Chasing a modest 215 for victory, World Cup holders
Australia had a flying start and were cruising at 118 for one with captain
Ricky Ponting (57) well set, before the Indian spinners ran through the middle
order. Leg-spinner Chawla, a surprise inclusion in India's World Cup squad, and
off-spinner Harbhajan Singh took seven wickets between them to bowl out
Australia for 176.
The 22-year-old Chawla made a strong case for a regular
place in the starting line-up after taking four for 31, while Harbhjan took
three for 15 and Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuvraj Singh took one wicket each.
Earlier Virender Sehwag showed no signs of the shoulder
injury that kept him sidelined for the past few months and scored 54 at almost
a run a ball.
Sehwag was his usual nonchalant self despite being starved
of much of the strike and his shots to the fence were greeted with cheers by
the packed Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore.
India takes on co-hosts Bangladesh in the opening match of
the tournament in Dhaka on Feb 19, while Australia face Zimbabwe two days later.
