Rajkot's Youvraj

Post a huge total and watch the opposition buckle is often a foolproof recipe in Indian conditions. M.S. Dhoni’s men did that with a 158-run victory over England in the first One-Day International of the seven-match series that commenced at the Madhavrao Scindia Stadium here on Friday.

India was helped by Kevin Pietersen’s decision to field after winning the toss. The host recorded 387 for five in 50 overs with Yuvraj Singh’s unbeaten 138 being the pivot and England, always short of breath and far behind the required run-rate of 7.76, was bowled out for 229 in 37.4 overs.

Poor chase

England never recovered after Mathew Prior poked at Munaf Patel and Zaheer Khan scalped Owais Shah with a diving Virender Sehwag exulting at first slip. Zaheer also forced Ian Bell to nibble and at 34 for three, England banked on Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff but Zaheer darted one into the allrounder’s pads and found approval for a vociferous appeal.

Paul Collingwood too left after fencing at R.P. Singh’s line from around the stumps.

Pietersen’s 63 (56b, 7x4, 2x6) shed some light amidst the gloom as he carted Yusuf Pathan and along with Samit Patel, built a 70-run sixth-wicket partnership. And when Pietersen failed to beat Rohit Sharma’s throw, hope was snuffed out in the England dressing room though Ravi Bopara (54 n.o., 38b, 2x4, 5x6) struck big blows in a losing cause.

Fiery knock

Earlier, Yuvraj Singh’s fiery knock (138 n.o., 78b, 16x4, 6x6) high on adrenaline and airborne shots dented Pietersen’s decision to field.

Yuvraj walked in after Virender Sehwag’s exit and shared a fluid 89-run third-wicket partnership with Suresh Raina (43). Later he and skipper M.S. Dhoni (39) blitzed a 105-run fifth-wicket partnership off 58 deliveries.

Yuvraj distracted Steve Harmison with three fours before dismissing Flintoff high into the pavilion tier, while Raina lofted James Anderson and Kevin Pietersen. Raina succumbed to the belated steer and Yuvraj clutched his back as Gautam Gambhir stepped in as his runner.

The lone blip was Yusuf Pathan’s tame pull but Yuvraj was a picture of panache despite a back that twitched in pain. He tip-toed to cut Harmison, knelt and struck left-arm spinner Patel and smote Stuart Broad over sweeper-cover. And when he notched up his ninth ODI hundred, the embrace with Dhoni and Gambhir, mirrored relief after his last 10 innings had yielded 229 runs.

Openers sparkle

Prior to Yuvraj’s heroics, openers Gambhir (51, 63b, 8x4) and Sehwag (85, 73b, 10x4, 3x6) shared a 127-run partnership. Helped by James Anderson and Broad’s errant opening spells, the Delhi duo revelled.

There was a lull as Andrew Flintoff fired in his first over, banging it short but on a tight leash. Steve Harmison at the other end, angled across Gambhir’s futile jabs as the England fielders got some respite. However, normal service resumed as Gambhir smote Harmison and Sehwag pummelled Paul Collingwood for two sixes.

Gambhir fell chipping Samit while Sehwag continued to bludgeon. Sehwag struck Samit for a six and two fours but was cramped for space while attempting the heave and found a diving Ian Bell.

The stage was set for ‘Man-of-the-Match’ Yuvraj and he complied with a luminous innings that shut England out of the match even before it commenced the chase.

SCOREBOARD

India: G. Gambhir c Shah b Patel 51, V. Sehwag c Bell b Patel 85, S. Raina c Collingwood b Flintoff 43, Yuvraj (not out) 138, Y. Pathan c Bell b Harmison 0, M.S. Dhoni b Harmison 39, Rohit Sharma (not out) 11, Extras (b-1, lb-9, w-10): 20; Total (for five wkts. in 50 overs): 387.

Fall of wickets: 1-127, 2-153, 3-242, 4-247, 5-352.

England bowling: Anderson 8-0-52-0, Broad 10-0-74-0, Flintoff 10-0-67-1, Harmison 10-0-75-2, Patel 9-0-78-2, Collingwood 1-0-15-0, Pietersen 2-0-16-0.

England: I. Bell c Dhoni b Zaheer 25, M. Prior c Sehwag b Munaf 4, O. Shah c Sehwag b Zaheer 0, K. Pietersen (run out) 63, A. Flintoff lbw b Zaheer 4, P. Collingwood c Dhoni b R.P. Singh 19, Samit Patel st. Dhoni b Harbhajan 28, Ravi Bopara (not out) 54, S. Broad c Gambhir b Sehwag 26, Harmison (run out) 0, Anderson lbw b Yusuf 0, Extras (lb-2, w-4): 6; Total (in 37.4 overs): 229.

Fall of wickets: 1-12, 2-17, 3-34, 4-38, 5-76, 6-146, 7-150, 8-195, 9-207.

India bowling: Zaheer 7-1-26-3, Munaf 6-1-20-1, R.P. Singh 4-0-25-1, Yusuf 3.4-0-41-1, Sehwag 9-0-68-1, Harbhajan 8-0-47-1.