Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Thakur fuel India's DLS victory

Arundhati Reddy and Renuka Thakur produced a clinical display as India secured a 21-run DLS victory over Australia in a rain-affected opening T20I at the SCG. The tourists dominated proceedings, reducing the hosts to 133 all out in 18 overs before weather intervened in the sixth over of their chase to hand them a 1-0 series lead.

Sophie Molineux's tenure as Australia's new T20I captain got off to a forgettable start as her batting unit crumbled under relentless pressure from India's pace attack. Arundhati was the chief destroyer with career-best figures of 4 for 22, dismantling the middle order after Renuka had set the tone with a miserly PowerPlay spell.

The foundation was laid in the first six overs when Renuka operated with surgical precision. After conceding boundaries off her opening over's final two deliveries, she tightened the screws dramatically. Her next two overs yielded merely two runs while accounting for Beth Mooney, who miscued to an off-side fielder.

The fifth over was a maiden to Phoebe Litchfield, leaving the left-hander stranded on nought for nine deliveries. Australia's scoring rate was stifled. Though they counter-punched with 35 runs across the next two overs, the damage to their momentum proved irreversible.

At 68 for 2 after seven overs, Australia harboured hopes of a competitive total. Those aspirations evaporated as India's bowling unit, led by Arundhati, orchestrated a stunning collapse. The medium-pacer first accounted for Ellyse Perry, caught by Harmanpreet Kaur at mid-off. With the next over's first delivery, Arundhati trapped Litchfield, caught by wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh.

Between these dismissals, Ashleigh Gardner fell to Deepti Sharma. From relative comfort, Australia had nosedived to 68 for 5 before the innings' halfway point. The hosts' last eight wickets tumbled for 65 runs.

Chasing a revised target, India adopted an aggressive approach. Shafali Verma launched Kim Garth's second delivery for six. Though Molineux claimed Shafali with her first delivery as captain, Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues ensured India reached 50 for 1 in 5.1 overs, completing the minimum required for a result just as rain forced everyone off.

Molineux's final over encapsulated the drama. Her first ball removed Shafali but the remaining five deliveries hemorrhaged 13 runs as Rodrigues found the boundary and Mandhana struck consecutive fours. By the time the rain arrived, India sat comfortably ahead on DLS calculations at 50 for 1, 21 runs clear of the par score.

Brief scores: Australia 133 in 18 overs (Georgia Wareham 30; Arundhati Reddy 4-22, Renuka Thakur 2-14) lost to India 50/1 in 5.1 overs (Shafali Verma 21) by 21 runs (DLS Method).