At Pune, March 28. Australia won by eight wickets. Toss: India. International debut: D. Mongia.
With the pitch expected to become unreliable in bounce, losing the toss boded ill for Australia. They had already picked only three specialist bowlers in order to reinforce their batting. But they levelled the series with most of the reinforcements still in the dressing-room. A vintage 133 not out from Mark Waugh, off 138 balls with 15 fours and a six, gave them a smooth passage. The consistent Hayden supported him in a stand of 143 in 26 overs, well above the asking-rate. Waugh's stickiest moment came a few overs later, when there was confusion about whether he or Lehmann had been run out. Eventually the umpires rejected India's contention that the batsmen had crossed, but while Waugh saw Australia to victory, a finger injury during this innings ended his tour. In the morning, India's innings had featured an attractive maiden hundred by left-hander Badani, made off 98 balls with ten fours and two sixes. It had not been helped, though, by the self-inflicted damage of three successive middle-order run-outs. Man of the Match: M. E. Waugh.

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