Glenn Maxwell equals a cricket world record as he smashes stunning century to give Australia miraculous last-ball T20 win over India
- Maxwell single-handedly saved the game for tourists
- Aussies trailed continuously as they chased 223 to win
- It took 21 from the final to secure the win
Glenn Maxwell’s fantastic hundred single-handedly catapulted Australia to a miraculous win over India in the last ball by five wickets in the third Twenty20 in Guwahati.
Australia fell behind in their chase of India’s imposing 3-222 at Barsapara Cricket Stadium on Tuesday (Wednesday morning AEDT) before coming out of the clouds thanks to Maxwell (104 no from 48 balls) and captain Matthew Wade (28 no), who led the home side in made order. the team’s lead in the five-game series to 2-1.
With this stunning ton, Maxwell is level with India’s Rohit Sharma for most hundreds in international T20 matches, with both men on four.
His incredible knock follows the double century he hit against Afghanistan during the World Cup earlier this month.
Maxwell kept the Indian heroics coming, hitting an unbeaten ton off just 48 balls to single-handedly propel Australia to a last-ball victory
To say his teammate Matthew Wade was excited when Maxwell reached his century would be a massive understatement
With Australia needing 21 off Prasidh Krishna’s 20th over, Wade hit a four and a single before Maxwell hit 6-4-4-4 to end his Indian campaign in stunning fashion.
That was after Wade climbed over Axar Patel in the 19th, at the start Australia still needed 43.
“Wadey had to cash in on the left-arm spinner (Axar), which he did very well, and I tried to take on the pace bowlers,” said Maxwell, whose fourth T20I ton came from 47 balls, equaling Aaron Finch and Josh Inglis as Australia’s fastest ever.
“We thought if we could stay in the hunt until the last over we would give ourselves a chance. “We did very well to keep ourselves in the game until the last over.”
The Australian’s match-winning innings was his fourth international T20 century, moving him level with Rohit Sharma on a record four tons in the format
Australian World Cup final hero Travis Head, making his first appearance of the series, swung lustily at a boundary-breaking 35 before being pulled up by Avesh Khan’s slow bouncer and outshining his pull shot to Ravi Bishnoi.
Aaron Hardie (16) and Inglis (10) were dismissed cheaply, while Marcus Stoinis (17) and Tim David (first ball duck) succumbed to India’s spinners out of trouble. But Maxwell, who earlier conceded 30 from the India final, his only over, and Wade saved the day.
Ruturaj Gaikwad’s explosive unbeaten 123, combined with a dispirited performance from Australia’s second-string bowlers, had the tourists pumped at halfway.
Gaikwad became the first Indian to score a T20 ton against Australia and his score was the second highest by an Indian in the format after Shubman Gill’s 126no against New Zealand in February.
A string of Aussies fell cheaply as they chased down India’s imposing 3-222, with the tourists needing 21 from the final over to win – after which Maxwell hit a boundary of six and three
While Australia’s World Cup-winning quartet of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Adam Zampa rested, the ensuing attack was again treated with disdain, with the exception of Jason Behrendorff, whose 1-15 from his four overs included a rare maiden from Suryakumar Yadav .
Kane Richardson and Hardie were inaccurate and leg-spinner Tanveer Sangha was way too short. Hardie (1-64) equaled AJ Tye’s unwanted record for most runs against an Australian in T20Is.
Maxwell flies home on a high today, joining World Cup teammates Inglis, Stoinis, Steve Smith, Adam Zampa and Sean Abbott on the plane.
Head is the only remaining World Cup winner from the final two matches of the tour, with Ben McDermott, Chris Green, Josh Philippe and Ben Dwarshuis joining a reduced 13-man squad.
The fourth match is on Saturday (Sunday morning AEDT) in Raipur.