Cricket: India Deny Pakistan A Clean Sweep In New Delhi Chiller!

It was a freezing
cold day in New Delhi,
but the surface of the pitch was dry promising a lot of runs. Maybe that
encouraged Dhoni to try put on some runs on the board by making first use. Despite
Ajinkya Rahane replacing a listless Sehwag in the openers’ slot the Indian top order
acted the same way it has been used to over the last couple of years. They did
not have a clue to the pace and the swing, and even to spin. All of them were
tentative in putting the bat out in a kind of forward defense, but never coming
decisively forward, failing to anticipate which way the ball would move. They continued to perish after consuming lots of balls,
only Yuvraj Singh coming at 37/3 in the 10th over told them that
boundaries could still be scored. But his quick innings was too good to last
for long. When pace of Irfan (2 for 28) and Junaid (1 for 17) seemed to have
engulfed India it was finally the
spin of Saeed Ajmal (incredible 5 for 24) that finished off India for 167.
Suresh Raina (31 off 60) and captain Dhoni (36 off 55) gave the Indian bowlers
something to fight for. Interestingly Dhoni got out in a one day international
in India after for the first time after March, 2011! Pakistan
was set to notch up the first ever clean sweep of 3-0 over India in India.
Intense and
accurate bowling and a top class fielding effort from the Indians made run
making difficult for Pakistan
right from the start of their innings with wickets falling in regular intervals
thanks to youngster Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2 for 31). Skipper Misbah (39 off 82)
and Umar Akmal (25 off 50) struck a productive partnership and at 113/3 in the
34th over Pakistan
were well on course. But spinner Ashwin broke that partnership by sending off
Misbah and when Jadeja got Umar Akmal stumped the match suddenly in the
balance. Inspired spells by Ishant Sharma (3 for 36) and newcomer pacer Shami
Ahmed (1 for 23) stopped Pakistan
crafting a victory from the jaws of defeat for their country. Mohammad Hafeez
(21 off 31) who refused to give up was the last man out caught by Yuvraj off
Ishant Sharma and Pakistan got all out for 157 in the 49th over
giving desperate Team India a memorable win. MS Dhoni was chosen Player of the
Match for his positive vibes and Nasir Jamshed who scored two back to back super
hundreds got the Player of the Series award. Significantly there was not a single half century in the entire match. Pakistan win the ODI Series 2-1 and
take home the Airtel ODI Trophy proudly. The Scorecard:
This much needed
win gives India some heart
to face up to England for
the forthcoming ODI Series starting on 11th January in Rajkot. But the
cumulative rot in the Indian team cannot be wished away with this exciting win.
Suddenly the Indian bowling that has been under the hammer constantly looks
better thanks to the sprightly youngsters and its batting that has been the strong-point for years is in turmoil. Humiliations piled up both abroad and at
home make the hard decisions a must. The money-rich Indian Cricket Board likes
it or not.
This short
India-Pakistan Series after five years is expected to help bettering relations between
the two garrulous neighbors. It was heartening to watch supporters of both the
countries enjoying and expressing themselves freely in the packed stadiums. Cricket
lovers in both countries would definitely want more and more cricket classics
between the two arch-rivals in the near future.
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