India defeated Australia by five wickets with a dominant display in the first One Day International (ODI) in Mohali, on Friday and became the number-one ODI team in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) Rankings.
The Blues dethroned arch-rivals Pakistan from the top spot with their convincing win.
India now lead the three-match ODI series 1-0 as the two teams will be going head to head two more times before appearing in the much-anticipated Cricket World Cup 2023.
Indian openers Ruturaj Gaikwad and Shubman Gill formed an astounding 142-run partnership as India began their chase of 277 runs.
A dominant display was observed by the Indian batters. Gaikwad, Gill, skipper KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav all completed their half-centuries in a comfortable chase.
India had not lost a wicket for more than 20 overs but as soon as Gaikwad lost his wicket for 71 runs, the home side was 142-1.
After Gaikwad, the wickets continued to fall and the hosts were soon 151-3 in just 25.3 overs.
At one stage, it looked like the Aussies were finally back in the game but after Ishan Kishan fell prey to Pat Cummins, KL Rahul and Yadav had a crucial 80-run stand with Rahul eventually sealing the win with a six.
With the World Cup less than 15 days away, India have one more thing — after their latest Asia Cup triumph — to celebrate as their batters had a promising day.
Batting first, Australia were met with an early blow thanks to Mohammad Shami who removed Mitchell Marsh for just four runs in the first over of the innings.
After losing the first wicket, the experienced duo of David Warner and Smith Steve held their nerves and had an important 98-run stand which provided much-needed stability to the struggling Aussie side.
The visitors kept losing wickets at regular intervals and were soon all-out for 276 runs, which was a competitive total for the Indian side with two new faces in the ODI team.
Shami picked his second ODI five-wicket haul, making a strong case for his inclusion in India's World Cup squad.
