India coast to victory over Netherlands

SYDNEY: The batting wasn’t as mighty as anticipated. But three—Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav— out of the top-four batters got contrasting fifties before India’s bowlers comfortably defended 179 to defeat the Netherlands by 56 runs in their second group league match here on Thursday and bag full points in an increasingly unpredictable World Cup for different reasons.

Barring Hardik Pandya, who bowled just one over, every bowler got at least one wicket. Bhuvneshwar Kumar started off with two maidens before India’s spinners choked the life out of Netherlands’ innings. Currently topping Group 2 India need one more win against South Africa in Perth on Sunday to almost book a semi-final berth.

The Netherlands didn’t do too badly considering India had chosen to bat. That the occasion had definitely got to them was evident in the way Tim Pringle dropped Rohit Sharma in the fifth over.

Sharma couldn’t resist pulling a short of length delivery as he miscued it over mid-on, prompting Pringle to run back and hold it but the ball spilled out of his hands. By then, KL Rahul had gone back after missing a flick, with the ball angling in to hit him on his front pad.

Kohli joined Sharma and both got down to rebuild the innings against some decent Dutch bowling.

The recovery was slow, but India didn’t seem to mind because they knew when to turn on the heat. The acceleration was so quick, it caught the Netherlands

by surprise. Scoring just 100 off the first 80 balls, India compiled 79 off the next 40 balls, predominantly because of Yadav’s 25-ball 51. Yadav joined after Sharma, trying to clear the longer boundary, hit straight to deep midwicket.

Yadav first took on Paul van Meekeren, shuffling across the stumps to whip a 141kph ball over backward square-leg for a boundary before crunching a beautiful cover drive for another four. Bas de Leede, one of the more promising Dutch allrounders, was lifted over extra cover.

Once Yadav started finding gaps that the Dutch didn’t know existed, they started floundering. The bowling wasn’t pedestrian but it didn’t challenge India.

Kohli and Yadav pretty much batted at their own ease, scored unbeaten fifties and added 95 runs in eight overs. 179 seemed par for the pitch even though South Africa had just hammered Bangladesh—a much better bowling side—for 205 in the earlier game here.

Two maidens from Kumar, one over each from Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Shami and India were ready to test the Netherlands’ innings with spin. Second ball of his first over and opener Max ODowd was hit flush on his pads trying to sweep Patel’s 97 kph full pitched delivery. Two more overs from Shami and Hardik Pandya and India were jamming the brakes on the Netherlands with spin from both ends.

By the time Patel and R Ashwin were done, Netherlands were 81/5, needing 99 off the last five overs. The end quickly followed.