India pulled off a sensational six-wicket victory over Australia in the do-or-die sixth cricket one-dayer, riding on Virat Kohli’s brutal unbeaten 115 and Shikhar Dhawan’s blistering century to level the seven-match series 2-2 here today.
Chasing a mammoth 351, the Indians gave ample display of their batting firepower on a belter of a track at the VCA Stadium at Jamtha to overhaul the target with three balls to spare in what turned out to be a thrilling floodlit contest which went down the wire.
The incredible run chase brought back memories of India’s awesome victory in Jaipur on October 16 when they overhauled a stiff target of 360, achieving the second highest successful run chase ever in ODI history.
Dhawan (100), Rohit Sharma (79) and Kohli - who hit the third fastest ODI hundred by an Indian from just 61 balls, were the main architects of India’s victory in the high-scoring tussle which has restored the balance of the series after the Ranchi and Cuttack ODIs were washed out.
Earlier, George Bailey (156) and Shane Watson (102) smashed scintillating centuries as Australia put the listless Indian bowling attack to the sword to post an imposing 350 for six after being in to bat.
India replied in stunning fashion with Dhawan hitting his fourth ODI ton in his 24th match while Kohli struck his 17th century in his 118th match. Dhawan faced 102 balls in his innings and hit 11 boundaries while Kohli’s unbeaten knock came from just 66 balls with the help of 18 fours and a six.
Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (25 not out) hit the winning runs - a two - as India reached 351 for four to bring the capacity crowd to raptures and the home team players hugging each other at the dressing room.
With the scores locked 2-2, the seventh ODI in Bangalore on Saturday will serve as the summit showdown of the series which has already seen a phenomenal 2565 runs scored so far (excluding the 295 scored by Australia in the abandoned fourth match at Ranchi).