Daijiworld Media Network
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New Delhi, Oct 17: After a stunning 126-run victory against England in the ODI series opener, a resurgent India is confidently set to take on England in the second ODI to be played at the Firoz Shah Kotla ground in New Delhi on Monday October 17 afternoon.
The day/night encounter is expected to be witnessed by a jam-packed crowd as there has been a huge demand for the tickets, especially after the first win. The morale boosting victory had helped India to overcome the woes of the recently concluded England tour in which India failed to win even a single match against England - in test, ODI and T20.
Though the first encounter was branded as a 'revenge match', Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said that it was not revenge, but that his team wanted to break the losing jinx.
In the absence of star players, the Indian team kept its cool and performed brilliantly to thrash England out of the game.
For spinner R Ashwin and allrounder Ravindra Jadeja, the last match proved fruitful as both youngsters showed their ability and bagged 3 wickets each under pressure. Jadeja too batted brilliantly and earned showers of praise from captain Dhoni after the match. "Jadeja has brought consistency in his performance over the last few matches," Dhoni said.
According to the pitch expert in New Delhi, the Kotla ground is expected to be bowler-friendly. Praveen Kumar, newcomer Umesh Yadav, Ashwin and Jadeja are once again expected to prove their ability with the ball, and put the team in a comfortable lead in the five-match series.
Indian batting looks stronger after a spectacular display by the captain himself who led the team from the front with his unbeaten 87. Gambhir, Raina, and Kohli once again provided stability to the team.
On the other hand, England will look to score a victory on Monday, as they cannot allow India to dominate the series. In England, pitches were favourable for their players, but they need more practice to adjust to Indian wickets. But by the time they adjust, it may be too late or India may clinch the series by then!
Before the series began, captain Alastair Cook told the media that it would be difficult to beat world champions in their home turf. He has now warned his players to learn a lesson from the previous match and rise to the occasion.
Toss will once again play a significant role in the match. Since it is a day and night game, the team batting second could face some trouble. If the team batting first scores around 250, it will have a good chance to dominate the match. Scores between 220-240 may even end up in a last-over thriller.
Teams:
India : MS Dhoni(w/c), Virat Kohli, Rahul Sharma, Varun Aaron, Sreenath Aravind, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Gautam Gambhir, Praveen Kumar, Ajinkya Rahane, Parthiv Patel, Suresh Raina, Manoj Tiwary, Vinay Kumar, Umesh Yadav
England : Alastair Cook(c), Jonathan Bairstow, Ian Bell, Ravi Bopara, Scott Borthwick, Tim Bresnan, Jos Buttler, Jade Dernbach, Steven Finn, Alex Hales, Craig Kieswetter(w), Stuart Meaker, Samit Patel, Kevin Pietersen, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott, Chris Woakes
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