LONDON: Overconfident Indian cricket team, led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, tasted its first defeat in the opening warm-up match against New Zealand on Monday. In a post match conference, Indian skipper cursed the bowling strategy and said that they will have to go to the basics of bowling yorkers in the slug overs. Now the team had to sit and plan new strategy for the upcoming games. However, the team is put in a weaker group for the ICC Twenty20 World Cup which is to begin on June 5. Dhoni, who carried out a few different experiments in the Monday's match at the Lord's, said he kept Ishant Sharma for middle overs, a move which paid dividends, but the idea of the pacer bowling a new length at death did not really click. "Instead of yorkers, we wanted to bowl back of the length deliveries in the final three overs. Unfortunately it didn't work."
The defending champions were powered by a 20-ball 36 by Sharma - opening in place of Sehwag - and a 24-ball 45 by Suresh Raina, and needed to score at a manageable rate of 8.5 runs an over at the end of the 16th over. But the Kiwi bowlers led by skipper Daniel Vettori kept a tight least, grabbing wickets at regular intervals and conceding only 24 runs in the last four overs as the Indian innings folded up for 161 for six. Earlier, put into bat by Indian skipper M.S. Dhoni, New Zealand scored a fighting 170 for seven wickets. New Zealand, who have not lost a Twenty20 match against India, had enough in their armoury Monday to keep that record intact.
Some lusty hitting by Nathan McCullum (18 runs, 14 balls, three fours) and James Franklin (27, 10 balls, 3x4, 2x6) in the last two overs produced 31 runs after paceman Ishant Sharma rocked their innings with a four-wicket burst. Ross Taylor top scored with 41 (33b, 3x4, 2x6) while Brendon McCullum (31, 19b, 4x4) and Scott Styris (29, 19b, 5X4) chipped in with useful contributions. India rested vice-captain Sehwag and fast bowler Zaheer Khan for the game.
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