India were required to better their own second-best performance in the history of ODIs to win the recently concluded second ODI against Australia at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium.
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Bundled out for 117 in 26 overs after being asked to bat first by Australia stand-in captain Steven Smith, India were required to defend a 118-run target in order to gain an unassailable 2-0 lead in a three-match series.
India, who have defended 105 and 125 runs in this format previously, hold the record for lowest ODI total defended successfully. A match-winning effort would’ve earned India three consecutive Top entries in the below mentioned table.
That being said, with neither of their five bowlers managing to dismiss a batter across a total of 11 overs they bowled collectively, the home team ended up losing an ODI by 10 wickets for the sixth time.
Lowest ODI total defended full list
| S. No. | Score | Team | Opposition | Ground | Year |
| 1 | 105 | India | Bangladesh | Mirpur | 2014 |
| 2 | 125 | India | Pakistan | Sharjah | 1985 |
| 3 | 127 | West Indies | England | Kingstown | 1981 |
| 4 | 129 | South Africa | England | East London | 1996 |
| 5 | 129 | Zimbabwe | Afghanistan | Harare | 2017 |
| 6 | 131 | Afghanistan | Zimbabwe | Sharjah | 2015 |
| 7 | 134 | Zimbabwe | England | Albury | 1992 |
| 8 | 134 | Kenya | Zimbabwe | Harare | 2006 |
| 9 | 138 | Zimbabwe | West Indies | Sydney | 2001 |
| 10 | 140 | Pakistan | West Indies | Adelaide | 1981 |
NOTE: ODIs less than 40 overs per innings haven’t been considered for the above mentioned table.
Australia beat India by 10 wickets
A milestone which isn’t achieved frequently especially in modern-day cricket, India badly needed a miraculous bowling performance to restrict the Aussies today but it wasn’t to be as the visitors ended up registering a record victory (by balls remaining).
Opening batters Travis Head (51*) and Mitchell Marsh (66*) shared a quickfire 121-run partnership on the back of scoring their 14th and 15th ODI half-centuries respectively. Opening together only for the second time in international cricket, Head and Marsh hit a combined total of 16 fours and six sixes to bat at a run rate of 11 in Visakhapatnam on Sunday.
