#360view: India have little time to recover after NZ defeat

Ajit Vijaykumar 09:24 16/03/2016
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  • Not good enough: New Zealand celebrate as Shikhar Dhawan (r) stands still.

    Even though they say cricket is a game of great uncertainties, not many would have seen that coming.

    India were the favourites going into the first match of the Super 10 stage against New Zealand given their excellent recent record and form at home.

    But far from a straightforward victory, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s boys were pummelled by the Kiwis on a wicket that had been prepared exactly the way the hosts wanted.

    The first half of the match in Nagpur went according to plan for India. Martin Guptill went after Ravi Ashwin the very first ball, launching him down the ground for a six, but was out LBW the next delivery.

    That set the tone of the innings as the Kiwi batsmen tried to break free but the Indian bowlers, and fielders, found ways to rein them in just at the right time.

    Victory against hosts India in the opening match of the ICC World Twenty20 - what a result #INDvNZ #WT20

    A photo posted by BLACKCAPS (@blackcapsnz) on

    Lower-order batsmen Corey Anderson and Luke Ronchi tried to push the score towards the 150-run mark but a total of 126 is all they could muster.

    It seemed well below par given the strength of India’s batting. But someone forgot to tell the Kiwi spinners about the Indian batting prowess. All they focused on was the Nagpur pitch which had turned into a minefield where the ball was gripping and turning square.

    Offie Nathan McCullum, third in the pecking order among spinners in the New Zealand lineup, started things off by scalping Shikhar Dhawan in the first over.

    But it was the combination of leftarm spinner Mitchell Santner and leg-spinner Ish Sodhi that pulled the rug from under India’s batting. Some might say that India’s batsmen got out to soft dismissals.

    But that would take the credit away from the New Zealand spinners, who simply outperformed their India counterparts. Santner took 4-11 from his four overs while Sodhi ended up with 3-18 and McCullum 2-15.

    Ashwin had relatively poor figures of 1-32 and Jadeja 1-26. India hadn’t come across such a disciplined and varied spin attack in recent months and on a responsive wicket, the Kiwis suffocated their batting. Some of the deliveries that Sodhi bowled spun more than a foot and that rattled the batsmen.

    Just because you grew up facing such bowling, that doesn’t mean you will automatically be good against it. India’s bowlers and fielders did what was asked of them. But as Dhoni admitted after the match, the batsmen failed to assess the situation.

    All they needed was one partnership of 30-odd runs at the top of the order, even if that took 50 odd balls, to calm the dressing room and take the sting out of the Kiwi attack. But it wasn’t to be. What the Kiwis have done is they have given every team in the tournament genuine hope.

    The Indians were batting on a pitch that was tailor-made for them but they were soundly beaten. If the heavy favourites can be crushed, then anything is possible.

    While one defeat shouldn’t necessarily set the alarm bells ringing, a 47-run defeat in the opening match has set India behind considerably, especially on net run rate, and their famed batting line-up has been embarrassingly exposed.

    With India already on the back foot, their clash against Pakistan on Saturday has become a must-win match far beyond the context of their historic rivalry.

    Their batsmen will have to quickly forget this debacle and try to bat a bit more sensibly. Because if they suffer stage fright against Pakistan’s bowlers as well, then India can kiss their title hopes goodbye.

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