Bowlers need to perform much better in remaining matches: Dhoni

By Rahul Bajaj
for Cricketain.com

Published: February 22, 2010

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Bowlers need to perform much better in remaining matches: Dhoni thumbnail

Jaipur: After clinching a thrilling one-run win over South Africa in the first match of the three ODI series, Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said that he had not expected his bowlers to be thrashed around by the South African tail-enders and that the bowlers need to improve a lot if India has to do well in the remaining matches.

“So many runs needed by their (SA) tailenders and you don’t expect your best bowlers to concede so many runs (at the death). The bowlers need to do better in remaining matches,” Dhoni said after the cliffhanger of a contest. “In the initial overs (of South African innings) also, the bowlers could have done better.”

Dhoni also lavished praise on all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja for his fine performance with both bat and ball. “Virender Sehwag could not bowl and we were short of a bowler. But Yusuf Pathan bowled well and Ravindra Jadeja was the difference today. He bowled and batted well,” said Dhoni.

He also felt that his batsmen got the starts but failed to convert them into big scores. “Most of batsmen got the starts but failed to convert them except for Suresh Raina, Sehwag and (Dinesh) Karthik. We thought we would cross 300 but we could not,” he said.

Dhoni said South Africa will come back at them all guns blazing in the next match and his side will have to keep the winning momentum going. “Both are good sides and they can bounce back. But it will be a very good and tightly contested series,” said the home team captain.

South African captain Jacques Kallis conceded it was frustrating for his side to have lost the match by a mere run but would have to regroup for the next match. “Full credit to Wayne Parnell and Dale Steyn for taking us so close (to winning) but it finally did not happen. It is frustrating that we lost after it was so close. But we have to regroup for the next match,” he said.

Despite the loss, Kallis said he was happy with his side’s performance. “I am happy with our performance. We thought India would score 300-plus but we bowled well at the death and then we were almost through while chasing. So it was a really good day of cricket overall,” said the visiting captain.

Man of the match Ravindra Jadeja said he stuck to the basics while bowling and it paid off. “I was not thinking of trying anything new. I was just trying to concentrate to stick to the basics and bowl stump to stump and no loose balls,” said the youngster who scored a 20-ball 22 and took 2-29 from his 10 overs.

Asked how he focused on his game after he was recently banned for one year by the Indian Premier League, he said, “I was trying to focus on cricket. I was concentrating on the Duleep Trophy and this ODI series.”

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