Indian Cricket Team Chases 321 runs in 36.4 Overs!
It was one of the rare matches that you get to see; that too from a team which was in the news last week for wrong reasons including alleged team member conflicts.
India needed 321 to win; that too from 40 overs or less to stay afloat in the triangular tournament where Srilanka and Australia were leading the points table. 321 from even 50 overs is a tough task, but to get that total from 40 overs seemed almost out of question for most Indians. But today Indian Team sounded the opposite. It was a determined team effort, an aggressive team India, where the only option left out was to attack from very first ball.
It was a flying start by Sehwag and Sachin, followed by a 100 plus partnership between Gambhir and Kohli. But the star architect of today’s win was Virat Kohli, the most promising youngster in the side, who scripted another blistering century to take his team home with bonus points. An over from the class bowler Maliga went for 24 runs and Virat was totally unstoppable for the day. Kohli has showed great character, to bat like this in this do or die game and deserves huge applause.
Though this win doesn’t guarantee Indians a final berth, and require Australia to Beat Srilanka in Fridays game for their ticket, Indians can feel satisfied that they have done their part. Compared to the test performance, the one day games were not totally one sided; India has won 2-3 close games in the tournament by showing guts till the end, thanks to the cool skipper M.S. Dhoni.
Kudos to Team India! Must have got some energy from Indian Hockey Team’s Olympic Qualification!