Marcus Stoinis has been a star performer for Australia since last one and half year. His recent form puts him among the best all-rounders going around the world at the moment. His heroics in the Nagpur One-Day International against India put Australia on the verge to level the series. But, destiny was not in Stoinis’ favor as he got out in the final over of the match.
Chasing 251 in their quest to level the series, Australia was off to a flier. Thanks to Usman Khawaja and Aaron Finch, who shrugged off his poor run with a knock of 35. Four wickets in quick succession left Aussies finding momentum, which Stoinis provided.
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The final equations were 11 runs off 6 balls for Stoinis against a rookie like Vijay Shankar, who won the match for India in just three balls. Reacting to another close defeat, Australian all-rounder said he is feeling empty after the loss.
“Just a bit of an empty feeling coming to the end of the game. We did well, fought hard, got close but we didn’t get the result we wanted. Hindsight is a beautiful thing … you think if this partnership goes longer or you take a risk earlier (what would have happened), all that sort of stuff. You never know what’s going to happen,” Cricket.com.au quoted Stoinis as saying.
“We haven’t had a debrief yet … when emotions are going it’s probably best to let that settle then have a more relaxed conversation the next day.”
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The 29-year-old further praised the Indian duo of MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli. While the former failed in the Nagpur ODI, the latter scored his 40th ODI hundred to rescue India’s ship yet another time.
“Virat and MS play very different roles, but they make sure they get the job done for the team. Two of the best players in the world … so there’s things to learn from them and it’s probably fortunate we’re playing them so frequently leading up to a World Cup,” Stoinis concluded.
Dhoni’s hometown Ranchi will host the third One-Day International on March 8 (Friday). India will eye to seal the series there before heading to Mohali and Delhi for the last two ODIs.
