Defending champions India's chastening seven-wicket rout by capricious West Indies at Lord's on Friday makes Sunday's clash between the former colonial nation and its erstwhile colony a mouth-watering, do-or-die battle.
Defending champions India's chastening seven-wicket rout by capricious West Indies at Lord's on Friday makes Sunday's clash between the former colonial nation and its erstwhile colony a mouth-watering, do-or-die battle. Yuvraj Singh slams his sixth six in one over off England's Stuart Broad in an ICC World T20 tie at Kingsmead, Durban in September 2007. pic/AFP
Coming on the heels of England's humiliating seven-wicket defeat at the hands of majestic South Africa, defending champions India's chastening seven-wicket rout by capricious West Indies at Lord's on Friday makes Sunday's clash between the former colonial nation and its erstwhile colony a mouth-watering, do-or-die battle.
For both teams, a defeat will mean elimination from the competition unless other unexpected results allow them to scrape through on run-rate.
The two countries have met only once before (India have played 16 to England's 18) in the crash-bang-wallop version of the game which India won in Durban, one which Yuvraj Singh, in particular, will never forget for the historic six-sixes-in-an-over hiding he gave pace bowler Stuart Broad.
Yuvraj on fire
Yuvraj, whose princely but futile 67 off 43 deliveries against West Indies on Friday was in keeping with his name, will surely be smacking his lips in anticipation, but the lithe Nottinghamshire speedster, who has since learnt a trick or two about gamesmanship, including now-banned tactics to distract batsmen during his run-up, will be equally keen to settle scores.
Surely, Broad, as indeed, also his pace hunting-mates, could not have missed the obvious discomfiture of India's young top order batsmen Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina and wunderkind Rohit Sharma against short-pitched deliveries.
Short stuff
You can safely bet your bottom dollar there will be resounding chin music from the England bowlers when the Indian batsmen are at the crease at Lord's on Sunday.
In contrast to the eccentricity of the Calypsonians, Dhoni's men can safely assume a professional, if uninspiring conservative, approach from a team whose ego has been severely bruised.
Captain Paul Collingwood and his team's management have made no secret of their desire to assert their suzerainty in a competition at home in a form of game which England pioneered, but has strangely neglected because of its cricket administrators' lukewarm, antediluvian antipathy towards the new kid on the block.
Still seemingly uneasy after his run-in with the Indian press over the fishy Virender Sehwag imbroglio, Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said in a media interview after the defeat to the West Indies that the Indian batting "flopped" and blamed himself for getting out at the "wrong time".
Poor fielding
Dhoni deservedly praised the Indian bowlers for "bowling their hearts out" but made no mention of India's overall abysmal ground fielding, catching, throwing and general lack of athleticism, which cost India dear in the ultimate analysis.
Runs galore were conceded, not to mention dropped catches and squandered run-out opportunities, including two costly ones by Dhoni himself.
India will have to improve by light years in these aspects if they hope to retain their title via the stern contests ahead.u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0
England pace bowler Stuart Broad has been read the riot act on a point of order and asked to stop indulging in gamesmanship, which riled the South Africans at Trent Bridge last week.
The ICC yesterday told Broad not to repeat his gambit of distracting the batsmen by pointing towards the extra-cover fielder as he approaches the delivery stride.
South African captain Graeme Smith objected to the trick, terming it an inappropriate action. He said it was against the spirit of the game, but England captain Paul Collingwood and team director Andy Flower dismissed it lightly, saying it was the South Africans who started it.
Stuart Broad, son of former England batsman Chris Broad, who is now an ICC match referee, also employed the tactic in England's warm-up match against Scotland, at one point running-in in zigzag fashion.
Distracting a batsman
Law 42.4 of the rules governing the game states it is unfair for any member of the fielding side to attempt to distract the striker while he is preparing to receive a delivery.
Former South African captain Shaun Pollock was known to look to the left, as he was running in. Ex-England pace bowler Darren Gough made funny faces at the batsmen on his run-in and maverick Australian bowler Jason Gillespie raised his hands upwards in a bird-like flying motion, but no cognizance was taken of what were then considered harmless pranks.
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