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Hosts India have confirmed their entry into the Quarter Finals with their third win in four matches in Group B. Yesterday evening at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in Delhi, India had to work hard for a 5-wicket win over minnows Netherlands.
Netherlands Innings
It was Netherlands who won the toss and decided to bat first in the afternoon. India went into this game with just the one change in Ashish Nehra coming in for Munaf Patel. Netherlands were off to a decent start putting up 50+ for the first wicket. It was leggie Piyush Chawla who provided the breakthrough for India when he cleaned up the stumps of Eric Szwarczynski (28 from 42 balls) with a flipper in the 16th over. India then went onto make serious inroads with Yuvraj Singh trapping the other opener Wesley Barresi (26 from 58 balls) on the pads in the 19th over and after sometime, Ryan ten Doeschate attempting a big shot off the same bowler holed out to long off in the 29th over.
In the 30th over, Ashish Nehra returned back and got no.3 Tom Cooper (29 from 47 balls) caught behind. In the very next over, Zaheer Khan too returned back and he got Bas Zuiderent lbw to have Netherlands at 101 for 5. Two more wickets fell down – first through a run out and then a long hop from Piyush Chawla which was hit by Alex Kervezee straight into the hands of the outfielder and the Dutch got to 127 for 7 in the 39th over. Skipper Peter Borren (38 from 36 balls with 3 fours and 2 sixes) and Mudassar Bukhari (21 from 18 balls with a four and 2 sixes) helped Netherlands to recover slightly to 189 before they got bowled out in the 47th over.
Zaheer Khan was the most successful bowler taking 3 for 20 in 6.4 overs while Piyush Chawla and Yuvraj Singh took two wickets each.
India Innings
Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar provided a cracking start for the hosts and it appeared as if the match would get over in 20 overs or so! However, left arm spinner Pieter Seelaar came into the attack and picked up three quick wickets to have India at 82 for 3 inside 10 overs. First to fall was Virender Sehwag (39 from 26 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes) slicing an aerial shot to point in the 8th over. Second was Tendulkar (27 from 22 balls with 6 fours) stepping out for a big shot but only to get caught at long off. Yusuf Pathan (11) who got promoted at no.3 pushed at a ball too early off the backfoot to get caught and bowled by the left arm spinner Seelaar.
Virat Kohli (12) who played a couple of handsome shots was the next to depart after he was clean bowled by an off cutter from Peter Borren which went right through the bat pad gate. India was in the danger of losing the match at 99 for 4 in the 15th over when Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh got together to bail their side out of trouble. The two left handers put up a 40-run stand before Gambhir (28 from 28 balls with 3 fours) got bowled round his legs when the ball had ricocheted off his thigh pad onto the leg stump. India was at 139 for 5 when Gambhir departed and that was the last wicket that fell down in the match as Yuvraj and MS Dhoni batte out responsibly to take their side past the 189-run target.
India won the match in the 37th over with Yuvraj Singh unbeaten on 51 from 73 balls with 7 fours and MS Dhoni on 19* from 40 balls. Pieter Seelaar bowled well for the Dutch with his 3 for 53 in 10 overs. Netherlands fielded quite brilliantly to curtail the free scoring Indians. Yuvraj Singh picked up his second consecutive Man of the Match award of the tournament.