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R Dravid
Man of the Match |
Bristol, Aug 25: India overcame a spirited
fight back by England to win the second cricket one-dayer by a
narrow nine-run margin and level the seven-match series 1-1 here
on Friday. After posting a commanding total of 329 for 7, India
weathered a flying start from England and made regular
breakthroughs, but left it hanging till the end before heaving a
sigh of relief. Ian Bell, centurion in the first ODI, sustained
the England hopes with a top score of 64 before utility
all-rounder Dimitri Mascarenhas exploited the conditions with
his slog-sweep shots to take the fight to Indian camp.
Mascarenhas crashed five sixes into the short boundaries to hit
a 39-ball 52 before falling in the penultimate over. Number nine
Stuart Broad then collected two sixes and as many fours off the
last over from Munaf Patel but it proved a little too late as
England ended with 320 for eight.
Scorecard
India rode on Sachin Tendulkar's well crafted
99 and a stunningly aggressive 92 not out by captain Rahul
Dravid to post a commanding total of 329 for seven. Dravid,
whoses unbeaten 63-ball knock fetched him the man of the match
award, ensured the tourists did not lose the momentum in the
latter half of the innings. Munaf (3-70) then rose to the
occasion as he removed Matt Prior (33) and Alastair Cook (36)
off successive balls in the 11th over and peg England back.
Piyush Chawla (3-60) and Ramesh Powar (1-43) helped India
control the middle overs and proved Dravid's gamble to play two
spinners in the small ground right. The teams now move to
Edgbaston for third match, a day affair on Monday. India will be
concerned by five dropped catches and to some extent about the
bowling, although the bowlers could sight the good batting track
and the short boundaries.
Ajit Agarkar especially failed to make an impact with the new
ball for the second time on the trot, conceding 41 runs in his
first four overs. It was then left to Munaf and the two young
spinners to bail out India. Chawla might have been expensive but
his ability to pick wickets would be seen as a positive. He
would particularly cherish dismissal of big hitting Kevin
Pietersen, bowled through bat and pad for 25. Powar, on the
other hand, demonstrated good variation of pace and angle to
keep the scoring in check. Tendulkar, who put on 113 runs with
Ganguly, was adjudged caught behind by home umpire Ian Gould
although TV replays showed Andrew Flintoff's awkward bouncer had
only touched that part of his left arm inside the arm-guard. He
faced 112 balls and hit 15 fours and a six.
Yuvraj was going great guns when he chased a rank outside off
delivery and spooned it to point for 49 with still 10 overs left
in the Indian innings. And although Mahendra Singh Dhoni (21)
did not last long, Dravid's ferocious knock saw to it that India
did not lack any firepower in the closing stages. Dravid was in
a punishing mood as he slammed 11 fours and a six, a square
driver over point off James Anderson. Andrew Flintoff was
England's best bowler with 5-56 Incidentally, bad luck has been
chasing Tendulkar in the 90's right through this tour. He missed
out on two hundreds in the one-day series against South Africa
in Ireland. Then again, in the recent Test series against
England, Tendulkar again fell to the jinx of the 90's when Simon
Taufel ruled him out leg before for 92 off Chris Tremlett in the
second Test at Nottingham. So, this was the fourth occasion on
this tour that Tendulkar has been dismissed in the 90's.
Tendulkar, who ignored body pain that forced him to take tablets
during the course of his innings, launched a thrilling assault
on the England bowling. This was the 18th time that the old firm
of Tendulkar and Ganguly added 100 runs for the opening
partnership. And overall, it was the 23rd time that they have
gone past that mark. Tendulkar whetted the appetite of delirious
fans as he whipped Stuart Broad past mid-wicket for a delightful
boundary to get off the mark. And soon his wristy elegance saw
him repeating the doze of James Anderson as he deposited him in
the same region thrice in next couple of overs. For variety, he
played a gorgeous cover drive off Broad that has class written
all over it. When Flintoff was introduced into the attack,
Tendulkar smashed him for two consecutive fours. On his part,
Ganguly was remarkably quiet, after having square driven
Anderson magnificently for his first boundary, as he enjoyed a
ring side view of Tendulkar's fireworks from the non-strikers
end. He then got into the mood, slapping Tremlett past point,
making room for the attack by backing towards his leg.
And then in the 17th over of the innings he suddenly exploded,
hitting the same bowler for a six over long-on besides smashing
him for two fours in an over costing 17 runs. Unfortunately for
India Ganguly chanced his arm once too often and paid the
penalty in the 20th over of the innings. He gave Flintoff the
charge trying to hit him over point, got a top edge for Paul
Colingwood to take an easy skier running back. Ganguly made 39
off 54 balls with 5 fours and one six. Yuvraj Singh then came
out and batted with a vengeance. The left-hander's innings was
full of power and grace punctuated by three fours off
Mascarenhas. By the time Yuvraj fell to Broad in the 41st
overcaught at point by Collingwood, Dravid had warmed up to the
task. The Indian captain turned on the heat with a flurry of
superbly timed shots that left the English fielders look like
mere spectators. He hit an amazing six over point off Anderson
in the penultimate over of the innings that duly summed up his
mood and form this afternoon.
Scorecard (Agencies)
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