KEY POINTS:
Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is adamant his team's embarrassing nine-wicket Twenty20 loss to Australia will have no bearing on India's performance in the one-day cricket tri-series.The young Indian one-day side - star batsman Sachin Tendulkar was rested - were disorganised and panicked as Australia shot them out for 74 in the first innings in front of a packed and baying Melbourne Cricket Ground crowd.
In addition, Australia will be weakened with the loss of Stuart Clark (family reasons), Ricky Ponting (injured back) and Matthew Hayden (hamstring) in doubt for tonight's one-day tries-series match.
Dhoni was "disappointed not devastated" but said India were treating the match as practice for the tri-series opener against Australia in Brisbane. The Twenty20 match was the first of the tour for six members of the side, who have never played in Australian conditions.
"So we just need to take the positives, which I think was just winning the toss more than anything else."
The match was The Michael Clarke Show but it was Adam Gilchrist who won the applause as Australia scored an embarassingly easy victory. Gilchrist is on his 'retirement tour' - farewelling Australians as he steps down from all forms of the game after the coming one-day series.
In keeping with the party-party nature of Twenty20 cricket, Gilchrist played three roles in the match - he commentated, kept wickets and opened the batting. He took a fine catch, hit a huge six and kept the TV audience in touch, even calling the game as he batted.
In contrast, India's Harbhajan Singh's every move was booed. Just the sight of his player profile on the video screen set the crowds off. He also faced a prolonged bout of it as he walked to the wicket to bat.
The crowd loved it when he and Shanthakumaran Sreesanth fell to consecutive balls from the part-time spin of Adam Voges. Singh, who escaped stringent sanctions after being accused of calling Australia's Andrew Symonds a monkey, had earlier been the subject of huge mirth when he tangled with Irfan Pathan in an attempt to catch a skied ball from Clarke.
In contrast, Symonds got a rousing cheer every time he went near the ball.
The game itself was a disappointment - India did not bat out their 20 overs, they did not hit a genuine attacking shot to the boundary at all and only Pathan made it into double figures.
Clarke ran out Virender Sehwag in the first over, pulled off a fine catch to dismiss Singh - earning an enormous cheer - scored an undefeated 37 to secure an easy win for his team, with Gilchrist's the only wicket to fall (for 25).
India knocked Australia out of last year's Twenty20 world cup and won their only other Twenty20 encounter, but were woeful this time.
"We lost too many early wickets, making it too difficult to attack the bowlers," said Dhoni. "I think the guys... forgot their roles and responsibilities. Guys who should have played their strokes were playing some other game while guys who should have stayed there went for their shots."
