Exploiting favourable conditions at the Optus Stadium, Hazlewood and Starc struck early to remove India’s senior batters, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, in quick succession.

Hazlewood drew first blood in the fourth over, generating sharp bounce to have Rohit edging to second slip.

Kohli, returning to international cricket after India’s ICC Champions Trophy triumph, fell for a duck when he nicked a wide delivery from Starc to Cooper Connolly at point.

India’s troubles deepened as Nathan Ellis dismissed captain Shubman Gill off his very first ball, while Hazlewood returned to claim Shreyas Iyer.

Reduced to 45 for four, India struggled to build momentum in the rain-shortened 26-overs-a-side contest.

Middle-order resistance came from KL Rahul (38) and Axar Patel (31), who added vital runs before debutant Nitish Kumar Reddy contributed 19 to push India to 136.

The target was later revised to 131 under the DLS method.

Defending a modest total, India began well with Arshdeep Singh removing Travis Head early, followed by Axar Patel striking again as Rohit Sharma completed a fine catch to dismiss Matthew Short.

However, Australia’s chase stabilised through a composed 55-run partnership between captain Mitchell Marsh and Josh Philippe.

Philippe’s fluent 37 and Marsh’s unbeaten 46 guided the hosts home comfortably, with Matt Renshaw joining his skipper to finish the job with 29 balls remaining.

Washington Sundar picked up a late wicket, but India’s early batting collapse proved decisive.

Reflecting on the win, Marsh praised his bowlers and the composure shown by Australia’s emerging players.

“Proud of the way our young guys came out and took the game on,” Marsh said.

“Josh Philippe made it look very easy — it’s great seeing the new faces enjoy themselves.”

India skipper Shubman Gill admitted the early wickets cost his side dearly.

“When you lose three wickets in the powerplay, you’re always playing catch-up,” he said, adding there were still positives to take from the game.

The two sides will meet again for the second ODI at the Adelaide Oval on October 23.