Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni Friday said India could have chased down the stiff 326-run target set by England in the first ODI here today, had he and Suresh Raina stayed till the end.
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Chasing England's 325 for four, India lacked the batting firepower and were restricted to a 316 for nine in a high-scoring contest to concede a 1-0 lead to visitors in the five-match series.
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Till Dhoni (32) and Raina (50) were at the crease, India were well and truly on course but lost wickets in regular intervals to make life difficult for themselves.
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"It was difficult but we should have got there. It was close to 280 or 290 rather than looking at it as 320-odd. Maybe I should have batted a few more overs," he said at the post-match presentation.
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"I won't sound arrogant but it seemed easy when I and Raina were in, with five fielders in the circle. But once we fell, it was difficult," he said.
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Dhoni lauded his spiners for bringing India back into the match in the middle overs after, electing to bat, England went off to a scintillating start.
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"There was a situation in the middle when it looked they would have scored 340, but spinners got us back. It is a new batch of bowlers, not much experienced in international cricket," he said.
England skipper Alastair Cook attributed the win to team effort.
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"It was a good toss to win on a very good wicket, and we made the most of it. I am proud of the side. Samit (Patel) and Craig (Kieswetter) at the end made a difference," he said.
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Patel and Kieswetter added quickfire 70 runs off 41 balls for the fifth wicket to take England past the 320-run mark.
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"It is hard to defend with five men in the circle, India kept getting close, but we got the wickets when it mattered," he said.
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The English captain also praised man-of-the-match James Tredwell for his match-winning figures of four for 44.
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"Tredwell bowled brilliantly. It is pretty much the same attack we had here in 2001, and good to see how we have learned from the experience," Cook said.
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Off-spinner Tredwell said while restricting, England got wickets when it mattered for the side.
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"You try and hit your skills over and over again. If the batsman hits a good shot, so be it. We got wickets at the right time, even at the lower end, it is what helped us get over the line," he said.
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