Series in grasp, India will aim to maintain stranglehold

Written By SS Ramaswamy | Updated:

The series may be in their grasp, but India are unlikely to take their feet off the pedal when they take on a hapless England in the fourth ODI to push for a whitewash in the five-match ODI series here tomorrow.

The series may be in their grasp, but India are unlikely to take their feet off the pedal when they take on a hapless England in the fourth ODI to push for a whitewash in the five-match ODI series here tomorrow.

Having outplayed England in the first three encounters, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men have returned to the scene of India's greatest triumph just over six months after sending the billon-strong nation to delirium by clinching cricket's biggest prize -- the World Cup -- under lights at this revamped arena.

Memories of that glorious April 2 night and the wild celebrations that followed might be distant for Dhoni especially after his squad was swamped by England at home in all three formats soon after that historic triumph.

The 3-0 unassailable lead going into the penultimate clash on a wicket that is expected to be a slow turner may not be redemption, but it must have assuaged some bad feelings the Indian captain might have carried since his return home from the disastrous tour of England.

What should be more pleasing to him and coach Duncan Fletcher is that the triumphant run in the current series has been achieved without the presence of several key members of the World Cup-winning squad, indicating the strong bench strength, albeit in home conditions.

But Dhoni knows that a momentary easing of the pressure applied by his men on England could be counter-productive. He would be keen to keep the winning momentum going to stay in the hunt for a memorable clean sweep, with the last game being scheduled at Kolkata on October 25.