India beat NZ by 2 wickets in 5th ODI

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal">WELLINGTON: A win finally! Indian fans can heave a sigh <span style="" font-family:="" ms="" sans="" serif="" font-size:="">of relief</span>, for the team is still capable of winning. They gave proof of that in a tense, two-wicket win over New Zealand at the Westpac Stadium here on Wednesday. The victory may not have been very authoritative; the Indians struggled to chase 169. The series has been decided as well, so the match was probably insignificant.<br />But the win is significant for the manner in which Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer Khan shepherded the team to victory, showing steel when the self belief of the Indians was in question after a disastrous series. And most importantly, this win broke the five-match losing streak of the Indian team in One-day Internationals. That’s a welcome relief. Maybe it was the talismanic presence of Sachin Tendulkar that added to India’s change of fortune, though the maestro himself wasn’t allowed to paint one of his masterpieces, receiving a poor legbefore verdict by umpire, Brent Bowden.<br />But if Sachin was disturbed by the decision, he would have been calmed by Yuvraj’s champion knock. His heart must have swelled with delight as he watched the Chandigarh lad hit contemptuously all over the park and he must have gasped in awe at that one scorching straight drive off Scott Styris that was, simply put breathtaking. But what must have pleased Sachin most was the maturity shown by ‘Yuvi’. Yuvraj was a picture of poise in the middle; calm and confident. He wasn’t flashy like he loves to be; he was rather Dravidesque. Batting wasn’t easy on the pitch — both the skippers acknowledged that. But Yuvraj made it seem like one of those run-heavens back home. He was a man in supreme command and regal in his timing.<br />Zaheer too didn’t lack far behind. In fact, he outscored Yuvraj in their 43-run partnership for the eight wicket. He wasn’t classic or pretty like his partner; he was adventurous and brutally effective. And what stood out was his tenacity and determination. Together the duo added 43 invaluable runs for the eighth wicket and that changed the face of the match. Virender Sehwag could claim some credit for the win as well. He played a blazing knock at the top — scoring 45 of India’s first 66 runs after Sourav Ganguly had perished first-ball chasing a wide delivery, Dinesh Mongia had been yorked by Shane Bond and Tendulkar had returned without scoring. Destructive as usual, he hit nine boundaries — three in an over of Queenstown hero Andre Adams. But once he departed, well caught by Stephen Fleming in the slips, Indian hopes slipped. Rahul Dravid too didn’t stay long and the Kiwis were already toasting victory when Mohd Kaif departed at 114.<br />In good spirits, they were in splits at Anil Kumble’s dismissal, which was unimaginably comic. It’s difficult to describe Kumble’s dismissal in words; for it was unique and any description wouldn’t convey the hilarity of it. But it happened somehow like this: The ball slipped out of bowler Andre Adams’ hand and bounced near his feet. It bobbed up like a crazy ball and Kumble’s initial reaction was to duck. He recovered quickly, though, and rocked back for a mighty slam but his bat slammed into the stumps.<br />It’s hard to imagine the Black Caps holding back their laughter; and the galleries were in guffaws. But the laughs were to vanish soon as the Shakespearean comedy turned into a Hitchcockesque thriller. A blazing cover drive off Daniel Vettori by Yuvraj and a huge six by Zaheer off Daryl Tuffey seemed to have turned it in India’s favour.</div> </div>