Yuvraj Singh produced a stunning all-round show to become the first player to top up a five-wicket haul with a half century at the World Cup as India pulled off a nervy victory over Ireland on Sunday.
Yuvraj’s slow left-arm deliveries helped India to bowl out Ireland for a modest 207 and he followed that up with 50 not out off 75 balls to steer his team to a five-wicket victory in Group B, ensuring they stayed unbeaten in the tournament.
The 29-year-old and his captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (34 in 50 balls) played uncharacteristically sedate knocks and stitched together a 67-run partnership to set India well on their course to victory.
Photo: Reuters
The duo came together with India precariously perched on 100-4 after Sachin Tendulkar (38) and Virat Kohli (34) fell in quick succession.
Following Dhoni’s dismissal, Yusuf Pathan blazed a quick-fire 30 off 24 balls with three towering sixes to finish off the match.
Ireland used as many as eight bowlers to try and dislodge Dhoni and Yuvraj, but they dealt with the varied bowling attack and managed to score at a modest pace, despite a sterling fielding effort by Ireland.
Ireland’s most impressive bowlers were their young spinners. The 20-year-old Paul Stirling finished with none for 45 and 18-year-old off-spinner George Dockrell finished with two for 49 — their figures spoiled by Pathan’s blitz at the very end.
Earlier, known more for his explosive batting, Yuvraj showed that his left-arm off-spin was just as lethal as he bowled his quota of 10 overs on the trot, taking wickets at regular intervals to ensure that the Ireland run rate never took off.
Yuvraj came on in the 26th over and bowled with excellent flight and guile to finish with a career-best five for 31, including the key wickets of William Porterfield (75) and Kevin O’Brien (9), scorer of the World Cup’s fastest ever century on Wednesday. Yuvraj took over after Zaheer Khan gave India the perfect start by bowling Stirling in the first over of the day and removing Ed Joyce in his next over. He finished with three for 30.
Ireland went into a shell and crawled to 27-2 through 10 overs as Zaheer got the ball to move around dangerously and Dhoni brought on his spinners from the fourth over of the day.
Ireland skipper Porterfield top-scored for his team with a fighting 75 in 104 balls and Niall O’Brien (46) steadied the innings with some determined batting mixed with pugnacious stroke-play in a stubborn 113-run partnership.
They took their team to a relatively comfortable position of 122-2 when a smart piece of fielding by Virat Kohli saw O’Brien run out short of a well deserved half-century.
Kevin O’Brien, fresh from his amazing match-winning 113 off 63 balls against England, found his team in a similar situation against India, but he failed to repeat his heroics as he fell to a smart catch by Yuvraj off his own bowling.
From then, it was procession of wickets at regular intervals as Ireland lost their last eight wickets for 85 runs and some more resistance by the lower order helped Ireland edge over the 200-run mark.
PIETERSEN GOES HOME
AFP, CHENNAI, INDIA
England batsman Kevin Pietersen will miss the rest of the World Cup, with a team spokesman announcing yesterday he would be returning home to undergo a hernia operation.
“Kevin Pietersen will return to the United Kingdom in the next 24 hours because of a hernia injury,” the spokesman said. “England have applied to the ICC [International Cricket Council] for Eoin Morgan to come as a replacement player.”
Pietersen, moved up the order to open during the World Cup, made just 2 off three balls during England’s Group B win over his native South Africa on Sunday and it is now 27 one-day internationals since his last century.
Team officials said on Saturday that Pietersen would undergo an operation, but only after the tournament, although the player did say the injury would “no doubt impact my preparation” during the World Cup.
However, the procedure has been brought forward after the 30-year-old was clearly troubled during Sunday’s six-run win at the Chidambaram Stadium.
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