Dhoni’s presence on the field in pre-match warm-ups has increased the likelihood of his return. PHOTO: AFP
Dhoni sustained a right hamstring strain while batting against the West Indies in his team’s first match of the tournament on June 30 at Sabina Park in Kingston. An announcement was made the following day that he was ruled out of the rest of the competition However, India’s most successful captain ever is likely to be back at the helm for the final.
With or without Dhoni though, India are bracing for a much tougher Sri Lankan challenge than what transpired on Tuesday. Fast-medium bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar produced the outstanding figures of four for eight and engineered the demolition of the 1996 World Cup winners for just 96. India concluded their innings at 119 for three.
Sri Lanka had all but qualified for the final ahead of that encounter and their performance with the bat on the way to an 81-run defeat on the Duckworth/Lewis Scoring Method reflected a noticeable lack of intensity that is not expected to be repeated in the final.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 11th, 2013.
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I can smell something burning... You really think Shehzad (ODIs: 11, Highest Score: 115, Average: 26.50, Strike Rate: 67.56) is better than Shikhar Shawan (ODIs: 14, Highest Score: 114, Average: 42.38, Strike Rate: 88.01)? Even Suresh Raina (ODIs: 168, Highest Score: 116, Average: 36.31, Strike Rate: 91.41) has better stats. . Ever since the Champions Trophy, most international commentators have been saying how well this Indian team is doing against the short ball.
@ShehzadRox:
r u kidding me. you must be very jealous of Indian team, who r winning against every team team on any surface. please listen to you beloved lala afridi, who just said, India can send two teams.
@ShehzadRox I really hope you were being sarcastic here...let's look at the stats here shall we?
VIRAT KOHLI: 18 Tests - 4 Hundreds, Average is 41.96. 107 ODIs - 14 Hundreds, Average 49.16.
DHAWAN: 1 Test - 1 Hundred, Average is 187 (since he played 1 only). 14 ODIs - 2 Hundreds. Average is 42.38.
SHEHZAD: 0 Tests. 19 ODIs - 2 Hundreds, Average is 26.50.
Scintillating indeed!
Unfortunately for India, they lack an Ahmed Shehzad, who can change the course of the game with scintillating strokeplay. They must do with second-rate talents such as Dhawan and Kohli, who still have to master negotiating the short ball in away pitches.