Indians yesterday chased down a steep target of 316, which England set them for 6th ODI game of the current NatWest series, to level the equation at 3 a piece. Thanks largely to the experience and abilities of its 2 stars Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly who kick-started an excellent run chase by building a strong foundation of 150 runs in 22 overs (6.8 runs/ov). Never did the duo look flustered or rushed by the situation, giving due respect to 'good' deliveries and punishing the loose ones.Ganguly's wicket came at a very bad time for India, as Sachin was struggling with cramps
at the other end. He should have walked off the field and Ganguly should have continued the good work out there, unfortunately for India, Sachin threw away his wicket soon after Ganguly perished. This brought in 2 new batsmen at the crease, Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh, both took their time to get going. Just when Yuvraj seemed to have got a hang of the chase he fell to a soft dismissal offering a straight return catch to Mascarenhas. In came the captain of India, Rahul Dravid, who has been in sublime touch throughout this ODI series, but England captain out thought his counterpart and brought in Owais Shah to bowl a few teasers. Dravid obliged with his prize wicket and Gambhir at the other end had to re-group again with next man in Dhoni. Shah and Collingwood got through some tight overs during this re-grouping phase and that bumped up the asking rate for India to over 8 runs/over.
at the other end. He should have walked off the field and Ganguly should have continued the good work out there, unfortunately for India, Sachin threw away his wicket soon after Ganguly perished. This brought in 2 new batsmen at the crease, Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh, both took their time to get going. Just when Yuvraj seemed to have got a hang of the chase he fell to a soft dismissal offering a straight return catch to Mascarenhas. In came the captain of India, Rahul Dravid, who has been in sublime touch throughout this ODI series, but England captain out thought his counterpart and brought in Owais Shah to bowl a few teasers. Dravid obliged with his prize wicket and Gambhir at the other end had to re-group again with next man in Dhoni. Shah and Collingwood got through some tight overs during this re-grouping phase and that bumped up the asking rate for India to over 8 runs/over. Gambhir was looking good in the middle playing sensibly but as he has done so many times in his career now threw away his wicket at a crucial time. With the score at 5/234 from 40.2 overs, last recognized Indian batsman walked into the game, Robin Uthappa. Playing the first game in the series he was keen on making a mark on the game and securing the spot in this ODI squad. He did just that and in fine style! It is not easy to overshadow your batting partner when you are batting with someone like Dhoni, but Uthappa was aware of the field and his strengths and had clear plan in his mind how to break England in the field. He targetted deep fine-leg and fine 3rd man boundries and peppered them at will, using the bowlers pace at his will. Taking a lesson from Robin, Dhoni tried to attempt a lofted sweep to fullish delivery from Broad only to see his off stump rattled. Funny dismissal and something India could have very much avoided. His dismissal threw open the gates for English bowlers who sniffed a chance to bowl out the Indian tail.
Ajit Agarkar and Zaheer Khan helped their cause by running themselves out. But the star of the show at the other end was Robin Uthappa, who surprising to see was unruffeled by the loss of wickets at the other end and always looked like getting India home. Needing 23 runs of last 2 overs and loosing 2 partners he still managed to get India home. It speaks volumes about the talent and temperament of this youngster. He is definitely the future for India!!
Ajit Agarkar and Zaheer Khan helped their cause by running themselves out. But the star of the show at the other end was Robin Uthappa, who surprising to see was unruffeled by the loss of wickets at the other end and always looked like getting India home. Needing 23 runs of last 2 overs and loosing 2 partners he still managed to get India home. It speaks volumes about the talent and temperament of this youngster. He is definitely the future for India!!
A strong middle-order batsman who can hang in there and invent his shots according to the need of the game would be a priceless addition to this Indian batting lineup. He reminds me of Chamara Silva, an amazing discovery by SriLanka.
Having squared the series at 3-3 India will have the momentum coming into the final clash on Saturday. Often we have seen India choking in the finals lets hope this time round they will pull it off with a win...
1 comment:
Lets hope india wins the final ODI..
Post a Comment