• This match was the 2084th Limited Over International in cricket history.
• Rohan Gavaskar was making his debut. He became 154th player to represent India in LOIs.
• Rohan’s father Sunil Gavaskar had also played 108 LOI matches for India. He thus provided the second instance of a son stepping into shoes of his father while launching a LOI career for himself for India. The only other father-son combination to have represented India in shorter version of the game is Yograj Singh & Yuvraj Singh.
• Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar were opening the Indian innings together for the first time after 23 matches. They had last opened together against the same opponent at Centurion on 15-02-2003 in a World Cup game.
• VVS Laxman (103*) scored his third hundred in 61st match. Interestingly all his three hundreds have come against Australia.
• Laxman reached his hundred with a four off the last ball of 50th over bowled by Ian Harvey. He thus became only the second Indian to reach his hundred off the last ball of allotted overs in LOIs after Ravi Shastri who did so against Sri Lanka at Nagpur on 01-12-1990.
• Laxman’s innings is the highest for India against Australia in Australia. He bettered Sourav Ganguly’s 100 at Melbourne on 12-01-2000.
• India’s total (303-4) was their highest ever on Australian soil. Their previous highest was 270 for four against Australia in the first match of this tournament at Melbourne on 09-01-2004
• India’s total was also the second highest by any side against Australia in Australia after Sri Lanka’s 343 for five at Sydney on 09-01-2003
• Brett Lee’s figures of 10-0-83-1 (RpO 8.30) were the second most expensive by an Australian in a LOI match. Interestingly Lee himself holds the dubious distinction of recording most expensive figures by an Australian. He had conceded 85 runs in 10 overs (RpO 8.50) against Pakistan at Cardiff on 09-06-2001.
• Lee’s figures were obviously the most expensive for Australia against India. The previous record was on the name of Craig McDermott, who conceded 75 runs in 10 overs (RpO 7.50) at Jaipur on 07-09-1986. Incidentally Shane Watson held the worst figures by an Australian bowler on home soil in a ten-over spell before Lee. Watson was taken for 72 runs in his 10 overs (RpO 7.20) by Sri Lankans at Sydney on 09-01-2003.
• Matthew Hayden (109) scored third hundred of his career in 84th match. This was his first hundred on home soil.
• Rohan Gavaskar took a wicket off his fifth ball in LOIs when he dived full length in his follow through to catch Andrew Symonds. He became 13th Indian to perform the feat of taking a wicket in his very first over in LOIs. By an odd coincidence, Rohan’s father had also taken a wicket in his first over, albeit in his sixth match.
• Australia, by scoring 284, equalled their highest score batting second to lose a match. They had made 284 also against India chasing 289 at Mohali on 03-11-1996 in a Titan Cup match.
• India’s win was their first over Australia on Australian soil after 12 years and 11 consecutive defeats. They had last beaten the Australians in their own backyard at Perth on 09-12-1991.
• The defeat also brought Australia’s spree of consecutive wins in home matches to an end. Australia had won 12 matches at a trot before this defeat since losing to Sri Lanka at Sydney on 09-01-2003.
• VVS Laxman was winning his second man of the match award. His only other award had come against Sri Lanka at Colombo RPS on 28-07-2001.

(Article: Copyright © 2004 Rajneesh Gupta)