Virat Kohli, the dependable, steers India to the semifinals of World T20

It was a do-or-die situation for India as they took on Australia in he World T20 match at Mohali and, a defeat would have meant the end of the road. But - dependable Virat Kohli steered the Indians to victory with 5 balls to spare. It was a familiar situation with Kohli and Dhoni at the crease for putting the finishing touches to a tough match when a slip would have meant disappointment. This has been reported in hindustantimes.com dated 28 March 2016.

Batting first, the Aussies got off to a fantastic start scoring 63 runs in the first 6 overs but, then, the Indian bowlers put the squeeze on and the Australians kept losing wickets at Tuareg intervals. They ultimately finished with 160 runs on the board - a far cry from a 200+ score that they would have expected with the sort of beginning they had.
In reply, Indians took off on a shaky start with both openers going out cheap and Virat Kohli came to the crease. And, it was tugh gong for him - he lost Suresh Raina soon and, when Yuvraj Singh pulled his hamstring muscles , Kohli had to continue with the game with a limping partner Yuvraj and watch the asking rate rising. It was then that his captain M S Dhoni came to the crease after the fall of Yuvraj's wicket and Kohli's innings gained momentum. He found gaps in the field at will and left the Australians stunned.
Virat Kohli scored 82 (9x4, 2x6) not out and was the obvious choice for the Man of the Match.
India will now face West Indies in the semi-final in Mumbai on March 31 while New Zealand play England the previous day in Delhi.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Cricket World Cup 2015 – end of an Indian dream

#cwc2015 #sydneycricketground #IPL #INDvsAUS From a win-win situation in the seven matches leading up to the semi-final clash with the Aussies at the Sydney Cricket Ground, it was a lose-lose situation for the Indians in CWC 2015 in Sydney. They first lost the toss, then they lost their way in the bowling department allowing the home team to pile on the miseries and, while batting to defend a 300 plus score, they lost the will to fight back. It was abject surrender all the way – most unlike the way they are known to fight back.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 26 March 2015.

One can safely assume that too much hype is bad for health of Indian cricket and this has been proved in the lead up to the forgettable 26th March 2015 – none of the Indian players would want to relive that day. It was a day of failures galore and captain M S Dhoni had no answer to the way the world crumbled around him and he remained a silent spectator to the downfall.
In fact, his run out has also raised questions – from all appearances, he could have made a last attempt to save the run-out but he did not. Obviously, he knew that he was battling for a lost cause and must have been missing the company of Suresh Raina and Ravinder Jadeja.
Should the blame lie with the bowlers who allowed the Aussies to hammer them at will and create a mountain of runs that was insurmountable? Or – should the blame be assigned to the batsmen who failed to rise to expectations? Those who had scored centuries earlier in CWC 2015 just did not deliver.
Anyway – their stint in foreign soil is over for the time being and they will return home to join the extravaganza known as IPL. The past would be a closed chapter.

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