The Hindu : Sport : Determined Dhoni and Yuvraj guide India home scoreboard

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Determined Dhoni and Yuvraj guide India home scoreboard

S. Dinakar

Sangakkara, Jayawardene combine well to help Sri Lanka post a competitive total after early setback

Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s knock did not contain even a single boundary
Kumar Sangakkara’s 128 won him the Man of the Match award

— Photos: AP & AFP

VIEWS FROM A THRILLER: The close contest in Adelaide on Tuesday saw lots of interesting moments like the freak dismissal of Sri Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardene, Yuvraj Singh’s return to form with a fine half-century and Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni giving vent to his feelings after hitting the winning runs.

Adelaide: India clinched a humdinger by two wickets and five deliveries to spare in a crucial CB tri-series game against Sri Lanka on Tuesday.

In the final stretch, the Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni was calm and collected even as wickets fell around him at the Adelaide Oval. He played the finisher’s role to perfection.

Remarkably for a big-hitting batsman, his unbeaten 68-ball 50 did not include a boundary. The skipper oozed determination, relying more on placements than power and head than instinct.

Blazing knock

And the man Dhoni has backed all along, vice-captain Yuvraj Singh, set up the victory with a blazing 70-ball 76. Short of runs and under pressure to perform, the punishing left-hander passed a test of character.

India now has 12 points from six matches and Sri Lanka, six from five. Apart from defeating India at Hobart, Sri Lanka has to win at least one of its two remaining matches against Australia to enter the finals. India’s task is easier.

Kumar Sangakkara’s immaculately built 155-ball 128 (12 x4) won him the Man of the Match award. He left the field under the lights a disappointed man though. Sri Lanka’s inability to force the pace after the departure of Sangakkara may have cost the side the game. A target of 239 gave the Indians a distinct chance.

There were openings for both the sides in the final moments. Lasith Malinga, who had earlier castled Sachin Tendulkar with a vicious delivery that swung away just a shade, was fast and straight.

Muttiah Muralitharan bowled cleverly from both over and round the wickets but the Indians kept the asking rate within reach with Dhoni rotating the strike.

In this series, Dhoni has followed the Javed Miandad school of batting. There have been times when he has moved across to cover his stumps and worked the ball around. This makes him a candidate for the leg-before decision but the Indian captain has survived with his bat speed and hand-eye coordination.

Building partnerships

He built partnerships, first with Yuvraj and then with Irfan Pathan. Importantly, these were right-left combinations.

Pathan blotted his copybook with a slog off paceman Ishara Amerasinghe that allowed Sri Lanka back into the game but his 41-ball 31 was a valuable effort at the crunch. Rightly, he batted at No. 7.

As the game reached the conclusive stage, Jayawardene took calculated risks with his field placings. There was no man at the point fence — the square boundaries are shorter here — and Pathan cut Amerasinghe to the boundary for some crucial runs.

Perhaps, Jayawardene could have introduced Muralitharan immediately after Yuvraj arrived even if the Power Play overs were in progress. The left-hander has been troubled in the initial stages by the off-spin wizard in the past. By the time Murali was brought in, Yuvraj, punching well, had gained in confidence.

The heavy-hitting left-hander decided to take Muralitharan on. When Murali flighted, he used his feet and drove him past the long-off ropes. This was a different Yuvraj.

He rocked back to cut and pull the pacemen. Unlike the Australians, the Lankan pacemen were not bowling a fuller length at Yuvraj. Eventually a lovely curling yorker from Chaminda Vaas ended Yuvraj’s brave tenure. The left-hander departed to rousing cheers. India was 35 for three when Yuvraj and Rohit Sharma put the innings back on rails.

The Lankan attack was hampered by some ordinary bowling by paceman Farveez Maharoof. And the fielding could have been better.

Five-bowler formula

The Indians stuck to the five-bowler formula even if this meant the contentious decision to leave out Virender Sehwag was taken. From all accounts, Sehwag had recovered from his side strain. Swing bowler Praveen Kumar replaced S. Sreesanth in the eleven.

The Indian new ball combination of Ishant Sharma and Munaf Patel was lively after Jayawardene chose to bat on a good batting surface.

Munaf prised out Tillekeratne Dilshan with a lovely away seamer. He then put his hand on the way as Sangakkara essayed a straight drive and Sanath Jayasuriya, backing up, could not regain the crease.

Sangakkara and Jayawardene rebuilt the innings. Sangakkara reads the situations better than most batsmen. The left-hander has tightened his game even while expanding his range of strokes.

The right-handed Mahela Jayawardene has the gift of timing and an instinctive ability to find the gaps. Lanka recovered from six for two to 159 for three when Jayawardene was run out backing up too far to a Sangakkara straight hit. The Indian bowling was steady without being penetrative.

Sri Lanka should have made more runs in the last phase.

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