Mohali, December 23
India won the RBS Cup winning the two-Test series 1-0 as the second and the last Test ended in a draw at the PCA Stadium in Mohali today.

Ahead of England after winning the first Test in Chennai, all India needed to pocket the series was to ensure a draw in Mohali. And going by what transpired here, Dhoni & Co, once they had put a decent total on the board in the first innings, preferred to go through the motions to ensure a draw.

Continuing from their overnight score of 134 for 4, India continued to bat even after the lunch break on a day when one hour’s play was possible before the lunch break because of the delayed start due to heavy morning fog, declaring their innings at 257 for 7 today.

The highlight of the pre-lunch session was a couple of stunning sixes Yuvraj hit off Stuart Broad and James Anderson. The first, a front-footed stunning whack that went soaring a long way over long on and the second an exquisite strike over the point boundary brought alive the memories of the ‘Durban Disaster’ for Broad, when an irresistible Yuvraj hit the lanky seamer for six successive sixes in a row in the World Twenty20 Championship.

Yuvraj’s scintillating batting was perhaps the only bright spot in an otherwise drab second innings.

With 151-run first innings lead, England needed to score an improbable 403 runs in 43 overs if they were to level the series. That was never going to happen and the visitors were content to bat through and were 64 for 1 at draw of stumps.

In fact, there was little doubt left in anybody’s mind about the result after the game was allowed to drift by the Indian batsmen yesterday. Inexplicably, they showed just no inclination to score runs. Agreed that England seamers were bang on target, the crawl was hard to explain.

The 43 runs that the Indians scored in 23 over between the lunch and tea breaks yesterday were good enough to put to slumber those following the game. And probably this was the session that convinced one and all that with this ultra-defensive approach, Dhoni was looking for a comfortable draw.

With 285 runs ahead at close yesterday, one expected an early declaration today even if it meant some artificial excitement in the Test. But an inordinate delay resulting from the thick blanket of fog and then the impending personal landmarks ensured that the Indians continued to bat even after the lunch break, when Gambhir and Yuvraj were undefeated on 80 and 79, respectively.

Dhoni took refuge for the continuation of the Indian innings even after the lunch break to the team desire to allow the two left-handed batsmen reach their three-figure marks in the post-match media interaction.

The innings was declared immediately when a century eluded Gambir, who fell to off-spinner Graeme Swann, when the batsman was tantalisingly close to the three-figure mark. Yuvraj had earlier been sent to the pavilion, run out by an athletic Ian Bell, the century remaining elusive to the local lad as well.

Zaheer Khan was adjudged Man of the Series, while Gautam Gambhir was given Man of the Match award. Gambhir top-scored with 179 in the first innings and scored 97 in the second. This is the only draw Dhoni has achieved as Test skipper, the other four matches resulting in wins.

Scoreboard
India (I innings) 453
England (I innings) 301
India (II innings):
Gambhir c Bell b Swann 97
Sehwag run out 17
Dravid b Broad 0
Tendulkar c Swann b Anderson 5
Laxman run out 15
Yuvraj run out 86
Dhoni c & b Panesar 0
Harbhajan not out 5
Extras (b 10, lb 8, w 5, nb 3) 26
Total (7wickets, decl, 73 overs) 251
Fall of wickets: 1/30, 2/36, 3/44, 4/80, 5/233, 6/241, 7/251.
Bowling: Anderson 19-8-51-1, Broad 14-2-50-1, Flintoff 13-1-39-0, Swann 17-3-49-1, Panesar 10-0-44-1.

England (II innings):
Strauss not out 21
Cook c Laxman b Ishant 10
Bell not out 24
Extras (b4, w1, nb 4) 9
Total (1 wicket, 28 overs) 64
Fall of wicket: 1/18.
Bowling: Zaheer 3-0-11-0, Ishant 5-1-7-1, Harbhajan 11-3-25-0, Mishra 8-1-16-0, Dhoni 1-0-1-0.

A draw was the only possible result once the start of play was delayed once again on the final morning. Only the romantics who have never played the game, and those who have no idea of what playing for one’s country is about, will criticise Mahendra Singh Dhoni for not giving a fair chance to his bowlers to get England out in the second innings.

It is well known how productivity drops when India loses a cricket match, and despite what anybody says, a draw is a preferred result to a loss. Even those who have never played the game should know that giving England a sporting chance was out of the question, because India were already one up, and if that had backfired then these very people would have skinned Dhoni for a stupid declaration.

Just because the Indian team under Dhoni has won all its Tests doesn’t mean that it will always win, and there may well be Tests in the future where India will be beaten. That won’t make Dhoni a bad skipper, for the Indian team has a long way to go before becoming unbeatable like the Australians were for a decade or so.

Now look at how even South Africa have chased 400 plus and won a Test at the ground, which is regarded as a bank for Australia. Test centuries don’t come easily as both Gambhir and Yuvraj discovered. Yuvraj was run out in the 80s and Gambhir lost his chance when within a boundary stroke of a century. If the left handed opener had got it, then it would have been unique to have two left handed openers from opposite sides getting centuries in each innings of a Test in the same series, not to forget that this is only a two Test series.

It’s because Test centuries don’t come every day, and that it was practically impossible to bowl England out in the remaining overs, that Dhoni would have opted to carry on after lunch and give his batsmen the chance of getting a century. It wouldn’t have been meaningless tons either, as India were in trouble when both came together to hold the innings and take the team to safety, and a century would have been a just reward for both. To belittle an effort like theirs shows a lack of appreciation of what Test cricket is all about.

India now have a period of rest from international commitments and hopefully all the Test players will now play in the Ranji Trophy and make it the championship it once was. — PMG

Mohali, December 23
Hailing the efforts of the Indian team in the drawn Test, England skipper Kevin Pietersen observed that the Indians were playing great cricket at the moment and were very confident in the field.

Though he lost the series 0-1 after the unexpected defeat in the Chennai Test, the dashing middle order batsman was pleased with the outcome of the series.

“We can take a lot of positives from the series. We had hardly any early preparation. Coming here and playing a series against such a side is great.”

“We came very close (to win) in Chennai, but Tendulkar took it away from us. We did a fantastic job yesterday (making India crawl in the face of highly disciplined bowling). We would love to come to India to play again,” he said adding that, “We wanted to win the series. But, unfortunately, it did not go our way.”

“To be honest, these have been tough two months for England cricket. The guys have have shown a lot of character by agreeing to come here. They concentrated hard and deserve all the credit for playing good cricket.”

“They all deserve a good X-mas even if the results have not gone our way,” the dashing batsman, among the best in the business, said.

About himself as a skipper Pietersen remarked: “These have been the toughest weeks in my career so far. Captaining a national side is a tough job. I am proud to lead a bunch of guys who have been great ambassadors for the country and done well here.”

Praising the spectators, he remarked: “People here have been fantastic. To play in front of such a knowledgeable crowd is great. There is nothing more enjoyable than that.”

Declining to go into the on-field chit-chat, but paying glowing tributes to Yuvraj Singh’s batting abilities, the hard-hitting batsman observed: “The guy in question is probably the cleanest striker of the ball in world cricket today. The type of sixes he hits leaves me dumb-founded.”

Pressed further on the issue, he firmly declined to be sucked into, saying that the on-field chat should be left there only. “When you are playing for the country, there are a lot of emotions involved. There is bound to be a little exchange here and a little exchange there. Nothing wrong with that.”

Mohali, December 23
Justifying his decision not to declare the Indian innings closed yesterday or early today, Mahendra Singh Dhoni said: “Wear and tear of the wicket was not much. There was so much uncertainty regarding the weather due to fog in the morning and the early fading light.

“We were already 1-0 up in the series. Besides, everybody in the dressing room thought that Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh, who were in tremendous touch, should be allowed time to complete centuries. Moreover we did not want any chance whatsoever,” Dhoni replied when a curious mediaman posed this as the first question at the Indian skipper.

Gambhir and Yuvraj, however, remained unable to complete their centuries. While Gambhir fell at 97, Yuvraj was run out at 86. By touring to India and completing the series, England have proved that it was not unsafe to play cricket in India, the wicket-keeper batsman said.

Hailing England as a very competitive side said, Dhoni remnarked: “Especially with Freddie in the side as an all rounder, it gives England team a fine balance.”

Quizzed whether he was happy playing a two-Test series, the flamboyant skipper replied: “In a two-Test series it becomes difficult to stage a comeback if a side loses the first Test. In a three-Test series, there is always a chance for the losers, while a five-Test series becomes a tad lengthy.”

He refused to go into the rankings saying that the idea was to play good cricket and not to worry about the ranking. “If we play well, the ranking will automatically be taken care of.”

Dhoni again dismissed the talk whether Yuvraj Singh was ready to step into the shoes of Sourav Ganguly, saying the Chandigarh batsman was very talented. “Let him play his game. Let Yuvraj be Yuvraj. He is an aggressive batsman and would serve the Test cricket for long.”

Heaping praise on bowling spearhead Zaheer Khan, he remarked; “Zaheer is a thinking bowler now. He has a plan for each and every rival batsman before he sets into the field. If Plan A does not world, he is ready with Plan B. He has been brilliant for a couple of years. With the kind of form Zaheer is in, he should be our bowling spearehead for a couple of years to come.” Zaheer was given Man of the Series award today.

“I would like to have more pie-chuckers in the squad if that were the case. Yuvraj, as I remember, has claimed the scalp of Pietersen at least five times in Tests and one-dayers,” he was referring to Pietersen’s earlier remarks, who ridiculed Yuvraj as a “pie-chucker.”

About the fabulous phase that Team India was going through at the moment, Dhoni elaborated: “We enjoy each other’s success. There is no senior or junior in the team and we play as a unit. If a regular bowler fails to take a wicket, a part-timer chips in and takes the wicket.

“There is an open discussion on different matters. We are not spoon-feeding the individuals. It is there wish what they want to do. Yes, if there is some problem, they can always seek advice.”