Team India put team back in India

Exactly a month ago, Team India was in meltdown mode. September 25, for those who’ve forgotten, is the day Chappell’s e-mail becam...

Exactly a month ago, Team India was in meltdown mode. September 25, for those who’ve forgotten, is the day Chappell’s e-mail became public knowledge and when Harbhajan told the media his coach had spread ‘‘fear and insecurity’’ among the players.

Today, barring a couple of faces, the same team played as one, unified under its coach and new captain. Harbhajan, now a Chappell fan, was in the thick of the action, making the act of beating the world’s No 2 side seem as simple as peeling a Nagpur orange.

This time, when Dravid and Chappell spoke post-match about the ‘‘collective effort of the team’’ that won them the game, you didn’t need to sport a cynical smile. This time the words rang true.

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And their words were backed up by fact. For though Sachin played a classic Tendulkar innings, Irfan Pathan played the knock of his life and Harbhajan Singh got his tweak back, the Man of the Match award went to the skipper. Not just for 85 off 63 balls, though that would be reason enough, but for commanding this team.

Everyone, it seemed, was willing India to win. Old flaws were rectified. The batsmen ran the singles as they rarely do, the middle overs didn’t sag as they usually do. The fielders looked sharp, the pressure was never let off.

	MATCH FACTS

			The match turned on five things that weren’t in the script • BITS AND PIECES: Lanka’s bits and piece department fell to, well, bits and pieces. Maharoof, Dilshan, Chandana went for 7.7 per over and scored 28 runs among them • DOUBLE DOWNER: Where were Vaas and Murali? They were supposed to be the biggest threat to the Indian batsmen but Murali was wicket-less and went for five per over while Vaas’s one wicket came at 8 r.p.o. • KEEPING QUIET: Sangakkara’s promising knock ended in the tamest of dismissals. Lobbying back Sehwag’s gentle first over loosener was not in his usual style • SINGH ON SONG: He was supposed to be in bad form but got 3/35 off 10 overs on a dead track • PATHAN POWER: The biggest surprise. Irfan reached his 50 in 9 balls less than Tendulkar. The master was sublime, Irfan shaded him just that bit — ENS

During the break, as the Indian prepared to defend 350 on a dead track, Chappell wasn’t taking any chances. Placing two stumps 22 yards apart just off the square, he placed a couple of markers on the good length spot and asked his pacers to aim at them.

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Debutant Sree Santh wasn’t getting it right so Pathan — younger in age, older in experience — took him aside and briefed him, even as the Lankan openers walked in to bat. Those on the bench too seemed quite eager to chip in. Just a wave of the hand by Tendulkar during his 25-over partnership with Pathan saw RP Singh, Raina and Gambhir all dash to the ground.

Dravid’s words today post-match reflected the mood in the dressing room. Typically, he didn’t take credit for Pathan’s elevation in the order, instead announcing that it was a suggestion made by Tendulkar and later approved by the think tank.

He snapped once, when asked whether Tendulkar had insisted on opening, but all he wanted to talk about today was the effort put in by his boys. ‘‘Everybody who took to the ground contributed. Venu might not have batted or JP wouldn’t have bowled but they too had a role to play in the win,’’ he said.

This was the team the fans had been missing. Whisper it, but somewhere in South Kolkata, through the hurt and the anger there must also be a lot of pride.

SCOREBOARD

		INDIA: V Sehwag c Sangakkara b Vaas 20; Tendulkar c Sangakkara b Maharoof 93; I Pathan c Jayawardene b Dilshan 83; Yuvraj Singh lbw Dilshan 14; R Dravid not out 85; M S Dhoni c Jayawardene b Fernando 38; A Agarkar run out 1; J P Yadav not out 3; Extras (lb 5, nb 4, w 4): 13; Total (for 6 wkts, in 50 overs): 350 Fall of wickets: 1-41, 2-205, 3-207, 4-247, 5-316, 6-319 Bowling: Vaas 9-0-67-1, Maharoof 10-0-82-1, Fernando 10-0-66-1, Muralitharan 10-0-49-0, Dilshan 6-0-40-2, Chandana 5-0-41-0. SRI LANKA: S Jayasuriya c Dravid b Harbhajan Singh 27; M Atapattu b Pathan 1; K Sangakkara c and b Sehwag 43; U Chandana st Dhoni b Harbhajan Singh 3; M Jayawardene b Kartik 17; R Arnold b Harbhajan Singh 0; T Dilshan b Kartik 23; F Maharoof st Dhoni b Kartik 2; C Vaas not out 37; D Lokuhettige b Sree Santh 29; M Muralitharan c Kartik b Sree Santh 6; Extras (lb 2, nb 2, w 6): 10; Total (all out in 34.2 overs): 198 Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-74, 3-76, 4-88, 5-88, 6-118, 7-121,8-126, 9-189. Bowling: Pathan 5-0-34-1, Sree Santh 5.4-0-39-2, Agarkar 3-0-20-0, Harbhajan Singh 10-0-35-3, Sehwag 3-1-20-1, Kartik 9-0-48-3.

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