India v England 2008-09

At Kanpur, November 20, 2008. India won by 16 runs (D/L method). Toss: England.

	Harbhajan Singh bowled an economical spell © AFP Enlarge
Related Links Tour and tournament reports : India v England 2008-09 Players/Officials: Harbhajan Singh Matches: India v England at Kanpur Series/Tournaments: England tour of India Teams: England | India

India needed 43 from nine overs when bad light brought the game to an unsatisfactory end. Officials had acted not wisely but too well in rescheduling the contest as a 49-over affair, after a misty morning put back the start from 9 to 9.45. Though both captains realised that dark would set in well before the new designated finish time of 5.07, they failed to persuade umpires Saheba and Tiffin, or referee Mahanama, to rethink.

Pietersen described the defeat as "a very, very bitter pill to swallow", but Dhoni, his opposite number, judged the situation perfectly and made sure that India, once ahead on Duckworth/Lewis, did not lose wickets in the closing stages. Patel dropped Sehwag on 47 before Yuvraj and Dhoni capitalised on the batting powerplay. If Prior had stumped Pathan on 11, however, India would have been only nine ahead of par on D/L method, and in danger of falling behind if another wicket went. The new opening pair of Bell and Bopara had given England an improved start, and the batsmen showed more urgency against Yuvraj Singh. But Harbhajan Singh proved an altogether tougher threat - at one stage he had figures of 5-2-6-2.

Man of the Match: Harbhajan Singh.