ODI 4 Half Time: Another Strong Performance from India

Sreelata YellamrazuFeb 5 2009

Muttiah Muralitharan finally overhauled Wasim Akram as the highest wicket taker in one day internationals. But it came at a price after Gautam Gambhir had notched a fine century and India had crossed the 300 mark in the series yet again.

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Despite resting Sachin Tendulkar, team India had little difficulty getting past 300. That was largely due to the partnership established between Gambhir and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni who came in at number three for a change. Though Dhoni missed his century by six runs going after Sanath Jayasuriya, India had established a degree of comfort by then and it was a matter of really pressing for more.

Gambhir’s dismissal came in the final five overs and though Nuwan Kulasekara rocked the Indian line up by taking two wickets in two balls, accounting for last match’s centurion Yuvraj Singh and Yousuf Pathan, it only meant that India would settle for something in the region of 330-340 instead of another colossal score of 380 or thereabouts.

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While the belligerence of the previous match was amiss, the run making was not as India once again took on the ascendancy of the match very quickly. In hindsight it was good to have lost Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh cheaply because it provided yet another opportunity to show that India was not dependent on any one man army as in the past but rather there was plenty of talent to raise their hand and make it count.

The 188 run partnership between Dhoni and Gambhir once again exposed just how out of depth the Sri Lankans have been in this series. India though were in a merciless mood, or far from complacent as they captain intended and led from the front. The only challenge for the Indians for much of the innings was the Indians themselves to undo their own feats.

The only spark for the Sri Lankans came when Kulasekara struck twice in the thirty-fifth over. But there were many shades of grey that Sri Lanka need to address. But before that, they have to forget about the Indian innings if they are to successfully chase 333 for a victory that will break their losing streak in this series.

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