AUS vs IND 2025-26, 3rd ODI: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli’s majestic 168-run stand powers India to a morale-boosting win in the 3rd ODI vs Australia.
Brief Scores: IND 237/1 (Rohit Sharma 121*, Virat Kohli 74*, Josh Hazlewood 1/23) beat AUS 236 (Matt Renshaw 56, Mitchell Marsh 41, Harshit Rana 4/39) by nine wickets.
Player of the Match and Series: Rohit Sharma- “That’s what you expect in Australia, it’s not going to be easy. You will have to understand the situation. I haven’t played for a long time, had a good prep coming here. We couldn’t win the series, but we still take a lot of positives. There will be a lot of learnings for the youngsters. When I came for the first time, I remember how the seniors helped me. It is our job to pass on the message.”
After successive defeats in Perth and Adelaide, India had a chance to end the three-match ODI series against Australia on a high. The final match of the 50-over leg took place at the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). The Blue Brigade aimed to deny the hosts a 3-0 series sweep as all eyes were on Virat Kohli, who bagged two ducks in the first two matches.
It was an unusual Sydney surface with stiff bounce on offer. There were cracks vertically down the 22-yard hard pitch. There was some lively grass, which meant the fast bowlers could find some swing and seam movement with the new ball.
India lost their 18th ODI toss in a row as the home captain, Mitchell Marsh, decided to bat first. Australia resisted the temptation to rest their all-format quicks with Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. They made one change to the eleven with Nathan Ellis replacing Xavier Bartlett. The visitors made two changes with Kuldeep Yadav and Prasidh Krishan coming into the eleven.
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Talking Point: Ro-Ko deliver masterclass of technique & playing according to situation
India’s nine-wicket comfortable victory came on the back of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s incredible 168-run unbeaten stand for the second wicket. The Mumbai batter showed his aggression in the powerplay, but once he settled in, he didn’t miss the chance of rotating the strike. Meanwhile, Kohli looked in his old touch of understanding the situation and decorated his knock accordingly. Both sent a strong message to selectors for their future in international cricket.
India’s clinical middle overs bowling bundles out Australia for 236
Australia’s opening pair, Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head, provided a solid start with a brisk 61-run partnership inside the powerplay, setting the early tone for the innings. However, none of the top three including Matthew Short were able to capitalize on their starts and push on to a substantial score. Matt Renshaw, continuing his fine run of form, anchored the middle order with a composed 56 off 58 deliveries,striking at 96.55 to keep Australia’s innings on track.
At 183/3 during the 34th over, the hosts looked set to cross the 300-run mark comfortably. But India’s bowlers, especially Harshit Rana and Washington Sundar, picked successive wickets to bring them back into the game. India’s fielding was equally excellent as they built pressure with a high percentage of dot balls.
Australia lost their last seven wickets for just 53 runs in 13 overs. Prasidh Krishna did not enjoy a great outing with 1/52 in seven overs. But apart from him, every bowler was spot on with their line and length against the opposition leading to Marsh’s army being bundled out for 236 runs in 46.4 overs.
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Rohit, Kohli power India to nine-wicket win; Australia take series 2-1
India made sure not to repeat the errors of the first two games, coming out with renewed intent and precision. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill set the tone early, timing the ball sweetly and finding boundaries in nearly every over to neutralise the new-ball threat. Their 69-run opening stand eased any early nerves and laid the perfect platform for Virat Kohli, who walked in determined to make amends after back-to-back ducks in the previous matches.
The Delhi-born opened his account on the very first ball with a single amid a loud cheer from the fans. Once he found his rhythm, Kohli rediscovered his trademark fluency, timing the ball with elegance and confidence. Both stalwarts brought up their half-centuries and celebrated a century partnership for the second wicket, showcasing the composure and class that have long defined India;s batting greats.
Rohit converted his fifty into his 33rd ODI century. His unbeaten knock of 121 runs in 125 balls and Virat Kohli’s 74* completed India’s nine-wicket victory in 38.3 overs. However, Australia sealed the series courtesy of their wins in the first two games of the three-match ODI series.
Read More: Rohit (1714) & Virat (1710) are the fifth & sixth-highest run-scorers in ODIs from 2023 onwards
Statistical Highlights from Australia vs India, 2nd ODI, 2025 in Sydney
- Mohammed Siraj has now dismissed Travis Head thrice in ODIs. The left-handed batter has scored 111 runs in 81 balls in this battle.
- Travis Head completes 3000 runs in ODIs.
- Travis Head becomes the fastest (76 innings) to record 3000 ODI runs for Australia. He overtakes Steve Smith (79 innings) in the list.
- Kuldeep Yadav gave away 47 runs in 8 overs in the middle overs (11-40) at an ER of 5.88 in today’s game. This reflected a drop in his performance in this phase, as his career ER in middle overs prior to this game was 4.85.
- Harshit Rana returned to match figures of 4-39. These are his best bowling figures in ODIs.
- Australia were bowled out for 236 in 46.4 overs. This is their lowest team score, and the first under 250, at SCG since the beginning of 2020.
- Rohit Sharma got past the 2500-run mark against Australia in ODIs.
- Rohit Sharma surpasses Sachin Tendulkar (1491) to become India’s leading ODI run-getter in Australia with 1530 runs. He achieved the feat in 13 fewer innings than Tendulkar.
- Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma register India’s highest second-wicket partnership (168*) in ODIs at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
- Virat Kohli joins Sachin Tendulkar & Rohit Sharma to become only the third batter in ODI history to score 2500+ runs against Australia.
- Virat Kohli (14255) went past Kumar Sangakkara (14234) to become the second-highest run-scorer in ODI history, only behind Sachin Tendulkar (18426).
- Rohit Sharma-Virat Kohli pair is now the third most successful batting pair in ODI history with 5483 runs. Sachin Tendulkar-Sourav Ganguly pair stands at the top of this list with 8227 runs, while Mahela Jayawardene-Kumar Sangakkara are at the second place with 5992 runs.
What’s next
With the end of the ODI series, the focus will shift to the five-match T20I series between the two heavyweights. The opening clash of the series will take place on October 29 at the Manuka Oval in Canberra.
Read More: AUS vs IND 2025-26, 2nd ODI: India lose second successive away series in Gambhir’s tenure
Top Twitter Reactions from Australia vs India, 3rd ODI Sydney, 2025-26
Super knock by Rohit!👏👏
— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) October 25, 2025
Rohit and Virat haven't "come back". They just never went away.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) October 25, 2025
Not out. Not done. #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/XDzImjXp35
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) October 25, 2025
The best thing that could’ve happened to Virat now is to throw him in the deep end in an ODI run chase. It’s often in adversity that the best of the business recover their rhythm in and there’s not been a better chaser in cricketing history than him. #AUSvIND
— Priyank Panchal (@PKpanchal09) October 25, 2025
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