India seal Zimbabwe series with a 8-wicket win in 2nd ODI

It was an emphatic 8 wicket win for Dhoni's boys in the 2nd ODI against Zimbabwe at Harare. Here also, India won the toss and invited the home team to bat. But, Zimbabwe was all out for 126 runs in the 35th over. The victory margin was 8 wickets. In the 1st ODI, it was by nine wickets.
This has been reported in indianexpress.com dated 14 June 2016.

Batting first, Zimbabwe were in a good position at 106 for 3 in the 26th over but, they collapsed in a heap for 126 runs within 35 overs. It was legspinner Yuzvendra Chahal who was instrumental in the downfall. He made his debut and claimed two wickets in successive balls. First he got Sikandar Raza (16), who was caught on the boundary, and then trapped Elton Chigumbura LBW (duck). In his next over, Chahal managed to bag Vusi Sibanda, the leading scorer on 53. Going for a big sweep he and only edged it. Zimbabwe just could not recover and lost its last six wickets for only 20 runs.
In reply, Ambati Rayudu top scored with an unbeaten 41 from 44 balls as India cruised to 129 for two in 26.5 overs. The third and last ODI of the series is on Wednesday.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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India wins Asia T-20 because M S Dhoni struck exactly when required

India won the Asia T-20 final at Mirpur in Bangladesh because M S Dhoni came to the crease just when required. And, the opportunity came when Shikhar Dhawan lost his wicket. If he had not gone out and Dhoni did not enter the scene, the result could have been quite different because with the number of balls reducing and the asking rate climbing, it was necessary to go in for the big hits.
And, captain Dhoni did just that.
With the flurry of his bat, he scored an unbelievable 20 runs in just six deliveries - 2 sixers, one boundary, a single and a 3!! And, thus, it came to pass that India lifted the Asia Cup trophy without losing a single match in the tournament in a rain curtailed 15-over match.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 7 March 2016.

India won the toss and asked the hosts to bat first and they posted a total of 120 in the allotted 15 overs. With an initial asking rate of 8 runs per over, the Indians took the field and appeared to have lost momentum when in the 13th over, they lost the 2nd wicket. They had plenty of wickets on hand but the time was running out and the stadium was tense.
It was at such a time that captain Dhoni entered the scene once Shikhar Dhawan went out after scoring 60 runs. It was a do or die situation for the seasoned Dhoni and he just went ahead playing his strokes as if he had been at the crease from the beginning.
Dhoni has been criticized on a number of counts but it is a fact that he does not hesitate to take the bull by its horns and play the game the way he only can. Let us now wait for the T-20 World Cup and his performances.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Once minnows, Bangladesh is now a giant killer – wins series against India

#INDvBAN #MustafizurRahman #Mirpur #Dhoni Once considered to be minnows, Bangladesh has now risen in stature and has become a giant killer. They demolished the pride of the Indian batsmen and made them grovel for runs on a wicket where the home team played with ease and aplomb.
India could score only 200 runs and the home team easily overtook them with 54 balls remaining.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 21 June 2015.

Dhoni won the toss and decided to bat first – probably he had a feeling that the Indians had lost the 1st ODI because they batted second, hence he will try a new strategy. He also inducted three new faces and dropped three others, once again as a part of his plans to do something new.
But – both backfired and he and his team was left to lick their wounds because Indian wickets fall like nine pins and India lost the match as well as the series to Bangladesh. Dhoni had promoted himself up the batting order but that did not help – the Bangladesh bowlers were disciplined, bowled to a plan and gave away no easy runs.
Moreover, from the looks on his face, Dhoni appeared to be having something on his mind. It could be related to problems in the dressing room – who knows. The fact remains that it was not India’s day.
It was the debutant bowler 19-year-old Mustafizur Rahman who devastated the famed batting lineup of the Indians with a haul of 6 wickets in the 2nd ODI. That, when added to the 5 wickets he had taken, made him a world record holder.
With this win, Bangladesh sealed a berth in the 2017 Champions Trophy – they have finished as one of the top eight teams in the ICC ODI rankings.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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IPL8 – CSK shows its mettle, defends a modest total to leave RCB floundering

#IPL8 #CSKvsRCB #SureshRaina #Dhoni It was a hot afternoon with the temperature in the region of 40 degrees Celsius and Dhoni won the toss and decided to bat. But, his batsmen could not plunder the runs as Dhoni would have liked them to because of a strong bowling attack of RCB. Therefore, at the end of the day, it was a modest total of 148 runs that CSK had to defend.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 4 May 2015.

And, that is why CSK is held in awe by all teams of IPL - they can do wonders and can snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. That is what they had to do and they did it with aplomb by defeating the RCB by 24 runs.
Of course, the turning point was, undoubtedly, the run out of Virat Kolhli and the sudden collapse of the RCB batsmen after Kohli left.
CSK bowlers Ashish Nehra (3/19 in four overs) and Dwayne Bravo (2/19 in 3.4 overs) wreaked havoc, especially in the death overs to bowl out RCB for 124 in 19.4 overs. The strength of CSK bowling can be understood from the fact that RCB lost seven wickets for 27 runs in only 5.5 overs.
Suresh Raina (52 runs) was the Man of the Match and, with this win, CSK regains the No 1 position on the points table.

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India breaks the World Cup jinx – beats South Africa convincingly in CWC 2015

#CWC2015 #INDvsSA #Dhoni #Proteas #MCG India had never beaten South Africa in any Cricket World Cup matches till it finally happened in Melbourne when India beat them convincingly by 130 runs as reported in zeenews.india.com dated 23 February 2015.
It was a wonderful win coming on the back of the win against arch rivals Pakistan and with twin wins under his belt, captain M S Dhoni is a much relieved man – thanks to his team delivering on all fronts. While the batsmen put on the runs on the board to reach a huge score of 307 runs, his bowlers kept chipping off at the South Africans till their miseries ended by the 41st over. They could not last for the full 50 overs.
Shikhar Dhawan’s 170 coupled with 79 by Ajinkya Rahane happened in the morning session when Dhoni chose to bat after winning the toss. And, in the afternoon it was Ravichandra Ashwin with his 3 wickets followed by 2 wickets each by Mohit Sharma and Mohammad Shami that brought the win for India. The Proteas were left wondering what had hit them!!
Before the start of the game, there were fears that Dale Steyn would create havoc but, the fears were unfounded because Indian batsmen played him to perfection and he managed to bag only one wicket for 55 runs.

India is out of Carlton Mid tri-series – what will happen in the 2015 World Cup

#carltonmidtriseries #dhoni #2015worldcup The do-or-die match against England in the WACA stadium, Perth has showed up the shortcomings of the Indian cricket team that is defending the World Cup and, the continuous failures of Indian players with both the bat and the ball is a matter if grave concern for captain M S Dhoni. With hardly a fortnight left for start of 2015 World Cup and the Indian team in disarray, one wonders just how India will defend the title.
The performances of our players are like flashes in the pan – our batting stalwarts love to throw caution to the winds and, when they fail to live up to expectations, the same is justified by saying that he will come out of the bad patch. Unfortunately, the bad patch keeps tagging along.
As to our bowlers, they love to be inconsistent. They bowl wide balls, they do not want to bowl to a set field and pay the price. And, when it comes to bowling in the death overs, they are just clueless and, at times, gift the match away. Then there are the injuries – most of our players have bandages that they love to show off. It is strange as to why they keep getting injured and sit out matches. Is it that they want to be in the team and earn the benefits without playing?
It is a sad state of affairs that India are not able to bat out the 50 overs – the match at Perth finished in 44 overs.