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India v Pakistan / News
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India v Pakistan, 3rd ODI, Delhi
India's bowlers prevent whitewash
January 6, 2013
India 167 (Dhoni 36, Ajmal 5-24) beat Pakistan 157 (Misbah 39, Ishant 3-36) by ten runs
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Saeed Ajmal
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India v Pakistan at Delhi
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Pakistan tour of India
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Not since the winter of 1983, when Clive Lloyd's West Indies avenged their loss in the World Cup final, had India been whitewashed in an ODI series at home. Following their third poor batting performance against Pakistan, India were hurtling towards a 0-3 score line in the cold of Delhi, until their bowlers rallied in conditions that offered seam and spin, applying relentless pressure until Misbah-ul-Haq's team cracked in the dead rubber.
As Yuvraj Singh, pursued by team-mates, went off on a celebratory run and slide after catching Mohammad Hafeez in the penultimate over to secure a hard-fought victory, the exuberant celebrations on the field and in the stands at the Kotla were a release of emotion from a country that has had precious little to celebrate in cricket in recent times.
An Indian victory, however, had appeared unlikely after their batsmen had crumbled against Pakistan's versatile attack. A raw seam attack, spearheaded by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and the debutant Shami Ahmed, had only 167 to defend and they went about it manfully. Ahmed began his spell with two maiden overs and continued to bowl with economy. Bhuvneshwar nipped out two early wickets with inswingers and bowled his ten overs on the trot, leaving Pakistan 55 for 2 after 19 overs.
During that period, India's fielding was at its best, with Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja throwing their bodies around on a chilly evening to cut off fluent flicks and drives. The only easy runs Pakistan got were two leg-side wides from the offspinner R Ashwin that beat MS Dhoni and sped to the boundary.
Pakistan rebuilt through Misbah, who batted doggedly for 39 off 82 balls, first with Nasir Jamshed and then with Umar Akmal. Both those stands were ended by Ashwin, and at 113 for 4 in difficult batting conditions, India were gaining ground. They received a lucky break, when Shoaib Malik was adjudged lbw to Ishant Sharma though he was hit outside the line, and Akmal charged Ravindra Jadeja too early and was stumped.
Only Hafeez, batting at No. 7 because of an injury while bowling, stood between India and victory and he was dropped by Rahane in the 42nd over, a straightforward chance at leg slip. He dragged his team towards the target and had to refuse singles with the No. 11 Mohammad Irfan, after Pakistan had lost three wickets in eight balls. With 23 runs needed in the last two overs, Hafeez hit two boundaries before holing out to off Ishant.
Any immediate anguish Pakistan felt, however, quickly dissipated as their players, heavily jacketed in the misty evening, celebrated a 2-1 series victory.
That India had at least 167 to defend was largely down to Dhoni, who was Man of the Match for his captaincy and his 36 off 55 balls, and Jadeja. Having left out Virender Sehwag to give Rahane a run, India lost three early wickets to the pace and swing of Mohammad Irfan and Junaid Khan. And they continued to struggle against Saeed Ajmal, who dismissed Suresh Raina and Ashwin off successive deliveries on his way to a five-wicket haul. India were 111 for 6 in the 29th over. Dhoni immediately carted Hafeez for his third six over deep midwicket and in a later over he inflicted the blow - a flat smash - that forced the Pakistan opener down the order.
Dhoni fell in the 35th over and Jadeja, because he was running out of partners, began to attack and score what he could. He hit a towering straight six off Umar Gul, and another off Ajmal over cow corner, but his riposte ended on 27. India were dismissed in the 44th over, but the wasted resources did not cost them the game.
George Binoy is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo
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George Binoy
Assistant Editor After a major in Economics and nine months in a financial research firm, George realised that equity, capital and the like were not for him. He decided that he wanted to be one of those lucky few who did what they love at work. Alas, his prodigious talent was never spotted and he had to reconcile himself to the fact that he would never earn his money playing cricket for his country, state or even district. He jumped at the opportunity to work for ESPNcricinfo and is now confident of mastering the art of office cricket
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Whatever said and done,being an indian,i am absolutely in awe and all praises for Junaid khan.Irfan is handleable...and any good batting side in form will be able to handle him.But Junaid is simply marvellous.Ajmal is unpredictable and highly talented bowler...remember saqlain mushtaq. Batting wise..pakistan's story is not much different than.Its just a matter od time...The moment jamshed is out Pakistan lineup will follow. Remember virat Kohli of before 4-5 mths.Alll runs scored by india was mainly thru him..Now he dosent score and indian team follows. MOM....Very tricky decision....Should be all pak bowlers... Indians...plz wake up....You are a good side..and i believe you willl get back to form. Pakistan..Plz come again..You alll brought cheers to our hearts...
Congratulations Dhoni! I enjoyed the match. I enjoyed the Cricket played last night and that's what matters in the moment. And I completely agree with the Man of the Match.
Fielding of our team was beauty. They weren't any less of the artists on the field, expressing themselves, as Dhoni himself said.
Just a little bit of regret that their real "artistry" surfaced when the canvas was already taken. :(
Both countries could take home some positives from this series!
INDIA:
1) P Kumar (the bowler): This guy is certainly a good find for India. I am not sure if he will be able to do much on dead pitches since he is really a medium pace bowler. I just hope he does not become another Balaji or Irfan Pathan like.
2) Dhoni: Dhone is the sole reason India had any fight in the ODI series unless it would have been embarrassing for them.
PAKISTAN:
1) Junaid and Nasir: I think we have found a world class bowler and batsman in the form of these two players. Junaid (if he can get his pace up a little) can easily fill in for Amir's loss. Nasir will def become a modern day great batsman for Pakistan. Pak team had been missing a modern day great batsmen like other top teams (U. Akmal could also be another if he changes his attitude) and have found one.
2) Hafeez: The reassurance of Hafeez is as unbelievable as exciting. He will Captain team Pak in ODI and T2 for the next 4 years at least!
Congrats to Pak for the series win-2-1, felt the MOM should have been Ajmal and not MSD. However, heartening as an indian fan was the attitude,intensity and fire that the indian bowlers and fielders showed in face of a small total-this self belief was missing for the last 1.5 years since the England tour. This is the shakeup that indian cricket needed. With the WC win- lot of our players got into the comfort zone, the less said the better about the BCCI and their non-existent long term policies. I forsee india being beaten in every format for the next few years, till we develop players not only with th right skils (read-an all wicket/conditions bowling attack) but also decent fielders, This has happened and will happen-Cheerio :)
Great bilateral Series! A rare treat these days. Marvelous display of seam bowling by both teams unlike conventional batting exhibitions. Kudos to BCCI and PCB for squeezing in this mini contest between the England series. Cricket was victorious in the end. Traditional rivalry must continue in such healthy junctures. Pakistan batting crumbled in usual fashion in last game. Ajmal was splendid in the last game and diserved to be the man of the match. Thank you our friens in India for hosting us. Happy New Year Folks!
@mazii: Oh, so cos Bhuvnesh went for runs in a match he ceases to be a promising bowler? Is that your argument? Well, your best bowler Ajmal was ravaged for 18 runs by Hussey in WT20 in WI to win the match - so is Ajmal not a good bowler? The very same bowler looked helpless in Asia Cup vs Ind and your Umar Gul went for 60-65 runs in 9 overs. Considering that these were pretty experienced bowlers they must be worse than Bhuvnesh Kumar if one goes by your argument.
Anyways, it is easy to see that from Ind vs Pak you have now come down to comparing a rookie Ind bowler with your so called great bowling attack. Well, if young Bhuvnesh gets compared to Umar Gul or Junaid Khan then it shows Bhuvnesh must be very promising. But your Junaid Khan gets compared to another Pak disappointment Mohd Sammi so one can see where Junaid will end up finally.
Listen buddy, a bowling attack that fails to defend 329 must be an overrated lot.
Still no signs of Kiwirocker - he must be in hiding, shaken.
Posted by Harmony111 on (January 9, 2013, 17:53 GMT)@mazii: So you took your first English lesson today and learnt the word "Imagine"? Good going.
I thought it was obvious to anyone but I comment here cos I like this game. Inf act I comment on other articles too, not just Ind-Pak. My love goes beyond your typical parochial limits. You and your dear friend Kiwirocker keep saying they will answer they will answer yet you guys never answer. Even when you are exposed fully you still keep making fresh frivolous claims. Where is your fella Kiiwrocker? Where is he hiding now? And Jamshed scored one of the ugliest 100s I have ever seen, hardly the sign of a good future. Jamshed will at best be a above average batsman, he will never become a great, he is far too limited in talent to ever become a great.
Let's see what your Juanid Khan does in the future, as of now he is another Sammi for me. Ind will thrash Pak when it comes to another big match in WC, I hope you will l call your bowlers great even then - keep enjoying your grandeur delusions.
Posted by mazii on (January 9, 2013, 12:16 GMT)harmony111. you are funny my dear. keep it up with your good work. Your comments really made me laugh. Do you know B.kumar performance in the 2nd ODI, in nine overs he gave away 61 runs with just one wicket. And in the same match junaid took three wicket for 39 runs. You really need some mentorship man as you are really shattered by 8-0, 2-1 and now 2-1....lolzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Posted by mazii on (January 9, 2013, 11:46 GMT)Harmony111... I can't help my laughter my dear. Are you serious that you don't care this series loss 2-1. Then why are you commenting here if you don't care. The reason why you are commenting here is just because you are frustrated my dear and try to console yourself after this humiliation. Don't worry about kiwirocker. I'm here to give reply of every frustrated question of yours. I imagine how it feels like losing a series from your arch-rival. I can imagine the deep pain you are in. I can imagine the silence of crowd after Junaid's wickets. I can imagine how annoayed, but helpless, you are when Jamshed scored two centuries in India and in front of Indian crowd. I can imagine you how livid you would have been when the best batting line up shattered like house of cards against world class but inexperieneced bowlers. Now please don't use my word imagine as you have been using my word. I think you better teach your cricketrs how to bat against moving ball instead of defending them. lolz
Posted by Harmony111 on (January 9, 2013, 11:31 GMT)@g.narsimha: Yes dear, the Pak fans talk so much about Junaid and Irfan but it was our Bhuvnesh who made their batsmen look like ducks in his spells. The way he bowled Hafeez and Akmal was absolutely awesome. Junaid khan is good but the Pak fans have started to talk about him as if he is already a great bowler, we've seen what happened to their other bowlers in the past too. Even their speed sensation Shoaib Akhtar did not achieve much at the Intl level and their Mohd Sami is long obscure now. I was only being civil and sporting with them when I praised Junaid and Irfan but TBH, Irfan is not a bog deal to handle, he is not even too quick, around 140 at most times. We wills see where Junaid Khan goes but he is def not as of now a great bowler, only a promising bowler.
Besides, Pak struggled to chase 133 in 1st T20 and could not chase 167 in the 3rd ODI, Indi scored 192 in the 2nd T20 and Dhoni absolutely murdered them in the 1st ODI - where was their good bowling attack then?