Team India had a perfect game after the side had an ordinary outing yesterday against a second tier side like Hong Kong. They ticked all the boxes. Bhuvi started the day picking up both the openers, while being clinically miserly. TICK. He bowled 35 dot balls in a spell of 7 overs, i.e. 35 dots out of 42 balls. Phenomenal !
Bumrah complemented Bhuvi well too. TICK. Followed by Kul-Cha (Kuldeep and Chahal) who although their figures suggest did not do as much, but they kept things under control. TICK. Kedar Jadhav once again picked up wickets in the middle overs while not giving away too many runs, (giving away under 3 runs per over) and his spell meant Hardik Pandya was not missed. TICK. India fielded well. TICK. Then Rohit came out all guns blazing. TICK. Shikhar Dhawan played some delightful shots. TICK. He was timing the ball so well !! Indian openers negated Hasan Ali, not allowing Pakistan to get back into the game. TICK. Ambati Rayudu and Dinesh Karthik batted sensibly taking calculated risks. The Middle order did not open up. TICK. Ticks Galore !!
India will be worried about the injury to Hardik Pandya. He has been playing non stop in the last 12 months, and while he may not be batting that much, but staying on the field and bowling takes a toll on your body eventually. Hopefully it turns out to be a manageable back spasm and he plays on Sunday in a rematch with Pakistan, the next time not being a dead rubber like today.
Expect Pakistan to come back strongly, knowing very well that the next match is not inconsequential. You can count on the Top 3 of Pakistan, who have been the reason for Pakistan's resurgence in limited overs cricket. Pakistan have done well whenever their batting has been solid. Imam ul Haq, Fakhar Zaman and Babar Azam are the men to watch out for.
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