India vs England Faridabad 2nd ODI 2006 Faridabad | Raina Carries India to Victory | Cricket Crazy Star |
- last year
A nerveless 118-run stand between Suresh Raina, India's latest teenage prodigy, and the wicketkeeper, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, rescued India from a middle-order collapse and carried them to a comfortable four-wicket victory in the second one-day international at Faridabad.
Chasing 227 for victory after losing the toss, India had stuttered from 61 for 0 to 92 for 5 in 11 overs of indiscretion, but Raina demonstrated maturity beyond his years to compile a superb unbeaten 81 from 89 deliveries. It was his first half-century in international cricket, but the deftness of touch that he showed on a tricky low-bouncing surface was clear evidence that it would not be his last.
India had been in some disarray when Dhoni and Raina began a rearguard that blossomed into a gleeful gallop to victory. After a sprightly 61-run stand from Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, a mid-innings collapse had left England with victory in their grasp - for the second time in consecutive matches. But whereas the Delhi defeat had been of England's own making, this time they were forced to bow to the brilliance of India's sixth-wicket pair.
Raina did offer one chance, on 20, when James Anderson leapt to his right in his followthrough and clung on magnificently, only for the ball to bobble out as his elbow jarred on the turf. But that was his only aberration. Two wristy stroked fours through the covers off Liam Plunkett and Andrew Flintoff had served notice of his class, but it was once he had passed fifty and brought victory into his sights that he really unfurled his shots. Kabir Ali disappeared for 15 runs in his final over - riches on this sluggish surface - including an outrageous sweep past fine-leg for four.
Though it was Raina making the running, Dhoni's contribution was equally invaluable. He had been rightly lambasted for the manner of his dismissal in the Mumbai Test, but here he was temperance personified. It wasn't until he had been at the crease for 78 minutes that he scored his first boundary - a reverse-sweep off Ian Blackwell, who again enhanced his one-day reputation with a plucky spell of 2 for 38.
Blackwell's two wickets had bookended India's collapse, with Sehwag starting things off by missing a sweep to be bowled behind his legs, and Yuvraj Singh chopping an attempted cut onto his off-stump for 18. In between whiles, Gautam Gambhir top-edged a horrid smear back to James Anderson and Mohammad Kaif fell lbw for a duck, but the big scalp was that of the captain, Rahul Dravid, who was run out in bizarre circumstances as he attempted to steal a single from a ricochet off the stumps.
Chasing 227 for victory after losing the toss, India had stuttered from 61 for 0 to 92 for 5 in 11 overs of indiscretion, but Raina demonstrated maturity beyond his years to compile a superb unbeaten 81 from 89 deliveries. It was his first half-century in international cricket, but the deftness of touch that he showed on a tricky low-bouncing surface was clear evidence that it would not be his last.
India had been in some disarray when Dhoni and Raina began a rearguard that blossomed into a gleeful gallop to victory. After a sprightly 61-run stand from Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, a mid-innings collapse had left England with victory in their grasp - for the second time in consecutive matches. But whereas the Delhi defeat had been of England's own making, this time they were forced to bow to the brilliance of India's sixth-wicket pair.
Raina did offer one chance, on 20, when James Anderson leapt to his right in his followthrough and clung on magnificently, only for the ball to bobble out as his elbow jarred on the turf. But that was his only aberration. Two wristy stroked fours through the covers off Liam Plunkett and Andrew Flintoff had served notice of his class, but it was once he had passed fifty and brought victory into his sights that he really unfurled his shots. Kabir Ali disappeared for 15 runs in his final over - riches on this sluggish surface - including an outrageous sweep past fine-leg for four.
Though it was Raina making the running, Dhoni's contribution was equally invaluable. He had been rightly lambasted for the manner of his dismissal in the Mumbai Test, but here he was temperance personified. It wasn't until he had been at the crease for 78 minutes that he scored his first boundary - a reverse-sweep off Ian Blackwell, who again enhanced his one-day reputation with a plucky spell of 2 for 38.
Blackwell's two wickets had bookended India's collapse, with Sehwag starting things off by missing a sweep to be bowled behind his legs, and Yuvraj Singh chopping an attempted cut onto his off-stump for 18. In between whiles, Gautam Gambhir top-edged a horrid smear back to James Anderson and Mohammad Kaif fell lbw for a duck, but the big scalp was that of the captain, Rahul Dravid, who was run out in bizarre circumstances as he attempted to steal a single from a ricochet off the stumps.