PUNE: Ola and Uber cab drivers in Pune complain a lot about the system of local farmers getting rich by selling land for big sums of money. Perhaps Virat Kohli should ignore those voices and buy local lad Kedar Jadhav a piece of land! For, the Maharashtra middle-order batsman played a sensational counterattacking innings to help India register a stunning come-from-behind win over England in the first One-day International at MCA Stadium on Sunday.
A fiery fifty by Ben Stokes had taken the visitors to 350/7 — their highest in ODIs in India. On a wicket full of runs, Stokes also registered the fastest-ever half-ton by an Englishman against India. He was helped by Jason Roy and Joe Root, but England’s innings was defined by partnerships breaking every time they threatened to take the game away from the hosts. Apart from Alex Hales, who was caught short of his crease by a wonderful throw from fine-leg by Jasprit Bumrah, every batsman from 1 to 7 got starts, but was unable to convert. In the end, it was a combination of Stokes’ savagery and some shoddy death bowling that helped England reach a gargantuan score. Kohli & Co had to bat really well to make a match of it.
The start was far from ideal for the Men in Blue. The new opening combination of KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan was all at sea against the mountain of runs England had piled on. Both fell after uncomfortable stays at the crease. Dhawan was first to go, for a scratchy one of 10 balls, after flashing hard at David Willey only to see the edge carry to Moeen Ali at third-man.
Rahul was next to fall, beaten for pace by a full, straight delivery from that man Willey again. In a surprise move, Yuvraj Singh was next in, and played a couple of vintage shots to raise hopes of a special, before feathering an edge behind off Stokes. It got worse when MS Dhoni skied an attempted pull to leave the team at 63/4 in the 12th over. India’s relatively green middle-order was now ripe for England’s taking.
But Man of the Match Jadhav had other plans. Sticking to his natural attacking game, while also ensuring he put a price on his wicket, the 31-year-old helped his captain weather the early storm, while also ensuring a steady run rate. Before long, the duo was middling everything, with Jadhav outscoring Kohli for most of the stand, a bit like Collis King and Viv Richards in the 1979 World Cup final.
But the skipper was first to reach century, the 27th of an already remarkable career. Jadhav was then struck with cramps, while Kohli gave away his wicket to Stokes for 122, with 88 still required. The match wasn’t over.
It was up to Jadhav now to take his team home, but cramps had rendered him almost unable to run, leading to his dismissal when he started looking for big hits. Despite Ravindra Jadeja’s failure with the bat, Hardik Pandya and R Ashwin took India to a memorable win with 11 balls to spare.
raviiyer@newindianexpress.com