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Thrilling 23-run victory for India
 London, Sept 6: The hallowed turfs of Lord's once again provided the inspiration for the Indian team who ended their five-match losing streak with a thrilling 23-run victory over England in the third and final NatWest Challenge one-day cricket international here yesterday.
After being bundled out for a modest 204, Sourav Ganguly's men rediscovered their familiar nerve in the face of adversity to snuff England out for 181 in 48.2 overs for a morale boosting win.
Young wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthick lost and reinvented his fledgling career in the same day as he dropped Michael Vaughan on 36 and then produced an out of the world stumping to dismiss the England captain in the nerve-wracking closing stages. Vaughan's piece de resistance, 74 off 141 balls with eight fours and a 92-run seventh-wicket partnership with Ashley Giles (39), looked set to lead England to a white-wash of the Indians but Ganguly's men were not be denied this day.
The English batting that had given the Indian bowling a hiding in the previous two games floundered against some inspired seam bowling and the mesmering off-spin of Harbhajan Singh. The Turbanator finished with three for 28 while Ashish Nehra scalped three for 26.
The Indians, reeling under a string of losses beginning with the defeat to Pakistan in a Super League match of the Asia Cup in July, rung in changes and shuffled their batting order. (Agencies)
Published: Monday, September 06, 2004
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