Match scheduled
Date : 12 march 2011
10 : 57 time
This icc worldcup 2011 matchIndia vs.South AfricaThis is a refundable package , any time you can
refund this package . So dont worry watch this match .
When the schedule for the 2011 World Cup was drawn up, of the many possibly enticing clashes it had to offer, this was the one that was undoubtedly the most looked forward to. After all it had everything: the best batsman in the world on one side, and the best bowler in the world on the other. The most intimidating batting line-up on one side versus the best bowling-fielding combination on the other.
The last time these two sides played each other, there was a Test series that saw epic battles followed by an ODI series that sparkled intermittently even though India did not have their big names. These last time South Africa played in India, the two sides emerged with honours even in the Test series, while Sachin Tendulkar smashed 200 in the ODI series that followed. These two sides do not go toe-to-toe on a cricket field without producing something memorable.
India: Whether they are chasing or setting a target, India will need their openers to give them a very good start. That is the surest way India have of grabbing the initiative and keeping it with them. If the South African bowlers make early inroads, they will quickly start to dictate terms, and when you have Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel doing the dictating, batting will get very difficult indeed. However, if the opening stand clicks for India, it will ease the way for all the other batsmen to follow. First, it is a given that if Tendulkar and Sehwag bat for any length of time together, the score-board will be galloping, and second if Sehwag in particular stays for a while he will have hit South Africa's bowlers off their lengths and will have made it much easier for the batsmen who follow to continue dominating.
Dhoni has repeated that there is nothing much that can be done with the fielding, and he'll be happy as long as India don't drop catches in the field. However, there is something that can be done for the other worrisome part for India: the bowling. Piyush Chawla has had his chances and it is time for him to make way for R Ashwin. Dhoni said that the reason Chawla was persisted with was to give him confidence and keep him mentally strong. First of all, the cricket World Cup is not the place where you groom players or experiment - the guys picked in the squad should have had enough battle-hardening, else they shouldn't be in the squad. Second, it makes no sense to hold Ashwin back as a 'surprise weapon' as some are conjecturing is the case. Ashwin has played in the IPL regularly, and the IPL is hardly a back-water, little-known cricket tournament. As such, there is no 'surprise' tag to Ashwin, and it doesn't make sense to hold him back.
South Africa: For a team that has had five out of six outstanding innings, South Africa are facing considerably more questions than would initially seem warranted for one bad outing with the bat. However, the manner of the batting capitulation is what has set tongues wagging and brought in the word that every South African must detest: choke.
However, it cannot be ignored that against the West Indies and Netherlands, South Africa were inch perfect and completely dominant. Their bowlers continued that trend against England only for the batsmen to stuff it up.
South Africa's principal worry is a top-heavy batting line-up. It can be justifiably argued that when the top is heavy with the likes of Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis and AB de Villiers, you won't really suffer if your lower middle order doesn't pack the same punch, and in most cases it would be true. However, as South Africa found to their cost against England, on the rare occasion that the top order fails, South Africa's batting is exposed. Thus South Africa need to ensure that they don't allow the Indians to make early inroads into their batting.
The bowling has presented few worries, and even if the talented Imran Tahir is unavailable, South Africa have Johan Botha who can step in. Tahir brought an extra dimension to their attack, but Botha has been an effective limited overs bowler in his own right, and is also a useful batsman. The fielding is where South Africa will look to win the match against India, for its the one facet in which they have unquestioned superiority.
Face off: Pacers versus Openers:
There are two key clashes that will occur at the start of each innings: Dale Steyn vs Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan vs Graeme Smith.
The winner of the Sehwag-Steyn battle may very well end up winning the match for his team. Sehwag has so far faced 23 balls off Steyn across four ODIs. He has scored 26 runs off those and been dismissed once. Either way, it's too few numbers to go on, and none of them has established any clear domination over the other.
