Bad start wrecked India's chances: Dhoni

"We could have done better. When you are playing with four bowlers, you are under a bit of pressure, that if one of the bowler don't bowl well then you have to make those overs with the part timers. Fortunately in this game our part timers bowled really well and they brought us back into the game," Dhoni told reporters here last night.

"But still chasing 290 runs was a stiff target especially on the Kingsmead track. If we would have got a good start then we could have fancied our chances," he added.
India lost four wickets for a mere 43 runs and Dhoni said the poor start put a lot of pressure on the lower half of the batting order.

"Playing well against quality fast bowlers on new white ball is going to be a huge challenge. This wicket had a bit of bounce but it was not that quick a wicket. We could have negotiated the first 8-10 overs and then could have gone for runs.

"But we lost couple of wickets earlier on and then again we lost few in the middle overs. That put pressure on our lower middle order," he said. Asked whether going in with six batsmen was a gamble that didn't pay off, Dhoni said, "we picked Rohit keeping in mind the Kingsmead wicket. He played reasonably well...got bad decision but it is just part and parcel of the game.

"He bowled and fielded well too. So you can always debate about whether to go in with 6 specialised batters or 5 specialised bowlers," he added. Dhoni also defended the inclusion of Ashish Nehra in the squad despite the pacer being short of match practice.

"Honestly speaking these are the four-five fast bowlers we have got. We do not have many options to play with. So we have to back them to do well. Whether they are in match practice or not what is important is that we take care of these bowlers and they should go in the World Cup without any injuries," he explained.

Despite the heavy loss, Dhoni said the Indians will bounce back in the five-match series, the second game of which is on Saturday.

"This question was asked when we had lost centurion test. We can play better cricket than this. That way cricket is good game as in every match you start afresh. We have to click as a unit to win matches.

"We should bat with positive intent and try our best to get a good start. Talking about the wicket, it did change a bit. Under lights the ball had a bit more bounce and movement," he said. Dhoni said Virat Kohli's fighting half century was one of the positives he would take from the game.

"Virat batted well and our part timers bowled well. It was good to see Zaheer bowling well and Munaf too. But together we have to click," he said. The Indian skipper was also generous in his praise for rival medium pacer Lonwabo Tsotsobe, who grabbed four wickets in the match.

"He is good and a different type of bowler. He bowls at 130kmph speed but he gets bounce. He hits right areas," Dhoni said.