Cricket: India Win Star Sports ODI Series Against Australia, Diwali Gift For Fans!

Incredible Innings By Rohit Sharma

It was a perfect Happy Diwali from Team India as its top order batsmen regaled millions of fans with incredible fireworks today in Bangalore. India posted the highest total of the Series, 383/6 off 50 overs. The fifth wicket partnership between Rohit Sharma (209 in 158 balls) and MS Dhoni (62 off 38) yielded 167 runs off just 94 balls amassing 101 in the last five and 151 in the last 10 overs. Rohit Sharma became the third batsmen of the world to score an ODI double ton after Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag. He broke the world record of the highest number of sixes in an innings beating Shame Watson’s 15 with his 16. He also became the first world batsmen to score the highest number of runs in an innings against Australia. However, the million dollar question remained still—was the target of 384 set against Australia enough or a safe one?

Incredible Innings By James Faulkner

Well, almost not! If Rohit broke records for the mammoth total, James Faulkner—the match winner in Mohali for the last minute blitz—set new records in almost overhauling the Indian total. He became the second Australian for the fastest hundred and with McKay set the highest partnership ever of 115 runs for Australia for the ninth wicket. From 211 for 8 Faulkner brought his team to a possible victory at 326 for 8 in the 45^th over. Then of course it took just two balls to set up an exciting Indian victory by 57 runs in the 7^thand last one day international match in Bangalore today. India thus won the Star Sports 7-match ODI Series beating Australia 3-2.

Australia won the toss and decided to field as has been the unofficial rule for most part of the Series thanks basically to the dew factor in the evening making bowling difficult and the inability for any team to define a ‘safe’ total to put up. Australia batted first after winning the toss in the first ODI in Rajkot and won the match. They won the toss again in Jaipur for the second ODI and naturally elected to bat again. Australia made 359 runs and yet lost the match and since then fielding has been the first option after winning the toss for both teams. Australia also did the unimaginable for today’s all-important final by sending their main strike bowler Mitchell Johnson home to prepare for the Ashes Series starting later this month. Johnson has been consistently troubling Indian batsmen, particularly Raina and Yuvraj this Series and this tactical blunder was definitely going to add to the ‘safe target’ related woes.

After the sixth match in Nagpur that India won MS Dhoni launched an attack on the new ODI Rules saying that the earlier 280-290 targets had now become 350+ and even after that you were not sure if you had posted enough. With smaller boundaries introduction of two balls from each end the new Rules has practically ruled out reverse swing for the pacers and deprived the spinners of an older ball. Reducing the number of fielders outside the thirty yard circle from five to four in the non-Powerplay overs the bowlers are made helpless as even a minor variation in line and length paved the way for fours and sixes. To entertain the fours-sixes crowds of cricket T20 was introduced and now to placate them further one day cricket is tempered with too. Well, big money cricket is always here in India to stay. Anyway, when you do not know what total is going to be safe it is always better to know the exact target to chase. In Bangalore the Australian decision was made easier still because of the possibility of evening rains apart from the dew.

Put in to bat, the Indian openers—Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawa—started brilliantly racing to the second consecutive hundred run partnership and the sixth in 19 innings. India were 107 for no loss after 17 overs when rains interrupted. Immediately after play began Dhawan fell for 60 (57 balls) to left-arm spinner Doherty giving the economical bowler the first wicket in this series. Catastrophe happened in the 20^th over when the hero of Nagpur Virat Kohli was run out for a duck due to a huge mix-up with Team India at 113 for 2. Things became quiet and steadier as Raina tried to give company to in-form Rohit who notched up his half century too. Very soon he rebuilt the momentum with effortless sixes all around the park, but Raina (28) and Yuvraj Singh (12) could not give him company for long. Although bogged down a bit, Rohit with his captain’s support at the other end completed his 4^thcentury and after that it was incredible cricket he went on with his breathtaking shots and breaking records all the way. Absence of Johnson, injury to Watson after a tight spell and the waywardness of the Aussie seamers were some of the factors contributing to India’s memorable assault.

Injury Scare For Shane Watson

Australia seemed to have started the chase in a hurry thus rather helping the Indian bowlers and wickets fell at regular intervals. Except for a flurry of sixes by Maxwell who had the brute of an innings of 60 off just 22 balls and by injured Watson (49 off 22) things were looking rather gloomy for them. Maybe Dohery’s two wickets showed there was something for spinners on this flat pitch as Ashwin (2 for 51 off 10 overs) and Jadeja (3 for 73 off 10 overs) restrained Australia to some extent. Among the seamers Mohammed Shami was successful taking three wickets. Run out of the hero of the Nagpur match and the highest scorer of the Series Aussie captain George Bailey was a tremendous setback. At 211/8 in the 31^st over an Indian victory was written all over completing a Diwali gift. But then Faulkner (116 off 73) blast brought the match alive with patient support of McKay (18 in 65 balls). Finally it was too good to go on and the Faulkner scare for India ended in the first ball of the 46^th over with Australia all out for 326. Relief and ecstasy almost overwhelmed captain cool Dhoni as Shikhar Dhawan managed to latch on to the Faulkner catch in the long on boundary.  The Scorecard:

The Bangalore match has been a real Diwali celebration with fireworks continuing till the end. After Diwali India would take on West Indies for the all-important two-Test Series when Sachin Tendulkar is set to complete his 200^th Test and bow out of cricket.

Politics: Indian History Up For Grabs!

If the unprecedented nastiness pervading the Indian political scenario even six months before the all important General Elections-2014 is any indication we could very well prepare ourselves for things to follow. Desperate to win and grab power to rule the country political parties are throwing away all decency and restraint and are indulging in a war of calling dirty and dirtiest names to counter each others' chances. From ‘shehzade’ (Prince—BJP Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi launching an attack on the Congress’s so-called dynastic rule to ‘fascist’, ‘Hitler’, ‘psychopath’ or ‘megalomaniac’. Leader M calls leader NM as the most communal person of the country while utterly bitterly failing to contain communal clashes breaking out again and again in his state. The same leader M has his sights focused on becoming the next Prime Minister and for that ‘noble’ purpose he marshals all minor or break-away parties into a conventions against communalism while communal clashes resurface in his state the same day.

Not only this, even Indian history is no longer safe from political exploitation. Pioneering leaders of an independent India are being claimed as the idols of respective political parties. Charges and counter-charges are being traded furiously in this regard totally disregarding what the ‘subjects’ have to say about this. This trend may get more sinister as the Elections near. The BJP may trace its glorious origins to the ancient Indian age and may blame the Congress for all the troubles suffered in the medieval age.  The Congress may very well refer to the unified India or Bharata concept demonstrated in various stages of Indian history and claim as its heritage while blaming the BJP for trying to build up regional forces by allying with smaller kingdoms.

In various stages of Indian history it has been observed that some monarchs invited foreign invaders to settle scores with their internal rivals. This danger is not farfetched in the present scenario when you identify foreign invaders as the terrorists. We have said on many occasions that a politically divided and polarized India is in fact helping the terrorists to strike at will. What is more threatening is that terrorists are being looked not as terrorists but as people belonging to various religious or politically affiliated groups. Depending on the credentials a terrorist is not a terrorist for a particular leader or party. On October 27, 2013 serial bomb blasts rocked Patna, the capital city of Bihar when Narendra Modi was addressing a political rally in there. Now the ruling party in Bihar, JDU, broke away from coalition partner BJP recently, and therefore charges logically followed as the blasts being a security compromise to deliberately harass a political rival. Well, by the time General Elections-2014 actually gives a winner Indian history could be entirely manipulated or changed or distorted beyond recovery. Beware!

Cricket: India Win A Thriller In Nagpur, Draw Level With Australia!

George Bailey Ecstatic

India beat Australia by 6 wickets in a high scoring thriller in Nagpur today and drew level in the ODI Series. India’s much talked about batting strength clicked in the right time and with tremendous contributions from Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni prevented Australia from running away with a straight Series win. This was despite a record-breaking 156 by Australian captain George Bailey earlier. 

Team India’s persistently indifferent bowling and fielding notwithstanding, in the first 22 overs of the sixth one day international in Nagpur today India did manage to put Australia in some spot of trouble. Australia could score just 89 runs in those overs losing two wickets. Bhuvaneshwar Kumar coming in again replacing Vinay Kumar struck for the first time capturing Hughes for 13 in the 7^thover. Spinner Amit Mishra coming in replacing Unadkat combined well with Ashwin and kept Australia on a tight leash. Finch fell in the 12^th over to Ashwin making it 45/2. Jadeja had dangerous Watson caught, but a no-ball spoiled it all and Watson went on to complete a magnificent century (102 off 94). Australia captain Bailey then took charge and hit Ashwin for a four and a six. After that momentous over there was no looking back for Australia and they scored a mammoth 261 runs in the next 28 overs setting a target of 351 for India in fifty overs. All the bowlers, Amit Mishra and R Ashwin prominently, got hit at will and why they did not bother bowling to their field is something maybe the Indian captain himself did not have a clue about.

Aussie skipper George Bailey broke records during his brilliant 156 runs off just 114 balls. He became the only Australian batsman or captain to score the highest total runs in a bilateral series. Imagine, Bailey was selected to lead Australia just because Michael Clarke was preserved for the Ashes Series. With Watson he gave the momentum to the innings and Australia were just unstoppable. Desperate for a win to stay alive in the series India were facing an uphill task with Australian fast bowlers ready to take the opportunity to do India in and win the series straight.

Shikhar Dhawan Firing All Cylinders

Thanks to the Indian batting marvel, openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan started steadily and then crafted a brilliant partnership of 178 runs in the 30^th over giving a fitting reply to the mammoth challenge. Johnson and McKay went for lot of runs with Finch taking the surprise wicket in the form of Rohit Sharma (79 off 89). Going great guns Dhawan notched up a breathtaking century, but fell exactly at 100 off 101 balls to Faulkner making it 234/2 in the 36^thover. The game was still wide open as Virat Kohli who raced to his half century and Suresh Raina went about their job. They carried on in full glory adding 50 runs in less than six overs and kept the asking rate under control. At 289/2 in 42 overs India needed 61 runs in 48 balls which was quite manageable with eight wickets remaining. But in the 43^rd over Suresh Raina (16 off 15) fell to Mitchell Johnson bringing the question as to why he should come before captain Dhoni in the batting order to the fore again. More trouble for India in that same over as Yuvraj Singh was bowled by a fired-up Johnson for a duck making it 290/4 still needing 61 runs in 7 overs. The game was heading for an exciting finish.
 

Man of the Match Virat Kohli

The Indian captain and vice-captain took full charge confronting an asking rate almost going beyond control. Virat Kohli, arguably a Tendulkar in the making, brought up his 17^th ODI hundred off just 61 balls and finally made it 20 runs in 12 balls for a victory for India. From that position India could not possibly lose. They made it run-a-ball in the last over and achieved a magnificent and thrilling victory over Australia by 6 wickets with 3 balls to spare. Virat Kohli, match winner along with Shikhar Dhawan, remained unbeaten with 115 runs in 66 balls and MS Dhoni at 25 not out off 23 balls. Now with both teams at 2-2 the last match on November 2 in Bangalore is going to be a not-to-miss blockbuster. The Scorecard: