India at Champions Trophy: MS Dhoni’s bowling and Virat Kohli’s broad bat too good for West Indies

It was the third consecutive Champions Trophy where the Indians had failed to advance beyond the first phase. In England in 2004, after defeating Kenya, India suffered their first loss to Pakistan in an ICC competition, going down by three wickets in a low-scoring game. With only each of the four table-toppers going through to the semifinals, India were out of the tournament in the first round for the first time, a fate that would befell them two years later in their own backyard.

Placed in Group A alongside Australia, England and defending champions West Indies, India began the 2006 edition with a nervy win against the English in Jaipur, lost Yuvraj Singh on the eve of the match against Australia in Mohali with a knee injury while playing kho-kho at warm-ups, and were defeated by the Aussies and the Caribbeans to bow out tamely.

In South Africa in 2009, India lost for a second time in three editions of the tournament to Pakistan, and the washout against Australia meant their interest in the tournament was only academic. But there was pride at stake against West Indies when the two winless sides squared up on a spiced-up deck at the Bullring, the liberal grass cover allowing fast bowlers of all ilk to impose themselves unchecked.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, under pressure to salvage something from another 50-over campaign gone awry in the very country where he had led the team to the inaugural T20 World Cup crown, had no hesitation in sticking West Indies in, and Praveen Kumar and Ashish Nehra had a field day, running rings around the top order. Despite the conditions, India fielded two specialist spinners in Harbhajan Singh and Piyush Chawla, with Abhishek Nayar slotting in as the third seamer.

West Indies were 31 for four in no time, and just when a fifth-wicket partnership was brewing between Travis Dowlin and David Bernard, Dhoni took off his wicketkeeping pads at the start of the 17th over – Dinesh Karthik stepped in behind the stumps – and marked his run-up. It was Dhoni’s first bowl in ODIs – he had bowled an over each in Faisalabad in 2006 and against England in Mohali in 2008 in Test cricket – which was dictated by the conditions and the imbalance in team selection.

Dhoni struck paydirt with his fourth delivery, beating Dowlin with pace and bounce and forcing him to play on for what would remain his only international wicket. West Indies did offer slight pockets of resistance, but were bowled out for 129, Praveen and Nehra picking up three wickets apiece.

India were rocked early as Gautam Gambhir fell to Kemar Roach and Rahul Dravid was run out looking for a non-existent single. At 12 for two, Virat Kohli walked out to join Karthik. For the next two hours, he was positively brilliant, mastering the conditions and the bowling as he provided the first glimpse of the celebrated chaser he would go on to become in limited-overs cricket.

In only his eighth ODI innings, Kohli was in imperious touch, playing the ball late and under his eyes, pouncing unerringly on any indiscretion in length and finding pockets that had proved out of reach of all other batters from either side. He was especially powerful off the back foot, pulling with impunity whenever Roach and the fiery Gavin Tonge tested out the bounce in the surface. Kohli reached a measured second ODI half-century in 80 deliveries; it wasn’t the dominant, all-conquering batter the world would come to know within a year or so, but Kohli played the situation beautifully alongside Karthik, who provided excellent support during a 92-run stand for the third wicket.

What stood out even then, with Kohli just 13 months young in international cricket and yet to threaten the Test squad, was the ability to suss the situation and bat accordingly. Admittedly, there was little score board pressure and he could take his time at the start of his innings, but the fact that there was so much help for the four-pronged pace attack and that India were in deep trouble when he walked in to bat made this an innings to savour.

Brief scores: West Indies: 129 all out in 36 overs (Praveen Kumar 3-22, Ashish Nehra 3-31, Harbhajan Singh 2-14) lost to India: 130/3 in 32.1 overs (Dinesh Karthik 34, Virat Kohli 79 n.o.) by seven wickets. PoM: Virat Kohli.