On Day 1 of the WTC final between India and Australia at The Oval in London, Mohammad Shami made an immediate impact after the Lunch break by dismissing Marnus Labuschagne with a brilliant delivery. Shami had struggled with his length earlier in the session, but this time he got it right.
Following Mohammed Siraj’s spell after Lunch, Shami took the ball from the other end and delivered a perfect delivery that angled back in sharply from outside the off stump. Labuschagne, without moving his feet, attempted a push and ended up losing his wicket as the ball hit the stumps. He departed for 26 runs, leaving Australia in a slightly precarious position.
Watch the exceptional delivery by Mohammed Shami that led to Labuschagne’s dismissal:
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India had lost the toss and was asked to field on a green pitch with overcast conditions. They made an early breakthrough when Siraj dismissed Usman Khawaja for a duck.
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However, David Warner and Labuschagne showed resilience, respecting the good deliveries and waiting for scoring opportunities. The ball was moving significantly, and there was uneven bounce on the pitch.
When Umesh Yadav came into the attack, he offered some loose deliveries, which Warner capitalized on to score boundaries. Shardul Thakur eventually ended Warner’s innings at 43, catching him down the leg side. However, India would have wanted more wickets by that point, especially with the sun coming out.
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With Shami’s crucial wicket of Labuschagne right after Lunch, Rohit Sharma and the rest of the Indian team will be eager to continue making breakthroughs in the Australian batting lineup. Travis Head has joined Steve Smith in the middle. Currently, Australia is at 104/3 in 30 overs, with Head batting aggressively on 19 off just 13 deliveries.
