JAIPUR, 16 October 2006 — Munaf Patel and Irfan Pathan shared five wickets in their incisive opening spells to set up India’s four-wicket win over a fighting England in a Champions Trophy match here yesterday.
Fast bowler Patel grabbed three wickets and left-arm seamer Pathan two as England crashed to their lowest-ever total of 125 against India after being put in to bat in the opening Group-A league match.
England’s previous lowest against India in one-day internationals was 149 in a World Championship match at Sydney in 1985.
England then bowled brilliantly to make India struggle to achieve a modest 126-run target, with pacemen Steve Harmison and James Anderson, and off-spinner Jamie Dalrymple grabbing two wickets apiece.
Anderson removed pinch-hitter Pathan and skipper Rahul Dravid in the space of four balls and Dalrymple dismissed Mahendra Dhoni and Suresh Raina in the space of three balls to give a few anxious moments to India.
The hosts eventually emerged winners with 20.3 overs to spare, with Yuvraj Singh (27 not out) completing the job under lights to the delight of a sizeable holiday crowd.
Star batsman Sachin Tendulkar, making a record 368th appearance in One-Day Internationals, made a 41-ball 35 before being trapped leg-before to become Harmison’s second victim. A dismal batting performance sealed England’s fate, with none crossing the 40-mark. All-rounder Paul Collingwood top-scored with 38, followed by Ashes hero Kevin Pietersen (27) and Dalrymple (24).
Man-of-the-Match Patel and Pathan needed less than 13 overs of disciplined pace to put pressure on a new-look England batting order, reducing the tourists to 27-4 to ensure their team did not chase a stiff target.
England could never recover from a hat trick of lbws, with Ian Bell, skipper Andrew Flintoff and Michael Yardy failing to reach double-figures. Patel finished with a career-best haul of 3-18, while left-arm seamer Pathan bagged 2-20 after being out of form since the West Indies tour in May.
Off-spinner Ramesh Powar grabbed three of the last five wickets to finish with 3-24, his best in One-Day Internationals.
“We have got to learn from today and come back stronger in the remaining two games. I am pleased with the way we bowled and pegged them back in the end,” said Flintoff.
