BANGALORE (India), Sept 29: Rain stopped play when India were nine for one wicket after 2.4 overs in the first One-day International against Australia here on Saturday.

Heavy rains right at the start of the India innings forced umpires Suresh Shastri and Steve Bucknor to take the players off the field in the day/night game.

Gautam Gambhir was on four while Irfan Pathan was yet to open his account when play was halted. Left-arm paceman Mitchell Johnson snared the prized scalp of Sachin Tendulkar for a six-ball duck.

Earlier, Australia made 307 for seven in 50 overs in what is the first of the seven-match series. Michael Clarke hit a career-best 130 to pull out Australia from a tricky 90 for four. The 26-year-old clobbered 10 fours and three sixes in his 132-ball knock after stand-in captain Adam Gilchrist elected to bat in the day-night game.

Clarke, who hit a 151 on his Test debut at this very venue three years ago, anchored the innings with perfection, the highlight of which were the two sixes he hit in an over by spinner Ramesh Powar.

He also shared a valuable 144-run stand for the fifth wicket with Brad Haddin, who chipped in with a 69, to negate the efforts of the home side riding high on their World Twenty20 triumph.

For India, mercurial seamer Shantakumaran Sreesanth claimed three key wickets to do the early damage after Zaheer Khan had Gilchrist dismissed through a brilliant catch by Yuvraj Singh.

The athletic left-hander lunged full length to his right at point to send back the explosive Australian opener for 12.

Sreesanth, who had dismissed Brad Hodge for a duck in his first spell, returned to claim the big wickets of Matthew Hayden (34) and Andrew Symonds (7) in a space of two overs.

Hayden tried to swing across the line, only to see the ball crashing on to his stumps while Symonds was trapped plumb leg before.

Haddin, a replacement for an injured Ricky Ponting, then joined hands with Clarke to put the innings back on track.

The 29-year-old wicket-keeper/batsman hit seven fours and a six before being stumped by Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni off Yuvraj.

All-rounder James Hopes provided the late sparks with a 37-run cameo off 25 balls before being dismissed in the last over which also saw Clarke being run out by Zaheer.

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