Australia survive late wobble to seal ODI series win over India in Adelaide
Australia defeated India by two wickets in the second ODI of the series at the Adelaide Oval after a nervy finish that very nearly saw the visitors pull off an unlikely victory.
Matthew ShortChasing a target of 265, Australia reached the total in 46.2 overs, securing the series win with a match to spare despite losing three late wickets to give the Indians a sniff.
India's innings was anchored by Rohit Sharma, who fired 73 off 97 balls, and Shreyas Iyer, who made 61 off 77, but other than a 44 from Axar Patel, none of the other batsmen were able to make serious inroads.
Wickets tumbled regularly, with Josh Hazlewood (3/39), Mitchell Starc (2/62) and Adam Zampa (4/60) doing most of the damage to restrict the visitors to just 264/9 off their 50 overs.
That total was always going to be tough to defend, and while neither captain Matchell March and Travis Head lasted very long at the top of the innings, Matthew Short (74 off 78) was able to guide the Aussies to 187/4 in the 36th over, putting them in sight of victory.
When Harshit Rana dismissed Short in the final ball of the 36th over, it gave them hope of a fightback, but Cooper Connolly and Mitchell Owen proved tough to dislodge, combining for a 59-run partnership that put the Aussies on the brink of victory.
A flurry of late wickets saw Owen, Xavier Bartlett and Mitchell Starc all depart in quick succession, creating some tension at the tail-end of the innings, but with Connolly still there, the Aussies managed to hold on for victory, chasing down the total with 21 balls - and two wickets - to spare.
India will now look to avoid a whitewash in the final ODI of the series in Sydney.