India nail biting win over England by 5 runs
India made the history by gaining Champions Trophy with a nail biting win over England by 5 runs. The final match is reduced to 20 overs a side match due to rain on Sunday 23rd June 2013.
Despite early strikes, India were put to the test by Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara. Twin strikes to remove both batsmen by Ishant Sharma in the 18th over spelt doom for the hosts.
Earlier, India scored 129 for 7 after rain reduced the ICC Champions Trophy final to a 20-overs-a-side contest. Ravi Bopara took three wickets for 20 runs as England made India struggle for runs in overcast conditions. Virat Kohli was India’s best with 43 and it was his 47-run sixth-wicket stand with Ravindra Jadeja (33 not out) that got India out of a hole.
Indian batsmen failed to find their dazzling form as a combination of rain breaks and poor strokes plotted their decline. When play finally started six hours after scheduled start, England took advantage of a sluggish pitch to force the Indians into errors.
When the toss happened on schedule, England decided to field under grey skies. But rain and chilly cross winds delayed the start of play. More than 25,000 fans, mostly Indians, waited patiently for the match to start as heavy drizzle lashed Edgbaston from time to time.
A brief period of sunshine late in afternoon raised hopes of a game and exactly about an hour before the final cut-off time, it was announced that there would be a 24-over-a-side game.
As soon as the teams stepped out to warm themselves up, the rain and the covers were back. After a brief spell of heavy drizzle, the match was further reduced to a T20 contest, a minimum requirement for a result.
The Indian innings faced two rain breaks. Before the first came in the sixth over, Rohit Sharma (9) had been bowled through bat and pad by a beauty of an incoming delivery from Stuart Broad. The slide started after the second interruption in the seventh over.
On a dry pitch where the ball came on slowly, Bopara and off-spinner James Tredwell bowled a teasing line and length. The in-form Shikhar Dhawan gave the Indian innings some momentum, upper-cutting Broad for a six and then slamming Tredwell for a couple of boundaries.
But Bopara tricked the left-hander into a soft dismissal. Dhawan spooned a slower ball straight to extra cover. Dhawan scored 31 off 24 balls. Between the 12th and the 14 overs, India lost three wickets and added just three runs.
Dinesh Karthik (6), Suresh Raina (1) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (0) all fell to poor strokes as Bopara finished with impressive figures of 3 for 20, including a wicket-maiden.
Kohli, dropped on 36, defied the English attack as India looked for quick runs. He drove and pulled Bopara for boundaries and slapped Broad for a big six at mid-wicket. Kohli was out trying to clear long-off after James Anderson bowled a fuller ball.
Ravindra Jadeja continued his good form and produced 33 crucial runs. He struck two fours and as many sixes in his 25-ball innings as England did well to restrict an in-form Indian batting line-up. Interestingly, in six Champions Trophy finals played so far, five have been won by teams batting second. One ended in a no result.
More Related:
- ICC Champions Trophy Final: England vs India Highlights 23 June 2013
- ICC Champions Trophy Final: England vs India Scorecard 23 June 2013
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