Mukesh Kumar rattles Australia with career-best 3/32 in 5th T20I
Mukesh Kumar was at his best against Australia in the fifth T20I in Bengaluru. He finished with 3/32 from his four overs and was pivotal in helping India win the match by six runs. India restricted Australia to only 154/8, courtesy of some exceptional bowling as the hosts also sealed the series 4-1. Notably, this was Mukesh's career-best figures in T20I cricket.
A sensational spell from Mukesh
Mukesh did set the tone in the third over when he knocked over Josh Philippe. The speedster then returned with a bang in the 17th over where he dismissed the dangerous Matthew Short before knocking over Ben Dwarshuis in consecutive deliveries. It was a game-changing over, which swayed the momentum in India's favor. Mukesh was brilliant in the slog overs.
Mukesh finished the series with four wickets!
The Speedster from Bengal finished the T20I series against Australia with four wickets. He featured in only four matches with an average of 36.50. Mukesh's economy of 9.12 is on the higher side. 0/29, 1/43, 0/42 and 3/32 were his bowling figures from this series.
A look at his T20I numbers
Playing nine T20Is for India, Mukesh has returned with seven wickets at an average of 37. His economy rate of 8.98 is on the higher side considering he operates in the slog overs. His figures of 3/32 are his career-best figures in this format since making his debut against West Indies in August 2023. The 30-year-old has scalped 41 wickets in 47 T20 matches.
A look at the match summary
India kept losing wickets in the middle phase after a decent start. However, a couple of crucial partnerships between Shreyas Iyer (53), Jitesh Sharma and Axar Patel saw India post a fighting total of 160/8 from their 20 overs. In reply, Ben McDermott (54) was the lone warrior for Australia as they were restricted to only 154/8. Besides Mukesh's heroics, Ravi Bishnoi excelled.
