Near perfect for seven World Cup games, India pay the ultimate price for one bad day

Despite sweeping all before them leading to the semi-final, a bad day at the office for India when it mattered most sees them heading home, writes Dileep Premachandan.

Virat Kohli, centre, failed to live up to his world-class ability in the World Cup semi-final against Australia. David Gray/ Reuters

When India defended the cricket World Cup on home soil in 1987, they topped their group and were favourites going into the semi-final against England at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

But Graham Gooch swept his way to a magnificent hundred, India’s middle order collapsed and dreams of an encore were blown away on the Arabian Sea breeze.

A generation on, a side brilliantly led by MS Dhoni took all before them leading into the semi-final at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

There were 42,330 inside, the majority of them in India blue, helping to create the illusion of a home game.

But with Steven Smith emulating what Gooch had done a generation earlier, India’s title defence ended with a 95-run defeat.

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Having got David Warner with a short ball in the fourth over, India’s pace bowlers were guilty of overdoing the short-pitched stuff on a pitch that gave them little margin for error.

Smith played three punishing pulls in a Umesh Yadav over and there was little respite thereafter as he added 182 with Aaron Finch, whose subdued and stop-start 81 was as valuable in the context of the match.

India pulled things back, mainly because Ravichandran Ashwin was again outstanding in a spell of one for 42, but despite a blip that saw them lose three for 16 in 29 balls, Australia had enough in reserve to power past 300.

A Mitchell Johnson cameo ensured that India would have to mastermind a run chase never before seen on the big stage.

For 12 overs, they were right in it, with Shikhar Dhawan driving and pulling his way to 45.

But one cavalier stroke to deep extra cover and the seeds of doubt were planted.

Virat Kohli could not control a pull off Johnson — much like Sachin Tendulkar had failed to do in the 2003 final against Glenn McGrath — and when Rohit Sharma inside edged on to the stumps to end the 18th over, the game was as good as gone.

With Johnson back to his fiery best to supplement the excellent new-ball pairing of Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood, India were reduced to chasing shadows in the final 15 overs.

Dhoni’s run-a-ball 65 was more like a flailing man trying to reach a boat that had sailed miles away.

Australia had their bad day at Eden Park in the group stage and used that “kick up the backside” — Michael Clarke’s words — to build up to this.

India, near perfect for seven games, stuttered when they could not afford to.

So, after their first bad game of the tournament, they are on their way home.

“It’s something that doesn’t really belong to anyone,” said Dhoni with a smile when asked how it felt to surrender the trophy won at Mumbai four years ago.

“We definitely took it from someone, so somebody took it from us. It’s as simple as that.

“You know, the best team takes it for four years and then everybody gets their own plans ready, depending on the conditions, and they challenge the one that has the cup.”

Australia, who lost their crown to India at Ahmedabad in 2011, got their own back in clinical fashion, after a performance that exposed every chink in the Indian armour.

Yadav took three wickets with the short ball, but also went for 72 from nine overs in an erratic display, while Mohit Sharma and Mohammed Shami were also exposed by the best team that they ran into in the competition.

Kohli, who failed to live up to expectations in the two knockout matches, will be one of the targets of fan and media ire, especially after the cameras kept panning to Anushka Sharma, his girlfriend, sitting in the stands.

Dhoni defended him and Clarke was equally disinclined to pin any blame on a player who took four centuries off Australia in four Test matches two months ago.

“His record is phenomenal and it takes a big player to get him out,” he said.

“Mitchell Johnson stood up and did that for us tonight. I think Virat is a class player. I think he’s shown that throughout the summer, shown it throughout his career. “I wouldn’t be writing Virat Kohli off, that’s for sure. He’s got a lot of cricket left in him, a lot of runs left in him.”

The trigger-happy India media, seven straight wins quickly forgotten, is unlikely to be as kind.

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