Oz beat India by 6 wickets, win series

Guwahati: Australia defeated India by six wickets in the sixth One-Day International on Sunday and won the series 4-2 with still one match remaining.

Chasing 171, Australia made 172 for four in 41.5 overs after Shane Watson top scored with 49 and Mike Hussey made 35 not out.

India were all out for 170 runs in 48 overs against Australia in the sixth One-day International at the Nehru Stadium here on Sunday.

Ravindra Jadeja hit 57 while Praveen Kumar remained not out on 54. Doug Bollinger was the best bowler with five for 35 while Mitchell Johnson got three for 39.

Doug Bollinger and Mitchell Johnson wreaked havoc with the ball, sharing eight wickets between them to bowl out India for a paltry 170 in the do-or-die sixth one-dayer against Australia at the Jawharlal Nehru Stadium here today.

Bollinger equalled his career best figures of five for 35, while Johnson returned to the playing eleven in style, picking up three wickets for 39 as opting to bat, Indian top-order crumbled like house of cards to fold out in 48 overs.

Ravindra Jadeja played a patient 103-ball 57 run knock, while Praveen Kumar notched up his maiden ODI fifty with a breezy 54 of 51 deliveries to take India past the 150 mark.

The duo shared a vital 74-run stand for the eighth wicket in 13.4 overs after skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (24), in Jadeja's company, initially resurrected the hosts' innings with a 48-run sixth wicket partnership.

However, Dhoni's decision to bat first on an unpredictable Guwahati wicket backfired as Johnson and Bollinger made perfect use of the damp early morning conditions to reduce India to 27 for five within 10 overs.

Johnson, who replaced Ben Hilfenhaus, extracted significant swing from track and picked up both dangerman Virender Sehwag (6) and Gautam Gambhir (0) in the opening over of the innings.

Rattled by early wickets, the Indian batsmen found going tough from there on as Bollinger notched up four maidens from his five-over first spell.

Australia lead the seven-match series 3-2.

Brief Score:

India: 170 all out in 48 overs (Ravindra Jadeja 57, Praveen Kumar 54 not out; Doug Bollinger 5/35, Mitchell Johnson 3/39, Shane Watson 2/27).