New Delhi: A spirited India clinched a sensational 10-run victory in a low-scoring thriller to avoid a series whitewash and restore some pride in the third and final cricket one-dayer against arch-rivals Pakistan here on Sunday.
The Indians were first bundled out for a paltry 167 in 43.4 overs but relied on a brilliant bowling display under pressure to stop the visitors at 157 in a nerve-wracking day-night contest, held in chilly and windy conditions.
Fortunes fluctuated from one team to the other until the very end before the hosts finally brought some cheer for their fans with the dramatic victory, which reduced their margin of defeat to 1-2 in the three-match series.
It was another poor batting display by the Indians who never really got going as the Pakistani pacers Mohammad Irfan and Junaid Khan caused early damage before Saeed Ajmal joined the party with a career-best effort of five for 24.
But the host bowlers made amends in the end to fashion the win.
The Pakistanis, chasing the small target, were in a spot of bother as pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar rocked the innings with the early dismissals of Kamran Akmal and Younis Khan, but the visitors recovered through a gritty partnership between captain Misbah-ul Haq (39) and Nasir Jamshed (34), who were the top contributors for Pakistan.
However, the Pakistan innings collapsed again, giving the hosts an opportunity to come back into the game.
A nearly fully-packed holiday crowd, defying the chilly winds which blew right through the day, turned up at the Feroze Shah Kotla and were lucky enough to see a change in India’s sliding fortunes.
Captain MS Dhoni (36), Suresh Raina (31) and Ravindra Jadeja (27) got the starts but could not translate those into big knocks, though the wintry conditions made batting a little difficult.
The win also meant that India avoided a series whitewash on home soil which would have been their first in 29 years.
“We didn’t start well. 160 wasn’t enough but I told the team that yes it is not enough, but the team should compete well,” Dhoni said at the post-match press conference. He was also named Man-of-the-Match.
“There was something for the fast bowlers in this wicket but the important contribution was from the spinners. The spinners did a great job but for me the men-of-the-match were the fielders in this game.
“Bhuvi (Bhuvneshwar Kumar) started well, then Ishant bowled well with a not-so-new ball. Jadeja and Ashwin supported each other well too,” he added.
Pakistan captain Misbah agreed with his Indian counterpart.
“Full marks to the Indians. They bowled very well and their fielding was outstanding. We tried to see off the new ball, but the ball was doing things even after that. It was difficult to score runs,” he said.
“There were plenty of positives from this series, especially the fast bowlers and Nasir Jamshed. It was a great series, tightly contested and today we had another tight game,” he viewed.
Jamshed, who scored a century in each of the first two matches, was named Man-of-the-Series. (PTI)