Follow UsMatt Short, on October 23 (Thursday), finally brought the home crowd to its feet as he registered his first international fifty in Australia during the second One-Day International (ODI) against India in Adelaide.
Before this knock, the 29-year-old had played 16 ODIs and 17 T20Is, scoring three fifties, but all of them had come overseas. His lone T20I half-century (66) came against South Africa in Durban, while his two ODI fifties were scored in Bristol (England) and Lahore (Pakistan).
After a disappointing 8 in the series opener in Perth, Short had promised to make a stronger impact, and he certainly delivered in Adelaide.
Chasing 265, Australia found themselves in early trouble after losing Mitchell Marsh (11) and Travis Head (28) inside 13 overs. Walking in at No.3, Short announced his intent immediately, launching a trademark pull shot for six off Arshdeep Singh to get going.
From there, he looked in control, maintaining a strike rate above 100 and regularly finding the boundary. He had a stroke of luck on 23 when Axar Patel dropped a sharp chance at point off Nitish Kumar Reddy’s bowling.
Despite some scratchy moments against spin, Short showed patience and composure to reach his fifty off 48 balls on a tricky surface. He was given another life soon after - this time in the 29th over when Mohammed Siraj put down a straightforward catch at point off Washington Sundar.