Should have played high-risk game through the middle overs, says Finch

Australia's batting meltdowns have become a common phenomenon, and another meltdown contributed to the side losing the rain-shortened first Twenty20 International to India in Ranchi on Saturday (October 7).

Australia lost seven wickets for 59 runs in 12 overs at the JSCA Stadium to slip to 118 for 8 before DLS calculations left India chasing 48 in six overs, which it completed with nine wickets in hand.

Aaron Finch has been one of the few bright spots in the tour, averaging 83 in the three ODIs he was available for and top-scoring with 42 in the T20I. Asking him to make sense of Australia's struggles was unfair, though Finch tried his best to defend the batsmen, explaining that it was a tricky wicket and quite a few players had only recently linked up with the team and facing a high-pedigree Indian side.

"It was a very tough result," said Finch. "We got off to a pretty good start with the bat. Losing our way through that middle order again, but it was a very challenging wicket to start with, particularly against spin. The guys were formulating their plans quite nicely, we just seem to keep losing wickets at the wrong time. No one means to get out, India bowled exceptionally well.

"It can be tough to put a finger on it when the teams change [for the T20Is]. There are a few different players coming into that middle order having their first hit in India for a while. They haven't faced guys like Kuldeep [Yadav] and towards the end of the innings, Bhuvneshwar [Kumar] and [Jasprit] Bumrah bowling back of a length and it's skidding through to the stumps, it is not easy to hit. I would, in no way, call today a debacle. There are areas in which we could improve."

Australia's middle-order muddle was made worse by the fact that their captain Steven Smith was ruled out of the series after a shoulder injury and is set to return home. "It's disappointing not to have him out there," admitted Finch. "He is one of the best players in the world in all three formats. Quality leader, quality captain. It would have been nice to have his skill out there but also his game smarts in these conditions."

Finch conceded that the batsmen could have taken the time to get settled down, but said hindsight was 20-20. "Easy to look back now, but when you look at the history of this ground, it suggests that 150 is a par score or the average score batting first on this surface," he suggested. "We wanted to make sure we were up and around that mark. We knew with how competent their bowlers are at the death -- Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah, in particular, are two of the finest going around at executing in the end.

"We felt we had to play a little bit more high-risk game through the middle overs to maximise. Unfortunately we just kept losing wickets. That’s a part of T20. There is not a lot of time to be assessing the pitch for 10-12 overs and then making a decision. It has to be a split second, two or three balls.

"If it was a 20-over match, I think 135 would have been a fantastic score on that wicket. In the end, I think they [DLS calculations] were generous giving us mid-40s in six overs."

A premeditated sweep proved to be Finch's undoing as he was cramped for space by Kuldeep Yadav and was bowled through the gate. He reasoned that it seemed like the best option at the time. "I thought on that wicket, to Kuldeep, sweeping was a safer option than taking him over the top," he said. "Some balls were spinning. It was hard to judge the bounce on a track that was quite difficult.

"I found the sweep was the safer option. One to get off strike and to get a boundary as well if I could pick out a gap, but I kept picking out a fielder. The ball that I got out on was a little bit of brain fade, I went to sweep and just tried to chip him on the onside for one, and missed it. It happens in the games, in particular in T20s."