Thaindian News

Mohali, Oct 20 (IANS) A relieved India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni credited the top order batsmen for clinching the thrilling five-wicket victory over England in the third ODI and sealing the series here Thursday.

The victory gave India an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.

Chasing a stiff target of 299, India’s chase was first boosted by 111-run partnership between Ajinkya Rahane (91) and Gautam Gambhir (58) and later an unbeaten 65-run stand between Dhoni (35) and Ravindra Jadeja (26).

The Indian skipper finished the match in style, hitting two consecutive fours in the first two balls of the last over bowled by Tim Bresnan.

Dhoni said the team was confident of chasing any total.

“I think it was a very good performance. We are backing ourselves to chase whatever the opposition scores, and we have been doing that. The upper middle order did the job for us,” Dhoni said.

Dhoni said the dew made the batting easier.

“We gave away quite a few boundaries with the ball. Again, dew was a factor, so it started to come on nicely onto the bat. The way Rahane batted along with Gautam Gambhir was crucial. We lost wickets at the wrong time though, and we had to get another partnership going,” he said.

England skipper Alastair Cook admitted that it was tough for the team to narrowly miss a win.

“It’s a tough defeat to take, especially when it’s so close. Six an over is always a tough chase, but credit to the way MS and Jadeja finished that off,” Cook said.

He also felt their fielding was not upto their standards.

“Our fielding has been slightly below par, which is unusual for us, and today it cost us 20 to 25 runs in the field.”

The fourth ODI will be played in Mumbai Oct 23.