The Indian team is on a real high and they could not have scripted a better start to their year under new captain Virat Kohli. In what could be safely described as a heist, captain Kohli mastered the chase once again, but even his superlative knock was overshadowed by an inspired Kedar Jadhav.
Chasing a humongous total of 350, India were reeling at 63 for 4 and were lying flat on the mat. However, they still had Virat Kohli and he was given great company by local boy, Kedar Jadhav, and together the duo put up a breathtaking 200 runs for the fifth wicket and knocked the stuffing out of England.
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There were some nerves when both Kohli and Jadhav got out towards the end, but Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya batted sensibly to ease the nerves in front of a full house in Pune. Jadeja then lost the plot and was dismissed trying to attempt the glory stroke. Ravi Ashwin and Hardik Pandya adopted an assured approach and prevented any more jitters in the Indian camp. They eventually saw the team home by 3 wickets.
The England bowlers and fielders were left scurrying for cover and towards the end of the innings, they were left searching for answers. They allowed the game to drift after they were firmly in the driver’s seat. It is back to the drawing board for Eoin Morgan and his team.
Earlier, England batted with a lot of purpose and positivity to ammas a mammoth 350, which is their highest score against India. The Indian bowlers were a hapless unit in the final overs and were torn apart by Ben Stokes and company.
However, the total did not prove to be sufficient in the end, as the home team got to the total in the end.
Here is how the world reacted.
Hardik Pandya after his all-round performance
I am quite pleased that I contributed with the ball and with the bat. It was an amazing chase. Hats off to the way Kedar and Virat batted. It gave me the confidence I could finish the game off. It was tense out there but I was watching and learning from Virat and Kedar. Yes there were close calls with the running but that will come with age and experience. I will definitely learn from those mistakes.
Eoin Morgan, England captain
We had the runs on the board. We came to a ground that was pretty small and conditions were tough on the bowlers. You post 350 and think you're in the game. Credit to Jadhav and Kohli. Lot of grass on the wicket. It hasn't turned much. #50 is clearly not a winning score here. We have chased 350s, so we now know what it feels like to be at this end of the stick. We had a tricky period between the 35th and the 45th over. Credit to India for taking Buttler's wicket but Stokes came in and took us through.
Virat Kohli, India captain
This is going to take a while to sink in. Conceding 350 and being 60 for four.. what a terrific innings by Kedar. He missed out in Delhi; had almost taken us over the line there. Pandya played well too. We have chased 350 in the past but we had good starts then. So a very, very special effort. I said to Kedar that if we get to 150/4, watch out. The wicket is good, so you can play your shots. Some of the shots he played, I was in awe. Very special partnership that I will remember for a long time. I think the best learning you have is out there in the middle. I wanted to push him to put to the max limit. He has the talent. To get a hundred like that at No.6 is special, especially with your family here. The only situation was to counterattack, so I played at No.3. We need to tell the opposition that we are here to win from any situation.
Kedar Jadhav, Man of the Match
Great feeling I could win a game for my country, that too in front of my home crowd with family - mom, dad, wife, daughter here. If you can make your team win, win your country proud, that's the greatest feeling. I could play this long because of captain Kohli. He has done it so many times, showing how to chase big totals. I missed many chances to bat with Virat and watch him bat closely, so today was the chance. Special dau for me. Running with Virat is tough. Cramps are fine now and I am feeling better now.
Few other reactions from in and around the game:
Sachin Tendulkar
Mohammed Shami
VVS Laxman
Anjum Chopra
Isa Guha
Michael Vaughan
Harbhajan Singh
Harsha Bhogle
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