia since January 2017 and the fourth on Indian soil, the last coming in 2009. It was India’s first loss in an ODI series at home since 2015 when they lost 3-2 to South Africa.
Usman Khawaja (100) struck his second century in three ODIs as Australia rode to 272-9. Peter Handscomb also followed his hundred in Mohali with 52 off 60 balls, as the duo put on 99 runs for the second wicket.
In reply, Rohit Sharma top-scored with 56 but India lost Shikhar Dhawan (12) and Virat Kohli (20) cheaply, which cost them the game. From 132-6 at one stage, Kedar Jadhav (44) and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (46) put on 91 runs for the seventh wicket but it wasn’t enough to salvage the situation.