Time for Team India to walk the ODI talk

The other day8217;s loss in Kochi wasn8217;t a bolt from the blue. The recent Twenty20 victory over the world champions notwithstanding, their Kochi outing was another reminder of how they have been slaughtered time and again.

8220;They8217;re very good at their strategies and how they implement it in the match,8221; admitted Yuvraj Singh on Thursday afternoon. 8220;What we need to look at is definitely very simple. We need to bowl better, bat better. In the next game the guys need to play more and talk less,8221; he said. Sreesanth8217;s angry looks haven8217;t stopped the batsmen from taking runs. Instead, from costing 5.54 runs an over in the rain-affected Bangalore tie, he went on to give 7.74 runs an over in Kochi.

Harbhajan Singh is angry with the Australians for having said a few personal things to him. 8220;It8217;s fine if they8217;re chatting about cricket but they can8217;t go overboard with it. Australians are bad losers,8221; he says.

For the record, the Aussies haven8217;t lost a match in their last 12 outings. The Kochi win was their 22nd victory in last 25 one-dayers versus India.

Ponting announced his return pretty obtrusively. 8220;The Indians are actually not what they8217;re looking to be. We know them well, and it8217;s just that they8217;re trying to be a bit aggressive to match-up to the situation. These are pressure-games no doubt, but they also need to back it up with performances,8221; he said.