We always had confidence that we could beat India, says Usman Khawaja

Australia have won their last eight ODI matches on the trot, which included series victories in India and in the UAE against Pakistan. However, things were different at the start of the year when the national team had lost 15 of their previous 18 ODIs.

Australia opener Usman Khawaja admitted that the two ODI series against India - home and away - served as an important turning point for Aaron Finch & Co. who have come out as a strong unit ever since winning the first of the eight ODIs in Ranchi.

“Behind the scenes we’ve put in a lot of hard work, you need that to be able to compete at this level. Everyone has put in a lot of effort. We had India over in our place for a series and while we lost, that was a big turning point for us.

“They’re one of the best sides and we gave them a run for their money. Then we went to India, lost the first two matches and went on to win the series. We always had the confidence we could do that,” he was quoted as saying in ICC media.

Khawaja, who scored 89 off 105 balls in Australia’s win against Sri Lanka, will be causing coach Justin Langer a major selection headache with the returning David Warner also in sublime form. The 32-year-old opener added that he would rather score a duck and win a game as compared to scoring a century and losing.

“I wasn’t thinking about securing an opening berth, we’ve looked to be clinical and not take it lightly. We’ve won three warm-ups here, and it was more about us continuing the winning ways in Dubai and India. I was concentrating on contributing to that winning run - some things are just out of your control. It’s a mindset thing, opening is slightly different to three which in itself is different to five.

“I do love opening, that’s where I’ve batted my whole life in one-day cricket. But it’s about winning games and doing the best of the team - I’d rather score a duck and win than a century and lose,” Khawaja concluded.