Dhoni blames poor batting start for defeat to South Africa

Skipper Dhoni blames embarrassing 135-run defeat in first ODI to South Africa on batsmen's failure to negotiate first 10 overs

Dhoni blames poor batting start for defeat to South Africa

Skipper Dhoni blames embarrassing 135-run defeat in first ODI to South Africa on batsmen's failure to negotiate first 10 overs

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni refused to blame the tidal impact that allegedly resulted in the ball swinging prodigiously under floodlights for his team's humiliating 135-run defeat against South Africa here at Kingsmead
last night.

India's Suresh Raina faces some chin music from the South African fast bowlers during the first ODI at Kingsmead, Durban yesterday. India lost by 135 runs to go 0-1 down in the five-match series. pic/afp

No swing
"The ball wasn't swinging a lot. It was important to negotiate the initial 10 overs a lot better. I don't know much about the past results, I haven't played too much cricket here. There was nothing unplayable as such, it wasn't like the conditions during the Test matches. We could have done a lot better. We never really got the start needed to chase down this total," Dhoni rued.

"Sure, there was a big difference between the afternoon and evening wicket. There wasn't much for our seamers except in the first 10 overs when they got some seam movement. Full credit to their batsmen who batted really well," he added.

Difficult target
He conceded that a target of 290, incidentally a record target at the ground, was always going to be a difficult task.

"When we play with four bowLers, and part-timers, there is always going to be a big risk if one of the main bowlers doesn't deliver. But we knew from the start that chasing 290 was going to be really difficult," said Dhoni.

Dhoni was quick to defend Ashish Nehra, who conceded over 10 runs per over in his six overs.

"These are the three-four fast bowlers we have in our squad. We have to back them to do well. We don't have too many options to choose from. It is important that these fast bowlers remain fit and get ready for the World Cup," he said.u00a0

Asked if India should have opted for five specialist bowlers, a straightforward Dhoni said: "It's always a debate. If four bowlers can't do the job, how can a fifth bowler do it? If you see the history, we are always comfortable playing four bowlers, because we don't have a seaming all-rounder. This was the best possible combination for this game."

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