1st T20: Virat Kohli's blitz powers India to 188 against Australia

Riding on the blitzkrieg of a swashbuckling Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni-led India managed to post an imposing total of 188 runs against Australia after batting first in the 1st T20I at the Adelaide Oval on 26 January.

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Kohli, who came out to bat in the fifth over, smashed a sizzling 55-ball 90 including nine fours and two sixes to steady the innings for the visitors. Suresh Raina, who has been missing in action from the international circuit, gave adequate support to Kohli with his knock of 41 runs.

Asked to bat, India got off to a flying start with in-form Rohit Sharma firing all cylinders to traumatise the opposition bowlers. The Mumbai batsman raced to 31 in a mere 20 before being caught at the edge of the circle off Shane Watson.

Watson, who was dropped from the Australian side for the ODI series, picked up Sharma's wicket on his very first delivery and followed it up with Shikhar Dhawan's dismissal, four balls later. After losing two wickets in quick succession, India found refuge in the 134-run partnership between Kohli and Raina for the third wicket.

While playing the big shots and rotating the strike comfortably, Kohli notched up his 10th fifty in T20Is and Raina brought up his 1,000 runs in the shortest version of game. Raina also became only the second Indian after Kohli to achieve that milestone.

Apart from Watson, none of the Aussie bowlers appeared to challenge the batting prowess of Kohli or Raina. It was only in the final over when James Faulkner rattled the stumps to get rid of Raina, who missed out on his fifty by nine runs.

With just four balls left in the innings, Dhoni promoted himself ahead of the comeback man Yuvraj Singh and justified his decision with a 3-ball 11 comprised of a four and a six off Faulkner. The last ball of the Indian innings was pushed towards long-on for a couple by Kohli whose fine form continues to haunt the Australian bowlers.