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Journalism of Courage
There’s always a bright side to a defeat, and for India today it was the long-overdue return to form of the batting order. The score of 292 was the highest in ODIs this season by India’s much vaunted line-up, two runs better than their score against Kenya in the ICC Champions Trophy. It wasn’t luck or coincidence; the runs came because a jigsaw was in place
ORDER, ORDER: Batsmen batted at their regular positions, there was no unnecessary tampering with the order. And you saw the comfort levels. Laxman is at his best when batting at No 3, where he’s scored all his six hundreds and 9 of his 10 fifties. Ganguly, Kaif and Yuvraj controlled the late overs very well.
BATMAN RETURNS: Sachin Tendulkar back at the top of the order — playing his first ODI since July 31 — counts for a lot. He didn’t last too long in the middle but seemed to send out a positive vibe
GOING STEADY: Partnerships had been a missing factor in India’s recent one-day plans; wickets had often fallen in bunches leading to a low total. But today even the exit in quick succession of Laxman and Sehwag did not have the domino effect: Ganguly and Dravid, and later Yuvraj, were around to steady the innings
HARD SLOG: Another element missing in recent times. The slog overs were maximised on Saturday, because the men who can score in the slog, Yuvraj and Kaif, were around. India scored 113 runs in the last 11 overs
