Arshdeep and Washington help India level the series against Australia

India finally won a toss and their three inclusions in Arshdeep Singh, Washington Sundar and Jitesh Sharma all made superb contributions as they withstood a stunning innings from Tim David to cruise to a five-wicket win in Hobart and level the series at 1-1.

Arshdeep was Player of the Match for his 3 for 35, including the key scalps of Travis Head, Josh Inglis and Marcus Stoinis for a fine 64, to help restrict Australia to 186 for 6 despite David's devastating 74 off 38. Varun Chakravarthy picked up two key wickets and Jasprit Bumrah was also miserly with the ball.

India's entire top seven made contributions in the chase but it was Washington and Jitesh who finished the chase superbly with an unbeaten 43-run stand. Washington, playing as a specialist bat given he didn't bowl, made his second-highest T20I score of 49 not out off 23 while Jitesh made 22 not out off 13 in his first T20I in over 18 months after replacing Sanju Samson.

Australia are still getting used to seeing David walk out in the third over of an innings, as he did after Head and Inglis fell cheaply to Arshdeep's early swing. But David showed zero regard for the perilous position his team was in and unleashed a brutal counterpunch. He drove his first ball for four wide of mid-off and launched Bumrah over cover. Having fallen meekly to Varun in Melbourne, he clubbed the spinner for four and six off consecutive balls. David gave a life off Bumrah on 20, slicing a hard-hit square drive to backward point which burst through Washington's hands. It proved costly. David carved Bumrah over cover again and then assaulted Axar Patel with two huge hits in three balls. One was projected to travel 129m had it not clattered off the roof above the sightscreen.

India's attempt to use Shivam Dube as the fifth bowler was met with three thunderous cover drives in four balls to bring up David's fifty in 23 deliveries. He shared a 59-run stand with Mitchell Marsh who contributed just 5. What was most impressive was how he handled Varun. Marsh holed out to India's trump spinner before Mitch Owen was clean bowled first ball through the gate, completely misreading the length, line and variation.

David hadn't had a great previous record against Varun in T20s, scoring just 22 from 16 balls with two dismissals including one in Melbourne on Friday. But compared to Owen, who had never faced him before this series and now has two runs from five balls in the head-to-head, the previous 16 balls experience over five games for David paid dividends.

Varun returned in the 11th over to bowl his third with figures of 2 for 14 and Australia vulnerable. David launched him fearlessly for two massive sixes to finish with 26 from 10 off India's most dangerous spinner. He looked set for a certain century only to slightly under-club Dube to Tilak Varma, who took another wonderful catch at long-off while tight-walking the rope.

Australia are looking for a new finishing combination with David's elevation looking permanent. In the absence of Glenn Maxwell, Stoinis and Matthew Short showed their wares. Stoinis played particularly well, facing just four dot balls in his first 14 to allow David to continue his domination in a partnership of 45. Two reverse sweeps off Axar and two thumping pulls off Dube showed his versatility. He then struck four boundaries off Arshdeep in the 18th and 20th overs before holing out to hand Arshdeep his third wicket. Short's contribution was significant given he had failed to score more than 6 in his six previous outings at No. 7 in all T20s. He added an unbeaten 26 off 15, although Bumrah and Arshdeep put on a death bowling clinic in the last two overs to ensure it wasn't more.

Abhishek Sharma threatened to take Australia apart again, racing out of the blocks with two fours and two sixes as India raced to 30 for 0 in three overs. But for the third time in the series Nathan Ellis picked him up, this time with a bouncer clocked at 147 kph. It hurried Abhishek, who top-edged a pull shot straight up. Suryakumar Yadav kept the momentum going with two sixes of his own but Ellis struck again, slipping a full straight delivery through the defence of Shubman Gill to trap him plumb lbw. When Suryakumar chipped Stoinis to cover for 24 off 11 India were well ahead of the rate but had lost their best three batters for unfulfilled starts with their chief tormentor Josh Hazlewood watching from his couch in Sydney.

Washington not bowling a ball when Dube and Abhishek conceded 56 as India's fifth bowler was strange, especially as Australia's right-hand heavy line-up was known before Washington was selected. But he proved why he'd been picked to bat at No. 6. Bouncers had accounted for two of India's top five. Ellis and Sean Abbott's three combined attempts to bounce Washington all disappeared into the square leg seats. India had lost wickets at regular intervals but the continued clean striking meant there was never any run-rate pressure. Washington cleared the rope once more off Matt Kuhnemann to get the target under a run-a-ball inside the last four overs. Jitesh played an excellent cameo in his first T20I in over 18 months, including scooping Ellis to the rope. He got a reprieve when Owen dropped him running back from mid-off. But Washington kept calm and carried on, nailing Stoinis straight before Jitesh lofted over cover to win it with nine balls to spare.