India suffer lAus (Azharudd)in final

India made a couple of changes to their playing eleven – V V S Laxman and Debasis Mohanty made way for Navjot Singh Sidhu and Anil Kumble. Australia made just one change to the eleven that last played the Indians – Gavin Robertson made way for Damien Martyn.

On winning the toss, Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s skipper, chose to bat. Tendulkar, whose 24-ball (Sach)innings included a couple of boundaries, scored 15. Sixty-one balls into the match, he was caught by Adam Gilchrist. Damien Fleming broke the 37-run stand.

Sourav Ganguly, whose 54-ball innings included four boundaries, scored 29. Twenty-six balls later, he was caught by Gilchrist. Tom Moody broke the 21-run stand. Azharuddin, whose 63-ball innings included four boundaries, scored 44. A hundred and one balls later, he was caught by Michael Bevan. Steve Waugh, Australia’s skipper and the player of the match, broke the 70-run partnership.

Sidhu, whose 52-ball innings included four boundaries, scored 38. Fifteen balls later, he was caught by Fleming. Steve broke the 16-run stand. Hrishikesh Kanitkar, whose 29-ball innings included a boundary, scored 18. Fifty balls later, Fleming broke the 33-run stand.

Ajit Agarkar, who faced half-a-dozen balls, scored four. Nine balls later, he was caught by Steve. Shane Warne broke the eight-run stand. Ajay Jadeja, the player of the series, scored 48. His 49-ball innings included five boundaries. Twenty-four balls later, he was caught by Michael Kasprowicz, who broke the 23-run stand.

Nayan Mongia, whose 15-ball innings included a boundary, scored 14. Five balls later, he was caught by Bevan. Needless to say, Fleming was in seventh heaven. Kumble, who faced a ball, scored a run. He was unbeaten.

Venkatesh Prasad, who faced three balls, scored a run. Four balls later, Kasprowicz broke the two-run stand. The last-wicket pair didn’t open its account. Rahul Sanghvi, who faced a couple of balls didn’t get off the Mark. The younger of the Waugh twins ran him out.

Australia conceded 15 extras. India were dismissed for 227 off 49.3 overs. Darren Lehmann, who bowled three wicketless overs, conceded a dozen. Moody and Warne bowled 10 overs each, picking up a wicket apiece. While the former conceded 40, the latter conceded 35.

Steve, who bowled seven boundaries, conceded 42. He picked up a couple of wickets, as did Kasprowicz, who bowled 9.3 overs, conceding 43. Fleming bowled 10 overs, including a maiden. He conceded 47, picking up three scalps.

Gilchrist, who faced two balls, scored a run. Seven balls into the chase, he was caught by Tendulkar. Agarkar broke the six-run stand. Mark, whose 32-ball innings included a boundary, scored 20. Fifty-nine balls later, Kumble broke the 50-run partnership.

Ricky Ponting, whose 51-ball innings included half-a-dozen boundaries, scored 41. Fifty-nine balls later, he was stumped by Mongia. Sanghvi broke the 28-run stand. Bevan, whose 127-ball innings included three boundaries, scored 75. He was unbeaten. Warne, whose run-a-ball innings included a boundary, scored 14. Thirty-one balls later, Prasad broke the 27-run stand.

Steve, whose 54-ball innings included four boundaries and three sixes, scored 57. A hundred and eleven balls later, Kumble broke the 99-run partnership. Moody, who faced 13 balls, scored four. Eighteen balls later, he was caught by Jadeja. Agarkar broke the nine-run stand. Lehmann, whose four-ball innings included a boundary, scored half-a-dozen. He was unbeaten.

India conceded 13 extras. Australia, who scored 231 for the loss of six wickets off 48.4 overs, won by four wickets with eight balls to spare. Tendulkar, who bowled five overs, conceded 13. He was wicketless, as was Kanitkar, who bowled seven overs, conceding 35.

Prasad, who bowled seven overs, conceded 43. He picked up a wicket, as did Sanghvi, who bowled 10 overs, conceding 45. Kumble bowled 9.4 overs, including a couple of maidens. He conceded 36, picking up two wickets. Agarkar bowled 10 overs, including a maiden. He conceded 53, picking up a couple of scalps.

The Aussies won the 1997/98 Pepsi Triangular Series.