India desperate for win in ODIs
Southampton (England): Decimated by injuries and hard-done by the weather-gods in the opening one-dayer, a demoralised India would be desperately looking for a win when they take on England in the second match of the ODI series here on Tuesday.
The world champions were in a good position to win the first one-day international on Saturday before rain played spoilsport but there was enough from the game for India to get interested in its bench strength.
But the match also brought fresh injury concerns for India as batsman Rohit Sharma was completely ruled out of the series due to an index finger fracture while Sachin Tendulkar is doubtful due to the flaring up of an old toe problem.
Tendulkar's toe is said to have improved but not enough for him to take part in Tuesday's floodlit match at the Rose Bowl. Rohit has been replaced by Manoj Tiwary but he is unlikely to play on Tuesday.
On the positive side, openers Parthiv Patel and Ajinkya Rahane caught the eye immediately and made England's pace battery wait for the first breakthrough longer than they have throughout the summer. Vinay Kumar, in the little he bowled, also showed good control.
India would be looking to add Ravinder Jadeja in the mix in the day-night fixture -- a cricketer they expect to contribute his bit in all three departments of the game.
Jadeja is primarily known for his stingy left-arm spin bowling and sharp fielding in the ring. He also showed promise with the bat in the last Indian Premier League (IPL).
Still, he would be a poor man's Yuvraj Singh in the line-up as his last 10 international matches for India have produced only 87 runs.
News Posted: 5 September, 2011
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