2015 World Cup - India thump South Africa at MCG

It took four matches for India to beat South Africa in World Cup. But, when it happened, it was a thumping win for the defending champions who must have felt that they were playing the match at Mumbai, not MCG.

Shikhar Dhawan could not score a run during the Australian Tri-Series but after two matches he is the top-scorer of the ongoing World Cup. What a difference the break after the tri-series has done? The support provided by his captain and team management, his own slight tinkering with his mind (more than technique) has helped Dhawan in the tournament. He seems to have a clear vision and is determined to do well in the company of the other top-order batsmen. While Kohli did not have the same success as the previous match, Rahane continued the great work once again.

Image Courtesy: Cricinfo site

Rahane is probably the most elegant slogger in the tournament - never for a moment does he seem to lose his composure while scoring runs at a rate greater than 120! Rahane is also the most technical of all batsmen in the top order who can not only withstand the pace and guile of opposition bowlers but also score runs briskly. Dhoni showed glimpses with his bat but could not continue as last match. The same problem as last match occurred again - the last five overs were not as productive as what the first 45 overs showed.

The Indian bowlers were disciplined but the fielders were keen to make a mark. What else can explain run-out's of AB De Viliers and David Miller. The bowlers tightened the screws with their wicket-to-wicket bowling but the fielders were also positioned well by the captain not to give any easy runs. The end result was that the South Africans were gasping for breath. The lineup that can drive fear into any bowling attack was not able to score even 200 while chasing. The world saw the current South Africa team in a different light. Were they real favorites for the tournament? The much-maligned Indian bowling had done extremely well to throttle the batting as well as take all ten wickets. Mohit and Shami along with Ashwin with their repeated strikes are wreaking havoc on opposition plans.

The Indians are the favorites to top the group, thanks to their performance in the first two matches. Will they sustain this level for the next seven (four matches at group stage and three at knock-out level)? Definitely possible.

2015 World Cup - India make it 6-0

India defeated Pakistan today, just like they did in 1992, 1996, 1999, 2003 and 2011 - a winning streak that actually totals TEN if you include the T20 World Cup as well. Incredible! From the looks of it, the Pakistan team does not seem to be able to absorb the pressure that comes with such a marquee clash. At the same time, the Indian team seems to ride on the pressure involved to put a spirited performance. The same team that seemed to behave like amateurs in the Tri-series matches were transformed into tigers.

Except the  overs 46-50 while batting (when they collapsed - contributing to a total that was 20-30 less than what looked possible), the Indian team dominated the entire match! The Indian fan must have been visibly impressed by the incredible win on this day. Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina and Shikhar Dhawan were the ones to star with the bat - getting their act together against a bowling attack that was inexperienced but had the talent to trouble any team. Riding on the luck that supported them (dropped chances), the batting and running between the wickets climbed several notches higher than what was on display Down Under in last three months.

Picture Courtesy: Cricinfo Site

Virat Kohli was missing in action in the ODIs after a great test series - today, he was back in action. First with Dhawan and then with Raina, Kohli found his bearings and slowed down only near his century. Pity that he fell on completing the milestone. Raina was pure class - the shots he made and the placement of his strokes were on the spot. The opposition bowlers could not pitch the ball up to him at any time - he was just ruthless. The other aspect of Raina was his selflessness - milestones do not matter to Raina at all, only the team's objective matters. Witness his celebration when Kohli got to his century - amazing character. The only downside was the lack of form for MS Dhoni - though he hit one large six, he was a shadow of his old self. Time enough for him to get back to form still.

While the batting clicked, everyone was worried about the bowling composition. Will they come to the party as well? Starting with the ball that dismissed Younis Khan, Shami was like a man possessed. He was supported well by the others though Umesh was expensive at the beginning. Mohit provided good backup to ensure that the pressure was on the batsmen. Fielding was another area where the Indians scored higher than their opponents - the experience of fielding on the larger Australian grounds for the last few months had helped so much! The Pakistan team was always on the lookout for the big shots because of the tight fielding. One more noticeable aspect was Dhoni's willingness to attack - the slip catchers were usually missing in the previous matches - Dhoni is showing signs of aggression already. Ashwin was bowling as he should in a test match - looking for wickets and bowling outside the off (did Manager Arshad Ayub have a word with him?). Jadeja was solid but went for few runs (making up for the wickets). Umesh came back in his subsequent spell and looked much better - maybe it is a good idea to have him following Mohit Sharma in the next match.

All augurs well for the Indian team but they have to make this as a practice in most of the group matches to get an easier opponent in the quarterfinals. 

England Tour 2014 ODIs - Convincing win for India

304 runs. 133 runs. 10 wickets. Those were the total India scored in their 50 overs, the margin of win in the 2nd ODI (after the 1st ODI was washed out) as well as the number of England wickets taken correspondingly. Based on the latest performance in the test series, these numbers were music for Indian fans not just at Cardiff but across the globe.

The opening batsmen were different from the last two that opened in the test series (Old Trafford and Oval) to their credit, they did spend some time to gauge the pace at the beginning of the innings (even though the pitch was no way comparable to those tests). Dhawan threw it away edging to the keeper but Rohit Sharma carried on - he will be under pressure to retain his place not just for this series but also the West Indies ODIs. Virat Kohli tried to be aggressive by running down the pitch to the third ball he faced (not sure what he was thinking) - this move also failed just like the other shots he manufactured during the tests. It might be good for Kohli to take a break in the next ODI to take his mind off. This might actually help him better than continuing to play all games (as he has done - not  just the international games but also the warm-up matches).

Rahane, even though he could not convert his score to a bigger one, seems to be a good choice to play at No. 4 - a batsmen strong in technique who can be the bedrock of the innings in case of a collapse. Especially when Cheteshwara Pujara has not been able to replicate his successes in the shorter format, Rahane is the perfect choice to have in the batting lineup. Just like Suresh Raina is at home where he played yesterday - this gives him the opportunity to rotate strike initially and then go for the big hits in the  last 15 overs. The Indian team now have their strategy clear - ensure that wickets are saved during the first 10 overs, start rotating strike with occasional risk during overs 11-35 and then launch into all-out attack from 36 over (when the PowerPlay overs start again). This seemed to work during the second ODI and there is no reason why they should change this method.

Ashwin and Jadeja have been getting the quick runs in the  two-three overs they get at  the end of the innings while turning their arm for useful wickets. Against teams who are weak against spin, these bowlers were a handful. How they will fare on unresponsive (for them) wickets and stronger (against spin) batsmen remains to be seen. As of now, they will continue for the rest of the matches (unless India win another ODI and the think-tank decide to give Karn Sharma a chance). The pace bowlers did well, especially Mohit Sharma even though he did not get any wicket. There will be days when he will get wickets by the bucket but in this ODI, Shami reaped the benefits. After the poor form in the tests, Shami kind-of redeemed himself but it will be good for him to continue the performance for the rest of the matches. Is the Indian team trying to tire Bhuvi out by playing him for all the matches? Isn't it time he is rested?

Overall, the Indian team ticked all the boxes in this ODI but the series is not over. It is resembling the test series in that there was no decision in the first test and ODI, India won the 2nd match (in both series). What should happen now that the Indian team continue to win instead of going the route the test series ended up. Lets hope the think-tank can guide the team to victory. First ODI win in the third overseas series is a good start but the game is not over.