Chennai: Crediting the whole team for India’s 35-run win over South Africa in the fourth ODI at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Friday, Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said that as everyone has scored runs in the series now, it would be good going into the last match with the ODI series at 2-2.
“As a team we did well -- bowled well and batted well. The batsmen need to give themselves a bit more time and that was the reason to promote Suresh Raina as after he gets going, he can play the big shots. Virat batted exceedingly well,” said Dhoni, adding that the short balls would be a weapon in the death overs.
“The grounds are bigger and the ball gets scuffed up. It gets difficult to clear the ball from an awkward height. It’s difficult to go for the big shots and the bowlers are the ones who evolve better than the batsmen. With the fifth fielder, they think it's heaven for them now. It was important that bowlers took the responsibility, so I shuffled them up and the choice of three spinners were good. The fast bowlers also have to do their job and finish their quote of 10 or at least nine overs. So I decided not to use a part-time bowler,” said the Indian skipper..
Meanwhile, AB de Villiers, who again proved his class by scoring a ton, said, “We had a great opportunity to clinch the series. However, the fans will be happy in Mumbai after its 2-2. It was a hard-fought game and I loved the way the boys fought till the end. It was a pretty tough wicket to play on and Virat assessed the conditions very well early on. The ball was turning quite a bit and I got a few away at the end. I worked hard and hopefully we'll take some positives to Mumbai.”
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