Mahendra Singh Dhoni was at the centre of an injury scare today as he prepared to face England in tomorrow’s one-day international in his home town of Ranchi.
The India captain was struck on the right thumb batting in the nets and sat out the session. Even though team officials insist Dhoni will play, he did not appear for the captain’s pre-match press conference.
Dhoni’s presence in the city has sent the population into a state of excitement. Thousands of fans waited to greet the returning hero at the airport when the teams arrived in Ranchi, while hundreds more have been crowding around the team hotel. Dhoni is even pictured on a large banner in the centre of the city, welcoming his team before tomorrow’s third game.
With the series tied at 1-1, both teams have plenty to prove. India will seek to continue their revival after crushing England by 127 runs in the second game in Kochi this week.
Alastair Cook’s side, meanwhile, must demonstrate that their opening win in Rajkot was not simply a flash in the pan. Recent one-day series in India have been one-sided affairs, with the last contest between the sides, in the autumn of 2011, ending in a 5-0 whitewash for Dhoni’s men.
England had been well in the game during the first innings in Kochi, but the late assault from Dhoni and Ravi Jadeja ultimately defined the match.
England’s assistant coach Richard Halsall said: “At one stage they were 119 for four, a great opportunity, and even when they made 285 we got to 60 for one after 10 overs and were thinking: ‘We are going to win this.’
“The disappointment is that we created two very good opportunities to win in India, which is very hard to do, and we didn’t take them. It was a heavy defeat and the lads were disappointed they didn’t deliver.”
India v England, 3rd ODI, live on Sky Sports 1 from 6am
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