By IANS
Sydney : Hayden’s half-century against India here Sunday was his first in nine innings, after having posted 92 off 92 balls against India in Chandigarh in October last year.
Hayden scored 54 off 62 balls to register his 34th half-century in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and his eighth against India to help his team script an 18-run win in the Commonwealth Bank Triangular Series at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).
Hayden’s aggregate against India has reached 1,313 at 52.52 in 26 matches, including three centuries, which is his best against any opponent.
Burly left-hander Hayden and captain Ricky Ponting Ponting put on 110 Sunday. It was Australia’s fifth century partnership for the second wicket against India at the SCG. In 17 innings against India, Hayden and Ponting have aggregated 857 runs at 53.56, including three century stands and one 50-plus partnership.
Hayden and Ponting became the first pair to be associated in 10 century partnerships for the second wicket. The Rahul Dravid-Sourav Ganguly pair is the next best with eight century stands for the second wicket.
Hayden-Ponting pair became the first to aggregate 3,500 runs for the second wicket. They have so far aggregated 3,502 in 70 innings at 54.71.
Andrew Symonds’ 59 Sunday was his 27th half-century and his eighth against India. After making 52 against New Zealand at Hobart in December last year, this is his first fifty in seven innings.
Ponting and Symonds put on 100 for the fourth wicket, which is Australia’s highest stand for this wicket-position against India at the SCG, erasing the 26 between Doug Walters and Allan Border in 1980-81.
For the first time against India at the SCG, three Australian batsmen were run-out.
With Adam Gilchrist’s catch, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, with 13 dismissals (11 catches and 2 stumpings) in seven matches in the series, established a record for most dismissals in a competition by an Indian wicketkeeper in Australia.
He bettered the mark of Sadanand Viswanath, who had effected 12 dismissals (9 catches and 3 stumpings) in five matches in the Benson and Hedges World Championship in 1984-85.
Gilchrist extended his record for dismissing six batsmen in an innings six times. He is the only wicketkeeper to effect six dismissals in an innings against India. He performed this feat twice, the first occasion being at Baroda in October last year.
Fast bowler Brett Lee has now dismissed Sachin Tendulkar nine times in ODIs and is one of the three bowlers to claim his wicket nine times in 23 matches. The other bowlers are Shaun Pollock (28 matches) and Chaminda Vaas (48 matches).
Lee became the first bowler to claim five-wicket hauls four times against India, bettering Pakistan’s Aaqib Javed’s three five-wicket hauls.
Lee has now claimed five wickets in an innings eight times to establish an Australian record. He surpassed Glenn McGrath’s tally of seven five-wicket hauls.
Lee also equalled Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan’s feat of bagging five wickets in an innings eight times. Only Pakistani Waqar Younis has more five-wicket hauls (13) than Lee and Muralitharan.