India's impregnable batting does Dhoni proud

It was a bold decision taken by Dhoni to include the southpaw, Raina, in lieu of the big hitting Yousuf Pathan. It was a calculated risk he had taken. He had taken a technically superior batsman instead of a pinch hitter.

It is true that Pathan can score a century off 60 balls on his day. But this is the World Cup and the opposition will measure him.

The very reason that India could not make use of the Powerplay and lower order batting debacle was the 'risky' Pathan. His hit out or get out approach is not good in World Cups ! The opposition will trap him. ( Look at Gayle and Afridi. Two great hitters in the game and both could not get going with the bat in this WC ). Now with Raina at No 7, Indian batting looks, as Imran put it, impregnable !

Thunderous applause greeted the captains, Ponting and Dhoni, went they went to toss. Ponting won the toss and batted. Dhoni, in his non chalant way, announced that Raina will play instead of the big hitting Pathan.

The experts were shocked. The pundits now got a weak link in Dhoni's thinking. If Dhoni had lost the match, everybody would have blamed his decision. But the maverick Indian captain had other ideas.

After the Indian skipper's dismissal, came the hour of Destiny. India 187/5, needing 74 more runs in more or less equal no of balls ! The UP southpaw strode onto the middle, to partner an in form Yuvraj !

How Raina affirmed the faith reposed on him by his skipper was from then Poetry in motion. It was as if Dhoni had foreknowledge and foresight and had seen the southpaw steering the Indian ship on to the shores. It was as if Dhoni knew that the talented left hander is the solution to India's lower order batting problems. With a six off the first ball of the Powerplay, another star had zoomed on the horizon. The hostile Kangaroo bowling looked innocous before the Yuvra-Raina duo.

With Raina clicking at the No 7 spot, Indian batting looks formidable. With seven world class batsmen, India has nothing to fear, not even Australia ! The calmness of Raina and Yuvraj surprised every one, as India took revenge on the 2003 loss in the final to the mighty Kangaroos !

When the Indian captain took the decision, he knew he had to do it with seven technical batsmen ! Pathan may be a big hitter but is not technically equipped enough to handle the pace of Lee or Tait. He could have hit a few sixes, but his weak defence may betray him. If India was just 20/30 runs short of the target, India could have done it with Pathan. But not when 74 runs were needed ! If Pathan had played one shot too many or his weak defence broken, Yuvraj would not have been able to pick up the pieces and it would have been an uphill task for Yuvraj !

Yuvraj said that when Dhoni got out, he was happy Raina was there and that he will have a 40 run partnership with Suresh Raina. Raina also had his shortcomings, when the West Indians discovered that he cannot handle the fast, short pitched delivery. But this time Raina responded to the occasion and came out with flying colors. He was the ideal foil to Yuvraj Singh !

We can envision Dhoni standing in the dressing room after the match, happy that his decision has been graced by success , happy that his team is the best batting line up in the world !