Epic encounter ends in thrilling tie

India 338 (Tendulkar 120, Bresnan 5-48) tied with England 338 for 8 (Strauss 158, Bell 69, Zaheer 3-64)

	Andrew Strauss led from the front with a brilliant captain's innings © AFP Enlarge
Related Links Players/Officials: Tim Bresnan | Stuart Broad | Virender Sehwag | Andrew Strauss | Sachin Tendulkar | Michael Yardy Matches: India v England at Bangalore Series/Tournaments: ICC Cricket World Cup Teams: England | India

On an evening that simply beggared belief, England tied with India in an incredible finale in Bangalore. Andrew Strauss was England's inspiration, producing an extraordinary 158 from 145 balls, the highest score by an English batsman in World Cup history, as England threatened the unthinkable, and set off in full pursuit of India's seemingly unobtainable total of 338 - a score that had been made possible by a brilliant 120 from Sachin Tendulkar.

Such was the clarity of Strauss's strokeplay and the passivity of India's attack, at 280 for 2 in the 43rd over, England were cruising towards an extraordinary triumph. However a late intervention, sparked by a reverse-swinging Zaheer Khan, left them clawing for breath as a silenced Chinnaswamy stadium rediscovered its roar, and when the requirement shot up to two runs a ball, there seemed no way back into the contest. However, a ballsy volley of sixes from England's lower order hauled them back from the brink, and with two runs needed from the final delivery of the match, Graeme Swann drilled Munaf Patel to cover to salvage a share of the spoils.

The breathless finale was entirely in keeping with a contest that twisted and turned like an insomniac in a mosquito-pit. From the first over of the match, in which Virender Sehwag might have been dismissed three times in five balls, through the sumptuous strokeplay of first Tendulkar and later Strauss, and on through a pair of batting collapses - one apiece for the lower order of both teams - there was scarcely a moment in which normal service was permitted. Tim Bresnan, with 5 for 48 in ten unrelentingly composed overs, was the unsung star of a day that deserves to be remembered as the finest World Cup contest sincethat semi-final in 1999.

For the first 39 overs of the match, and again for the last seven, the Bangalore crowd stadium was as raucous as a monsoon wedding, as Tendulkar ignited India's first home fixture of the World Cup with his 47th ODI century, before Zaheer Khan hauled them back from the brink of ignominy with 2 for 11 in his final three-over spell. But in between whiles, the game belonged to England, as India shipped their last seven wickets in 25 balls to let their opponents regain a toe-hold in the contest, before turning the stage over to Strauss and his magnum opus.

A positive start was a pre-requisite as England embarked on their second daunting chase in as many matches, and just as Strauss had soothed his team's anxieties with 88 from 83 balls after their flirtation with humiliation against the Dutch, he was once again in the thick of things right from the start of the innings. Zaheer, who was as poor with the new ball as he was devastating with the old, bowled both sides of the wicket to gift two boundaries in six balls, and Strauss was up and running. He barely dipped below a run a ball at any subsequent stage of his innings.

He required some moments of luck, particularly on 17 when TV replays suggested he had nicked a drive against Zaheer that the Indian fielders were unable to hear against the din of the crowd, but for the most part he was rewarded for his intent and aggression, and a common-sense approach to the three key partnerships that propelled England's challenge. By the end of the batting Powerplay, England were 19 runs to the good, on 77 for 1 compared to India's 10-over total of 58 for 1, and with a stream of easy singles to offset the intermittent boundary balls, they never looked like blinking until the summit was within sight.

At the top of the order, Kevin Pietersen's stay was short, sharp and effective. He pounded four fours in eight Zaheer deliveries to rush along to 31 from 22 balls, before dumping Munaf on his backside by a brutally struck drive, only for the ball he had parried from in front of his face to plop into his right hand as he glanced up to regain his bearings. Trott proved an able ally in a 43-run stand for the second wicket before Chawla hurried one through to strike his back pad, whereupon Bell arrived to embark on what should have been the game's decisive stand - a 170-run partnership that spanned 27 overs.

Bell, England's best player of spin, was beaten twice in his first two balls as Chawla ripped first his googly then his legspinner to perfection, but his hairiest moment came on 17, when Yuvraj Singh referred an appeal for lbw that Hawkeye suggested met all the criteria for an overturned decision. However, umpire Billy Bowden, applying the letter of the law even if it meant contravening the evidence on a billion TV screens, reprieved Bell on the grounds that he had advanced more than 2.5 metres down the pitch, and that the technology's prediction could not be deemed conclusive.

The despondency of the crowd was reflected in India's subsequent bowling, as Strauss motored through to his sixth ODI century, from 99 balls, and on towards his third in excess of 150. Liberated by the match situation, he launched Yuvraj for one of the biggest sixes of his career, straight down the ground, to bring up the hundred partnership, and Bell did likewise to Chawla to rush through to his fifty from 45 balls.

It was England's decision to take the batting Powerplay, at 280 for 2 in the 43rd over, that triggered the devastating late reversal of momentum. India's last chance appeared to have gone begging when Bell, on 68, was dropped by Virat Kohli at slip off Chawla, but Kohli made amends 10 balls later, when Bell miscued a tired slog off Zaheer to extra cover. With the crowd alive to the contest once again, Zaheer then put himself on a hat-trick with an unplayable late-swinging yorker that crushed Strauss's toe in front of leg stump.

With the pressure proving smothering and Chawla's variations now illegible to the new batsmen, Paul Collingwood missed a wipe across the line to be bowled for 1 from five balls, before Prior gave up all hope of threading the gaps and took a huge top-edged heave at Harbhajan to be caught for 4 from 8. Michael Yardy chipped and chivvied before dinking an attempted boundary shot straight to Sehwag at short backward square, but it was Swann's flat six off Chawla, with 29 needed from two overs, that reawakened England's challenge. Three balls later, Bresnan also put Chawla into the stands, and though he was bowled having a mow in the same over, Ajmal Shahzad sent his first ball, from Patel, in the same direction, to set up the grandstand finish. -ESPNcricinfo

Tendulkar stars as India post 338

49.5 overs India 338 (Tendulkar 120, Bresnan 5-48) v England

	Sachin Tendulkar launched his innings in ominous style© Getty Images

Sachin Tendulkar produced the performance that every man in his nation had prayed was in his grasp, as India's batsmen ignited their first home fixture of the 2011 World Cup with a towering display against England at Bangalore. On a sporty wicket that offered assistance to the bowlers but value for every stroke, they pillaged 35 fours and seven sixes in an imposing total of 338, with Tendulkar standing supreme with 120 from 115 balls, his 47th ODI century, and his fifth in six World Cup campaigns. A late collapse, instigated by the tireless Tim Bresnan, saved England's blushes a touch as they scalped seven wickets in 25 balls, but it will take a superhuman effort under the floodlights to win this game now

Even by Tendulkar's matchless standards, his was a vintage performance, and a masterful example of how to pace an innings. He was a casual bystander in the day's opening exchanges, as Virender Sehwag swiped England's early bid for momentum with an audacious but chancy 35 from 26 balls, but he picked up his tempo throughout a second-wicket stand of 134 with Gautam Gambhir, without ever needing to take risks to make his mark. The high point of his innings came when he belted consecutive sixes at the start of Graeme Swann's second spell, a calculated show of class that undermined England's trump bowler, and left Andrew Strauss floundering for alternatives as his tactics were picked apart.

In all Tendulkar stroked 10 fours and five sixes in what was, somewhat curiously, his first one-day hundred against England for nine years. By the time he was dismissed with 11 overs of the innings remaining, caught off a leading edge at cover (to give the labouring James Anderson his first one-day wicket in India for 53 overs dating back to 2006), India's total stood at an imposing 236 for 3, and it was a measure both of Tendulkar's brilliance and of England's dogged refusal to give in, that Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni were unable to cut loose to quite the extent they might have expected.

The batting Powerplay yielded 32 runs in five overs, and though Yuvraj kept up the tempo with nine fours in a 50-ball 58, he became the first of xx wickets in xx overs, when he holed out to deep midwicket to give Michael Yardy a wicket from the last ball of his spell. That set the stage for Tim Bresnan to embark on a superb spell of death bowling to scalp his first five-wicket haul.

First to go - one ball later - was Dhoni, who sized up the midwicket boundary but picked out the substitute Luke Wright, before Yusuf Pathan, Virat Kohli and Harbhajan Singh were all dispatched in the space of four deliveries, courtesy of a slower ball and two yorkers. Consecutive run-outs then followed in Anderson's final over, but not before he had been filleted for 91 in 9.5 overs, the most expensive English analysis in World Cup history.

The omens for England had not been exactly positive going into the start of this match. Eleven defeats in their last 12 away matches against India underlined their status of underdogs, as did the two team's respective performances in their opening fixtures of the tournament - England's laboured victory over the Netherlands compared distinctly unfavourably to India's crunching win against Bangladesh in Dhaka, and when Stuart Broad, their best and most aggressive seamer, was ruled out with a stomach complaint before the start of the match, a vast swathe of England's gameplan went down with him.

Nevertheless, the opening exchanges were extraordinary. Sehwag, fresh from last week's brutal 175 against Bangladesh, faced up to Anderson, whose ten overs had disappeared for 72 against the Netherlands, and might have been dismissed three times in five balls. Anderson's first delivery was a full-length outswinger that a flat-footed Sehwag flashed past a diving Swann at second slip; his third zipped off a leading edge and looped over Ian Bell at cover, and the fifth lollipopped back down the track and just out of Anderson's reach in his followthrough.

With the stable door already ajar, the horse was set to bolt when a nervy Shahzad conceded two more boundaries in his first over, but England to their credit tightened their lines and made the early breakthrough courtesy of Tim Bresnan, who lured Sehwag into a cute dink that nestled comfortably in Matt Prior's outstretched right glove. The Chinnaswamy Stadium immediately descended into the sort of silence that Graeme Swann had declared before the match was his favourite sound in the world.

Swann had a chance to extend that silence in his second over when Gambhir, emboldened by a sashay down the track that had resulted in a sumptuous four over long-off, tried the same stroke again, but inside-edged at a catchable height past Prior's gloves, and away for four. But while Gambhir's overt aggression diverted England's attention, Tendulkar's stealthier approach began to reap its rewards. He had reached 28 from 47 balls before he signalled to the dressing room that it was time for a heavier bat, and having belted Swann back over his head for four, he turned his attentions to the offcutters of Paul Collingwood, who joined the attack as England's fifth bowler in the 18th over of the innings, and was cracked for two Tendulkar sixes in the space of three overs.

If that got the crowd's juices flowing, then Tendulkar's double whammy against Swann - a pair of massive mows over the leg-side - tipped the entire stadium into ecstasy. He followed up with a sweet uppercut off Shahzad, teasing third man who had been dragged too fine in the previous over, and then further denuded Anderson's figures with consecutive off-side fours - the first of which was a trademark turf-scorching cover-drive.

Anderson's day did not improve when Gambhir inside-edged a flash through fine leg to reach his half-century from 59 balls, and though he eventually fell to a lazy poke at Swann two balls later, the manner of his departure would not exactly have given England much cheer. A sharp tweaker turned past the edge to clip the top of off, to give India's spin twins, Harbhajan Singh and Piyush Chawla, as much food for thought as England's batsmen.

India 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Sachin Tendulkar, 3 Gautam Gambhir, 4 Virat Kohli, 5 Yuvraj Singh, 6 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 7 Yusuf Pathan, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Piyush Chawla, 11 Munaf Patel.

England 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Kevin Pietersen, 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Ian Bell, 5 Paul Collingwood, 6 Matt Prior (wk), 7 Tim Bresnan, 8 Mike Yardy, 9 Graeme Swann, 10 James Anderson, 11 Ajmal Shahzad. © ESPN EMEA Ltd.

An occasion to test nerves and character

Match Facts

February 27, Bangalore

Start time 14.30 (0900 GMT)

	Michael Yardy could be recalled by England to bolster the spin-bowling department © Getty Images

The Big Picture

The build-up and hype ahead of this match has been huge and we are still barely into the second week of the World Cup. This was always going to be one of the marquee clashes of the tournament, and even though it has been moved away from Eden Gardens to the slightly less daunting Chinnaswamy Stadium, that hasn't dulled the anticipation. You only need to see the unfortunate pictures from outside the ground during the week, as locals rushed for tickets, to know how desperate they are to watch their team.

However, there are two sides taking part and England are insisting they can use the expectation being piled on to the hosts in their favour. From a purely cricket view, the stadium switch won't have disappointed Andrew Strauss's team because, both on and off the field in Bangalore, conditions will be slightly less hostile than could have been the case in Kolkata.

Yet England's record against India in their own backyard makes for grim reading. They have won one of their last 13 completed ODIs in the country, going back to the 5-1 drubbing in 2006 and the 5-0 scoreline in 2008, before the series was cancelled due to the Mumbai bombings. In between they were also thrashed at the 2006 Champions Trophy. On one hand the odds say they are due a win, but on the other the statistics make damning reading.

If they want to spoil India's World Cup party the key will be containing the power-packed top order. Virender Sehwag set down the gauntlet with 175 against Bangaldesh and was backed up by Virat Kohli's fine hundred. Sachin Tendulkar was cut short on 25, while Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni didn't even need to bat. It's a daunting prospect, but England have shown they can rise for the big occasion. Whatever happens, let's hope it matches the expectation.

Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)

India WLLWW
England WLLLW

Watch out for...

Ahead of India matches, it's the likes of Sehwag, Tendulkar, Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh who take most of the headlines, but you ignore Gautam Gambhir at your peril. He has become a supremely consistent batsman across all formats and is the perfect foil to his top-order team-mates. He started with a neat run-a-ball 39 against Bangladesh and England will have to ensure they give him as much focus as the mega-star names around him. A one-day average of 34 against England, six runs below his career level, is something he'll want to correct, but the visiting bowlers will want to increase that daylight.

None of England's quicks can be pleased with their efforts against Netherlands, but there were some encouraging signs from Stuart Broad in his first international since the second Ashes Test. Having warmed up with 10 wickets in two games against Canada and Pakistan, he bowled with decent pace against the Dutch and found bounce from a flat Nagpur surface. However, he sometimes got carried away with banging the ball in and forgot to aim at the stumps. His yorker can be effective (he was denied such a wicket when Paul Collingwood forgot to walk inside the circle) and against top-quality batsmen he'll have to be ready to adjust his game plans.

Talking of the quick bowlers, one of the reasons the venue switch isn't all bad news is the bounce that could be on offer. It won't be flying through at shoulder height, but the quick bowlers are likely to find some encouragement especially after the recent heavy rain in the city. One-day cricket is at its best with an even contest between bat and ball.

Team news

Virender Sehwag was struck in the ribs during a net session but is expected to be fine for the match and India have no reason to tinker with the top order. The big question mark comes with Sreesanth, who had a nightmare against Bangladesh when his five overs went for 53. India got away with it that day, but can't afford to carry a bowler in every match. However, Ashish Nehra is not yet at full fitness so India will have to decide whether to stick with Sreesanth or play an extra spinner.

India (possible) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Sachin Tendulkar, 3 Gautam Gambhir, 4 Virat Kohli, 5 Yuvraj Singh, 6 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 7 Yusuf Pathan, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Sreesanth/Piyush Chawla, 11 Munaf Patel.

Broad has been suffering from an upset stomach but is expected to be fit and England's main decision is whether to strength their spin-bowling with a recall for Michael Yardy. The current plan is to get 10 overs from Paul Collingwood and Kevin Pietersen but that's a huge risk against India. The problem is, though, that the man most likely to make way for Yardy would be Ravi Bopara, who helped see the team home against Netherlands.

England (possible) 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Kevin Pietersen, 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Ian Bell, 5 Paul Collingwood, 6 Ravi Bopara, 7 Matt Prior (wk), 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Stuart Broad, 10 Graeme Swann, 11 James Anderson

Try picking the XIs for tomorrow's game by playing Team Selector.

Pitch and conditions

There was torrential rain in Bangalore on Friday afternoon which left large puddles on the outfield. The weather has remained cool and cloudy over the weekend, and there is a chance of more showers, which will make the toss important with the possible intervention of Duckworth-Lewis. The damp weather may work against Yardy, but the pitch turned square in the warm-up matches.

Stats and trivia

• Despite all the talk about Sehwag, his average against England in India is the lowest of the current top six - 37.70 - but the strike-rate is 100.

• Sreesanth's performance against Bangladesh was horrid, but he has 10 wickets at 16 each against England in India.

• Unsurprisingly, Pietersen is England's best batsman in India with an average of 56.08 from 14 matches and the lone century among the team's current top order

• India and England have met three times in Bangalore and it's the visitors who actually lead the head-to-head 2-1, although the wins did come back in 1985 and 1993.

Quotes

"I don't think it's a case of reinventing the wheel, we just need to play good, smart cricket. In some ways there's more pressure on India than us in this game."
Andrew Strauss turns to the psychological battle as he aims to turn around England's poor record in India.

"We are not celebrating yet, that's for sure. Of course, we had a good start in the opening game, where we batted really well and after that spinners did a good job in the middle overs. Again, I think it's about the team that will start well and hold the nerves for a consistent period of time."
MS Dhoni chooses to play it safe. © ESPN EMEA Ltd.

Misbah and Afridi sink Sri Lanka

Pakistan 277 for 7 (Misbah 83*, Younis 72) beat Sri Lanka 266 for 9 (Silva 57, Afridi 4-34) by 11 runs

	Misbah-ul-Haq steered Pakistan through the middle overs and surged at the end © AFP

Anyone out there who still thinks Pakistan are not dangerous contenders for the World Cup? With tremendous poise and skill in the middle overs, Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan propelled Pakistan, who were on a tricky 105 for 2 in the 21st over, to a strong 277, before Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Akthar produced bits of magic to derail the chase. Chamara Silva threatened to pull off a thrilling heist with a flurry of boundaries, and Nuwan Kulasekara made one heroic last-ditch effort to reduce the equation to 18 runs from the final over. Umar Gul, however, held his nerve to steer Pakistan home and end a mesmeric exhibition of high-quality cricket in Colombo

Pakistan's innings had everything: rapid start, brain fade, tranquil middle overs, fabulous end-over bowling from Muttiah Muralitharan, who gave only five runs from two batting Powerplay overs, and finally a Misbah blitz, with 32 runs flowing from the final three overs, which eventually made the difference.

The chase too nearly had it all: two inspired moments bursting with imagination and skill from Shoaib and Afridi, two failed stumpings, a dropped catch and a late surge from Silva, who woke up too late after a painstaking start.

In the 21st over, Shoaib produced a crafty offcutter, slightly slower and darting in from outside off, to breach the defences of Mahela Jayawardene and leave Sri Lanka stuttering at 95 for 3. In the next, Afridi ripped a loopy leg break that dipped rapidly on Thilan Samaraweera, who was sucked out of his crease and left stranded as Kamran Akmal effected a smart stumping. Akmal later missed two leg-side stumping chances to let off Kumar Sangakkara, on 22 and 33, off Abdur Rehman. The first one kicked more than Akmal anticipated and he had no excuse for the second. Rehman, himself, dropped a sitter to reprieve Silva. However, the twin blows had left Sangakkara with too much to do, especially with Silva struggling to get started, and he fell by holing out to long-on. Silva then stirred from his slumber to reduce the equation from 88 from 47 balls to 46 from 24. He slog swept Rehman for two fours and pulled Gul and Shoaib for more boundaries before he was stumped. Kulasekara took over the baton, whipping a 14-ball 24 but the task proved beyond him.

It was the batting that set up the game for Pakistan, as the Premadasa has always been cruel to the team batting second. Pakistan's innings stood out for its handling of the middle overs. Serenity blew across the ground after the fall of Kamran. Mohammad Hafeez had run himself out after a moment of madness and Kamran, who inexplicably withdrew into his shell after that mix-up, soon combusted, going for an ugly slog against Pakistan's bogeyman Rangana Herath. It wasn't quite a crisis but it definitely needed calm heads. Luckily for Pakistan, you can't find better men than Misbah and Younis to handle these moments. What followed was a perfect advertisement for the much-abused middle overs in an ODI. Two of the oldest members of the side ran beautifully, worked the angles intelligently, pinged the gaps frequently with the nudge-drive-and-sweep routine, and breathed life into an innings that could have, perhaps otherwise, succumbed to adrenalin rushes. If Misbah pressed back to play Murali, Younis leaned forward to tackle him; if Misbah backed to leg to create room, Younis shuffled to off to work to the leg; if Misbah tapped wide of midwicket for the quick single, Younis nudged just wide of backward point; if Misbah deployed the reverse-sweep, Younis stayed conventional. They always ran well. The runs kept ticking over, the opposition grew increasingly restless, and Pakistan secured ownership of the innings.

What further spiced up this partnership was the knowledge that the powerful lower order was waiting in the dressing room. When Younis fell in the 41st over, with Pakistan on 213 for 4, it even seemed like good news for Pakistan - Afridi and co to follow, unleash violence and 300 would be a formality. Or so it seemed. Here is where Sri Lanka sparkled. Here is when that man Murali and Kulasekara stepped in to do damage control.

While Pakistan's handling of middle overs was a treat to watch, Sri Lanka's skill in the end overs was awe-inspiring. Murali ripped his offbreaks, altering the trajectory, pace, and the extent of turn. Kulasekara punctuated his yorkers with slower cutters to keep Pakistan in check. Murali gave only two runs in the 44th over, the first of the batting Powerplay, and only three in the 46th, which included the wicket of Umar Akmal. Kulasekera gave away just five in the 47th, keeping Afridi quiet with a series of yorkers.

Misbah responded to Murali's magic by growing more innovative. He shuffled to the off and whipped Thisara Perera and Angelo Mathews for boundaries as Pakistan collected 32 runs in the last three overs to post a match-winning total. Misbah and Younis' presence in the middle overs had raised a few murmurs before this World Cup but there would be only voices of appreciation after tonight. © ESPN EMEA Ltd.

England match important like all World Cup games: Dhoni

It is being touted as the big Group B clash of the World Cup but Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today said tomorrow's match against England is no more or no less crucial than any other game his side would play during the event.


In pic: MS Dhoni addresses the media on the eve of the World Cup opening match © AFP

"What is important is for each and every game, we prepare likewise whether its Bangladesh or England or Australia because that is what I feel is important rather than giving that one game extra importance. It is very important to have same preparation level throughout the tournament," Dhoni said.

"I think it is a crucial game but at the same time the preparation level remains the same," he added. Asked whether India would start favourites against England, Dhoni said no such tags matter in the final analysis. "In every game you have to start from scratch, a fresh start which means you have to do all the good things that you have done in the past. A lot has been talked about carrying the momentum but every game is different and you have to start well," he said.

England captain Andrew Strauss feels hard-hitting batsman Kevin Pietersen would be a key player tomorrow but Dhoni said India's strategy would be team-centric instead of being individual-centric. "It is not about one individual. When you are preparing for a match, you have to have strategies for the whole squad. At least you have to have plan for the eleven members. Of course there are players in each squad, who can change course of the game. "But I still feel its important to have strategy for the whole team because it will be very tough if you are targeting one individual. As in any international team most of the players are very talented," he said.

Dhoni revealed pacer Ashish Nehra is a doubtful starter for tomorrow's match. "As per the physio's report, he is 80 per cent fit at the moment." The Indian captain said holding nerves would also be crucial in the crunch match. "We are not celebrating yet, that's for sure. Of course, we had a good start in the opening game, where we batted really well and after that spinners did a good job in the middle overs. Again, I think it's about the team that will start well and hold the nerves for a consistent period of time," he said.

On the pressure of playing in front of home fans, Dhoni said he learnt to handle it long back as none of India's matches are without pressure. "There is one thing with the Indian cricket team. Since I made my debut in 2004, I have never played a series where we are not under pressure, whether it might be winning the game easily or playing against the tough opponents. "Most of the guys are used to it especially being part of the IPL as you have to perform under pressure for the franchise. Pressure goes hand-in-hand with the Indian team," he said.

Dhoni hinted India might not play two spinners in tomorrow's game. "It is a tough one because if you play just two seamers, your bowling becomes quite similar. Of course you have variations when it comes to spin department but if you are playing three seamers and one spinner then the part-timers can also do the job. Of course it is tempting and challenging decision to make. So, let us see and hopefully the best eleven will get selected," he said.

On whether he expects Sachin Tendulkar to get a big score here, Dhoni said "When it comes to Sachin you always expect big things. As far as his practising is concerned he always does it in a different way. If he needs to put an extra effort then he really does that and he does not leave the practice arena until he is happy with himself. As scoring big runs are concerned he has been doing it for the last twenty years."

Asked about the pressure of captaining a team, which has been touted as the favourite, Dhoni said, "When you are part of the Indian cricket team and if you are the captain, it's a job filled with extra responsibility." "Pressure always comes when you start playing for your country, first you want to seal a permanent place and then be consistent. When you are part of the team the pressure follows you like shadows, you just have to look for positives and give your best," he added.

Dhoni said the recent incident of police lathicharge on fans seeking tickets for the match was unfortunate. "When you are talking about ticketing aspect it is a difficult one as we have no clue how it works. I would be doing injustice if I speak on that but it is unfortunate that some of the fans had to go through it. "But again when the Indian team don't perform you have to go through a lot of criticism. So, I feel that it's part and parcel of the game," he said. —PTI

Tendulkar is one of mammoths of world cricket: Strauss

BANGALORE: Many an adjective has been used to describe Sachin Tendulkar in a career spanning more than two decades and England skipper Andrew Strauss today added another one, calling him a mammoth of world cricket.


In Pic: Andrew Strauss speaks to reporters in Bangalore © AFP

Tendulkar remains a thorn in the flesh for the rival teams globally and Strauss said his consistency for the last 22 years showed how prepared he is going into their Group B match of the World Cup here tomorrow. "He is one of the mammoths of world cricket for the last two decades," Strauss told reporters ahead of England's clash with India tomorrow. "The fact that he has been doing that for so long and so consistently is a great testament to his preparations," he added.
For a man, who holds virtually every key batting record and is dreaded by bowlers world over, Tendulkar remains a big threat and England will be trying to find ways to contain the iconic batsman. Tendulkar could add only 64 runs in three matches in the 2007 World Cup, where India were knocked out in the first round and the senior batsman would look to make amends as it probably is his last World Cup. Strauss also acknowledged that there is hardly any negative point in Tendulkar and said he is a true legend. "There are normally no negative words that you can say about Tendulkar. He is absolutely a great legend," Strauss said.

Tendulkar made 50s on 17 occasions including seven times in the 2003 World Cup and was honoured for making most runs (673) in 2003. He also remains at the top for making most consecutive 50s in World Cups -- four each in successive matches in 1996 and 2003. Tendulkar has also scored 50 plus runs in most consecutive innings in two world cups. Tendulkar holds the record of most career runs at 17,657, highest individual score of 200, most matches (444), most 100s (46), most 100s against any one team nine against Australia, most 50s (93) and most boundaries (1,929). —PTI

Knee injury rules Dwayne Bravo out of World Cup

The West Indies suffered a major setback as all-rounder Dwayne Bravo was Friday ruled out of the World Cup with a knee injury.

In pic: Dwayne Bravo was helped from the field after injuring his knee © AFP

"He has been ruled out due to cartilage damage in the left knee," a West Indies team official confirmed.

The West Indies have already petitioned the International Cricket Council's technical committee for a replacement.

Bravo twisted his knee as he slipped on his follow through while bowling during the match against South Africa here Thursday.

Bravo immediately went off the field and was attended to by the physio. He did not return to the feild.

After a scan Friday, it emerged that he will need at least four weeks of rest to recover from the injury.

He is the third West Indies player to be ruled out of the World Cup. Wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh and opening batsman Adrian Barath were injured in the warm-up matches and were replaced by Devon Thomas and Kirk Edrwards.

The West Indies lost the first match against Sout Africa by seven wickets and face The Netherlands (Feb 28, Delhi), Bangladesh (March 4, Dhaka), Ireland (March 11, Mohali), England (March 17, Chennai) and India (March 20, Chennai). —IANS

I let the team down: Poterfield

MIRPUR: Ireland skipper William Porterfield today shared the blame for his side's 27-run defeat against Bangladesh in a group B match and said he let the team down by failing to give them a start. Playing their first World Cup match, Ireland bowlers bundled out Bangladesh for 205 in 49.2 overs but their batsmen failed to capitalise on the opportunity with opener Poterfield himself scoring just 20 runs. "We couldn't ask for anything else from our bowlers who restricted them to 205 but our batting let us down. No one really got in. I let myself down and the team down. I should have taken some more responsiblity," he told reporters after the match.

His counterpart Shakib Al Hasan, on the other hand, was jubiliant after bringing their campaign back on track. The inspirational all-rounder heaped praise on his bowlers and said his team always had faith on themselves. "My whole team believed that we could win, I thought their belief was more than me. They were telling me that we'd win by 20-30 runs before we headed out. Our bowling and fielding won it for us," he said.

However, Shakib conceded that the team should have put up a better batting display. He also singled out pacer Shafiul Islam for special praise for his crucial four-wicket haul against Ireland. "It is good for the team but We didn't apply ourself with the bat. We should have batted a lot better. But the crowd was just unbelievable," he said. "We knew Shafiul would make a good comeback and he did. Good for him," he added. —PTI

Shafiul secures Bangladesh vital victory

Bangladesh 205 (Tamim 44, Botha 3-32, Johnston 3-40) beat Ireland 178 (Shafiul 4-21) by 27 runs

	Mohammad Ashraful sparked Bangladesh's fightback with two wickets © Getty Images

Bangladesh's bowlers held their nerve to atone for the failures of their batsman, as the pluck of the Irish proved insufficient to overcome the most fervent atmosphere of the World Cup so far. In a gripping, low-scoring encounter at Mirpur, Bangladesh flirted with disaster as they squandered a flying start from Tamim Iqbal to crash to 205 all out, and when Ireland reached 93 for 3 at the halfway mark of their reply, they were well on course for a hugely deserved victory. However, six wickets for the Bangladeshi spin quartet set the stage for a flying finish from Shafiul Islam, who claimed 4 for 21 in eight hostile and reverse-swinging overs, to seal a wildly acclaimed victory by 27 runs with five overs to spare.

The result was tough on the Irish who, like the Netherlands earlier in the week, gave the match their all and deserved a Test-playing scalp as their reward. But the belief and unity of the Bangladeshis had to be seen to be believed, as they dusted themselves down after a chastising performance with the bat, and set about defending their meagre total with skill, tenacity and some sublime commitment in the field. Mohammad Ashraful, whose mercurial batting once again let him down when the heat was on, proved a revelation with the ball, as his spin-bowling all-sorts picked up two vital wickets inside the first 19 overs, and whose subsequent celebrations imbued both his team-mates - and perhaps more crucially, a rammed and expectant Mirpur crowd - with belief.

There will be many higher-profile fixtures than this in the coming weeks, but few could prove as pivotal to the fortunes of two teams who exceeded expectations four years ago in reaching the Super Eights in the Caribbean. Ireland's hopes of playing in the 2015 tournament hinge on their ability to produce this sort of performance in each of their next five matches, to convince the ICC that they deserve their place at the top table. But more immediately, Bangladesh's victory gives them a real chance of pushing for a quarter-final place that their form in home internationals suggests could be attainable.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat, Bangladesh started the match with the same aplomb with which they finished, bringing their fans to their feet in a thrilling first four overs, in which Tamim's blistering volley of strokeplay lifted the score to an imposing 41 for 0. However, Ireland are a more resourceful side than meets the eye, and the early decision to reduce the pace on the ball slowly but surely changed the tide of the contest. Trent Johnston and John Mooney drew the sting of the innings with their unrelenting line and length, but it was left to the teenaged spinner George Dockrell to inflict the telling blows.

Dockrell twirled straight through his ten overs, claiming 2 for 23 with a performance brimful of guile. His agonisingly slow pace through the air left all the batsmen groping in their defences, scared of taking on the long straight boundary for fear of being beaten in flight, and his two dismissals were carbon-copies of one another - a crease-bound Mushfiqur Rahim paddle-swept to Andrew White at short backward leg to end a doughty innings of 36, before Ashraful followed suit for 1 in the very next over.

Ireland's commitment in the field was unstinting. Ed Joyce and White pulled off a direct-hit run-out apiece, the first to remove Junaid Siddique for 3 - a dismissal which undermined Bangladesh's early momentum following the loss of the opener Imrul Kayes to an expert leg-side stumping from Niall O'Brien - and the latter to extract Raqibul Hasan for 38, at precisely the moment he looked set to guide the tail to a comfortable 200-plus total. But the one telling shortcoming was the performance of their quickest bowler, Boyd Rankin. His nine overs went for 62 - the most expensive analysis of the day - including a poor final over that went for 11.

Smart Stats Bangladesh's 27-run win was their first over Ireland in World Cups and their fifth in seven matches against Ireland. Ireland had beaten Bangladesh by 74 runs in their previous meeting in World Cups. This was only the eighth win for Bangladesh in ODIs in Mirpur after batting first. They have lost on 13 occasions after batting first. Shafiul Islam's 4 for 21 is the best bowling performance inWorld Cups by a Bangladesh bowler surpassing Abdur Razzak's 3 for 25 against South Africa in 2007. The fifty of the Bangladesh innings came up in just 5.4 overs which is the fastest time to a fifty for any team in this World Cup so far.

Pace off the ball was the secret on this deck, at least until such time as the Irish tail was exposed to Shafiul's old-ball wiles. He was given just the one over with the new ball in Ireland's innings, before Shakib turned to the spin pairing of Abdur Razzak and Naeem Islam. The tactic paid dividends in the sixth over of the innings, when Paul Stirling yorked himself while advancing to Razzak, and was stumped by Mushfiqur as the ball dribbled off the pads and past his off stump.

With the pressure intense in spite of the small target, Ireland's captain, Will Porterfield, set himself to make the most of every scoring opportunity. He had launched the innings in confident style with a second-ball drive off Shafiul through point, and he added a second four when Naeem dropped short at the end of his third over. But Shakib, Bangladesh's captain and senior spinner, struck with his first delivery, as Porterfield attempted a flick off the back foot, and instead popped a simple catch to Raqibul at short midwicket.

O'Brien, however, was the right man to enter the fray. He was the hero of a tense run-chase in Jamaica four years ago, when Ireland stunned Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup, and two fours in the same Shakib over were the perfect tonic for his team's frayed nerves. In partnership with the England veteran, Joyce, he picked off the singles and gnawed away at the target, before Joyce, on 16, attempted to drive against the spin, and popped a simple chance to Ashraful.

Ashraful celebrated as if the match was already won, which it self-evidently was not at 75 for 3 in the 19th over. However, the belief in the Bangladesh team was picked up on by the crowd, and the roof was raised six overs later, when White, on 10, played a lazy pushed drive from deep in the crease to be bowled through the gate.

It was a dismissal that increased the Irish jitters ten-fold, but it was nothing compared to the dismissal of O'Brien three overs later. With a rock-solid 38 from 52 balls to his name, he was tempted to put too much bat through a lofted clip into the leg side, and Tamim at deep square leg hurtled in to snaffle a brilliant low catch inches from the turf. At 110 for 5, Bangladesh were right back in the contest and O'Brien's self-recriminations were revealing. With an asking-rate of four an over, there was simply no need for such risks.

His brother Kevin, however, chose his big shots more judiciously - at least at first. An up-and-under six over long-on was the first and only maximum of the match, and he added two more kitchen-sink clumps in Ashraful's ninth and final over, which went for 14. But at 151 for 5 in the 37th over, when all that was required was a cool head and an exchange of singles, O'Brien was suckered by Shafiul's short ball, and launched a pull straight to the substitute, Suhrawadi Shuvo, at square leg.

From that moment on, Ireland's hopes began to evaporate. Naeem nailed Mooney for an eight-ball duck, as he tried a flat-footed cut but edged into his stumps, and three balls later, the obdurate Andre Botha played all round a full-length delivery that crashed into his leg stump. With Shafiul on a roll, surfing the crowd's delirium and zipping the ball at pace from a full length, the tail were unable to resist. Bangladesh's World Cup campaign is up and running. Ireland's, despite their best endeavours, must start all over again against England next week. © ESPN EMEA Ltd.