JOIN US'Loose bowling was the difference'
Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Sunday attributed India’s 65-run defeat against Australia at the MCG to the bowlers’ failure to click as a unit.
“If you see the game, they bowled too short. Two of them went for a lot of runs. You do bowl loose deliveries but they are so loose that they would always go for a four or a six,” Dhoni said. “Today, we bowled a lot of these deliveries. Even if it's a big ground, the execution wasn't great and that was the reason they could score 216 runs. Wade and both the Hussey brothers batted well throughout.”
Dhoni admitted that the magnanimity of bowlers was a cause for worry. “If Jadeja doesn’t bowl well, it affects the overall stability of the side. We need a batsman to bat at number seven. But we don’t have a fast-bowling all-rounder as today we were a seamer short. Irfan (Pathan) is a part of the side, but he has just come in. If you have the same bowlers who bowl below 130 and if you don’t have the variation, you have to decide whether it is better to play with three seamers or three spinners,” he said.
Dhoni also clarified on the absence of Virender Sehwag from the eleven. “He is not injured. We wanted to give Rohit a chance, the seniors can walk in and walk out of the team. It will be tough for a youngster like Rohit to come in the middle of a series and start performing.”
The Jharkhandi said pace spearhead Zaheer Khan had been carrying a niggle on his knee, but was quick to add that the Mumbaikar might be fit for the game against Sri Lanka in Perth on Wednesday. “Zak has a bit of a problem, that is why he didn’t play this game. He has a problem with his knee, but hopefully he will be fit for the next game,” he said.
Dhoni said the heavy rains upset the team’s plans. “We were expecting rain, but not to the extent that it happened. The forecast said two to four mm rain, and we were expecting to lose around six overs. But once we lost 18 overs, it affected our strategy. All of a sudden, I was left with three overs from the fast bowlers. In cricket, the weather doesn’t always go your way. We need to execute things better. There was a time when a decent partnership (Kohli-Rohit), was going but (Clint) McKay ended it,” Dhoni said.
After bagging the man of the match award on his one-day debut, Australian stumper Matthew Wade hoped he could carry on with his efforts. “It always feels good to contribute to the team’s victory. I hope I can carry on these shows,” he said.
The left-hander, however, refused to get carried away. “That would be a bad option for myself. I just want to do as well as I can in the three games. If I look too far ahead, you don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s a pretty fickle game that we play.
“The environment I’m in, it’s all about the next game in the Australian cricket team.
“I’m obviously enjoying the chance to play for Australia. It’s every kid’s dream to put on the Australian kit and walk out at the MCG. I loving every minute of it.”