Aaron Finch celebrates Australia return with first brilliant hundred in Indore

Courtesy: Reuters

New Delhi: Aaron Finch toyed with Indian bowlers to hit his eighth ODI hundred as Australia fight to save the five-match series on Sunday in Indore. (LIVE BLOG | SCORECARD)

Steve Smith won the toss and promptly opted to bat first. Finch, who was drafted into the playing XI in place of Hilton Cartwright, showed no signs of nerves and produced a 70-run opening stand with David Warner.

Warner departed in the 14th over, but Finch continued and brought up his hundred with a four off the second ball of the 34th over, bowled by Kuldeep Yadav.

This is his eighth ODI hundred. The last Australian opener to score an ODI century in India was Shaun Marsh, who made 112 in Hyderabad in 2009.

In the process, Finch also became the non-Test player with second most ODI hundreds, after William Porterfield, who has nine.

He then partnered with skipper Smith to post a 154-run second-wicket stand. It's their third hundred-run stand against India, after 101 in Melbourne (2015) and 182 in Sydney (2015).

For the record, Adam Gilchrist-Mathew Hayden is the only other pair to have three successive 100+ stands against India.

Finch departed after making 124 off 125 balls with the help of 12 fours and five sixes. Kuldeep Yadav claimed the wicket, caught at deep mid-wicket by Kedar Jadhav, off the fifth ball of the 38th over.