Led by Ashish Nehra claimed third best bowling figures in World Cup history as India’s fast bowlers all but secured their country a berth in the Super Six stage of the tournament at Kingsmead on Wednesday night.
Nehra tore through the England batting to take six for 23 as England, facing an Indian total of 250 for nine, were bundled out for 168 to give India an 82-run victory.
In India’s previous outing, against Namibia in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday, Nehra’s contribution had been to bowl one delivery with the new ball and then fall over as he tried to bowl the second. His fitness had been in doubt for Wednesday’s game, but he made it to Kingsmead, grabbed his six wickets in an unbroken 10-over spell and then was promptly sick in the outfield, probably from exhaustion, but also quite possibly from excitement.
Javagal Srinath and Zaheer Khan had unsettled the England top-order with a fiery opening burst before Nehra destroyed the middle order. England had been set a testing, but by no means impossible target, provided they were given a sound start. It was not forthcoming. For England to stay in this World Cup they now need to beat Australia in Port Elizabeth on Sunday and hope that the two other sides in with a chance for the Super Sixes, Pakistan and Zimbabwe, contrive to rule themselves out of contention. Both eventualities seem unlikely.
England’s batting failed to get out of the starting blocks after Nick Knight contrived to run himself out going for a suicidal single in the second over the innings and Marcus Trescothick spooned up a catch to square leg off a miscued pull of Zaheer in the seventh over.
Both Zaheer and Srinath bowled quite beautifully on a pitch that offered reasonable pace and useful bounce, but it was Nehra who punched his way through the middle. He had Nasser Hussain caught at the wicket off an indifferent waft before trapping Alex Stewart leg before off the next ball at 52 for four. England’s best batsman, Michael Vaughan, was caught at the wicket driving for 20, Paul Collingwood was caught at slip, Craig White taken behind the wicket and Ronnie Irani held at slip as they tumbled to 107 for eight.
Nehra then managed to throw up halfway back to his bowling mark, but he had done a magnificent job. Andy Flintoff offered some resistance towards the end, clubbing three sixes, including one over the old grandstand into NMR Avenue as he made 64, but England were already well out of the match and the innings closed after 45.3 overs.
Earlier, India’s innings had consisted of a blazing start, a stagnant middle and a flurry at the finish. With Sachin Tendulkar in sublime form, they reached 90 for one off their first 15 overs. The departure of Tendulkar, however, for a wonderful 50, which contained a six, launched in the same direction as Flintoff’s and every bit as well struck, brought Dinesh Mongia in at four and at this point the innings all but ground to a halt. Only 85 were added in the next 25 overs as Andy Flintoff tied up the Old Fort Road end, bowling his 10 overs straight through for two for 15. Rahul Dravid stayed through until the final over, however, in making 62 off 72 balls while Yuvraj Singh thrashed about happily for a 38-ball 42. Remarkably, four wickets fell to the last four balls of the innings with a run out Andy Caddick’s three wickets in four deliveries.
England had ended the first half of the game in some style, then. They needed to bat in similar fashion, though, and Nehra, Zaheer and Srinath saw to it that they didn’t.