Cardiff: A new day, but it was the same old story for the Indian top order as the overcast conditions got the better of the much-famed batting line-up in their warm-up game against Bangladesh here, Tuesday.
While New Zealand had gone for the kill after sniffing blood, the Bangladesh bowlers couldn’t manage the same as the Indians finished on 359/7 in their 50 overs, riding on brilliant centuries by KL Rahul (108, 99b, 12×4, 4×6) and old warhorse MS Dhoni (113, 78b, 8×4, 7×6).
In reply, Bangladesh were bowled out for 264 losing the match by 95 runs. Mushfiqur Rahim (90, 94b, 8×4, 2×6) and Liton Das (73, 90b, 10×4) batted brilliantly, adding 120 runs for the third wicket, before Indian spinners Kuldeep Yadav (3/47), Yuzvendra Chahal (3/55) and Ravindra Jadeja (1/40) destroyed the middle order. Jasprit Bumrah (2/25) got the first two wickets in successive deliveries.
Keeping aside those two knocks and a quickfire knock from skipper Virat Kohli (47, 46b 5×4), it was again a case of conditions making the batsmen sweat. While ODI deputy Rohit Sharma managed 19, opening partner Shikhar Dhawan scored just one. The much spoken about Vijay Shankar also managed just 2 as the Indian scoreboard read a scary 102/4 at one stage. But the 164-run partnership between Rahul and Dhoni ensured that another embarrassing collapse was avoided.
In fact, while the Indian team management decided to stick with Rahul at the much-debated No.4 slot, it would have been interesting to see whether a bowling attack with better penetration would have let Rahul fly away to a century after a start that saw him woefully short on confidence.
The sun peeping through the clouds and Dhoni’s acumen also helped as the former Indian skipper looked to ease pressure off Rahul by taking the attack to the Bangladesh spinners. In fact, it almost looked like the Dhoni of old as he used the depth of the crease to perfection against the Bangaldesh spinners.
But then, these warm-up matches are to fine-tune the areas that need attention. And going by the form of the Indian batsmen in the top half, there is plenty to worry for skipper Kohli and coach Shastri.
Dhawan was the first to go as he was trapped plumb in front after he planted his foot across the line of the ball from Mustafizur Rahman. In case of Rohit, it has to be more of disappointment and frustration at the way he chopped one onto his stumps due to his inability to read the slowness of the ball. Kohli’s dismissal was against the run of play and it was a case of over attacking.
Brief scores: India 359/7 (MS Dhoni 113, KL Rahul 108) bt Bangladesh 264 (Mushfiqur Rahim 90, Liton Das 73; Kuldeep Yadav 3/47, Yuzvendra Chahal 3/55) by 95 runs.
