Having survived a banana peel against Hong Kong, India came back with a near-perfect bowling performance to register their most comfortable chase against arch-rivals Pakistan: with 126 balls remaining. Going through a patch of uninspiring performances, the bowlers returned with a thorough show, exposing Pakistan’s hardly-used middle order, which showed its lack of experience of batting through 50-over innings by going for big shots every time they were tied down.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar returned to form after 35.2 wicketless overs in ODIs, and Kedar Jadhav’s return to the side – that cushion of the sixth bowler – showed just what India missed in England. Between them, they took six wickets; Jadhav’s 3 for 23 were his best figures in ODI cricket.
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