M.S Dhoni said the face-saving 10-run win over Pakistan in the third and final ODI here was due to a collective effort from the team members
“No one person was responsible for this win. It was a team effort. The fielding was outstanding and we saved around 20 runs. The fast bowlers bowled well with the new ball and the pressure mounted on Pakistan as the following bowlers and the spinners also did well,” Dhoni summed up the team’s showing on Sunday.
“Games like this really keep the team together. We are going through a tough period, but the team has the character.” Dhoni praised the pacers, especially young Bhuvneshwar Kumar, for their disciplined performance.
The Indian captain admitted that the batsmen should have put up a bigger total. “Initially there was movement. We lost too many wickets in the middle, which we should not have. We should have scored a total of 220-225.”
He said even though he did not expect big knocks from anyone, everybody should contribute decent scores to help the side. Asked about the repeated failure of the openers, Dhoni said: “We should show more patience. Pakistan had a very good attack. The conditions were helping fast bowlers. We rely a lot on the openers, but we do not want to put pressure on them.”
On why Virender Sehwag was replaced with Ajinkya Rahane, Dhoni tried to wriggle out by saying that it was a “last minute change.”
Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq said the fine performance of the Indian fielders guided the host to win and that it was difficult to bat in intense cold conditions.
