Marsh leads Australia to 7-wicket win in rain-hit Perth ODI

Perth, Oct 2025 : Skipper Mitchell Marsh anchored Australia’s innings with an unbeaten 46 as the hosts cruised to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over India in the first ODI at the Optus Stadium on Sunday, taking a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

For India, it was a disappointing start under new full-time ODI captain Shubman Gill, who led the side for the first time in the 50-over format and began his tenure with a defeat.

The rain-hit encounter, originally scheduled as a 50-over game, was reduced to 26 overs per side following multiple interruptions. Batting first, India struggled against disciplined Australian bowling and managed to post only 136/9. As per the DLS method, Australia’s target was revised to 131 runs from 26 overs.

Chasing a modest total, Australia too faced early hiccups. Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh provided India with an early breakthrough in the second over, dismissing the in-form Travis Head. Spinner Axar Patel then sent back opener Matthew Short in the eighth over, tightening the contest briefly.

However, any hopes of an Indian comeback were soon dashed as captain Mitchell Marsh took charge of the innings. Displaying calm authority, Marsh stitched crucial partnerships—first with wicketkeeper-batter Josh Philippe and later with Matt Renshaw—to steer his side toward victory. Philippe contributed a fluent 37 off 29 balls before being dismissed by Washington Sundar, who was brought into the attack as part of an inspired bowling change by Gill.

Despite that breakthrough, the Indian attack could not maintain the pressure. Marsh continued to find gaps with ease, and Renshaw provided steady support at the other end as Australia comfortably reached the target with 29 balls to spare.

Earlier in the day, India’s batting woes continued in challenging conditions. Veteran openers Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, both making their return to international cricket, fell cheaply for 8 and 0 respectively. Gill, captaining for the first time, also departed early after scoring 10 off 18 balls.

India’s innings found some stability through KL Rahul (38 off 31) and Axar Patel (31 off 38), who shared a brief partnership that helped lift the side past the 100-run mark. A late cameo from debutant Nitish Kumar Reddy, who struck two sixes in the final over, pushed India to 136/9—a total that proved well below par.

For Australia, Josh Hazlewood (2/20) and Matthew Kuhnemann (2/26) led the bowling effort, exploiting the conditions expertly.

Brief Scores:
India: 136/9 in 26 overs (KL Rahul 38, Axar Patel 31; Hazlewood 2/20, Kuhnemann 2/26)
Australia: 131/3 in 21.1 overs (Mitchell Marsh 46*, Josh Philippe 37; Arshdeep Singh 1/31, Axar Patel 1/19)
Result: Australia won by seven wickets (DLS method).