Dhoni took full control

A couple of years ago Anil Kumble while paying handsome compliments to the Indian batting said that the huge totals piled up gave the bowlers that much more freedom and the confidence to do well. He was talking of Test matches but the same can be said about the shorter versions of the game in which Indian cricket's traditional strength - the batting - has frequently lived up to its lofty reputation.

Bowlers win matches it is said but the same does not always hold good for Indian cricket for often it is the batting that has helped the team to come up trumps. The famous Natwest Trophy final in England in 2002 is a case in point but it is by no means an isolated one.

The point made by Kumble was driven home in no uncertain terms by events at Nagpur on Wednesday. With the cushion of a total of 354 behind them the Indian bowlers could perform with utmost confidence and the result was a most emphatic victory that leveled the series.

And, while, the second game in the seven-match contest might have lacked the pulsating finish of the Baroda encounter, there was still much to admire particularly in the Indian batting which lived up to its reputation as the most lustrous in world cricket today.

Going into the match there was a lot of talk among the experts about whether MS Dhoni should bat up the order. The Indian captain has promoted himself as a floater on a few occasions depending upon the prevailing situation. Indeed, his two most famous knocks - the big hundreds against Sri Lanka and Pakistan - have been compiled at No 3 but then of course he was not the captain.

In the shorter versions of the game a certain amount of flexibility is called for and a surprise change in the batting order can well be a sort of ambush for the fielding side. Perhaps, the most striking is Kris Srikkanth's promotion of Chetan Sharma to No 4 in the Nehru Cup match against England 20 years ago. The pace bowler hit a whirlwind century as India raced to a six-wicket victory.

Going by his enthralling knock, Dhoni obviously did not let all the talk about him batting up the order affect him in any way. Of late, he has been criticized for abandoning his bold and adventurous methods - which seemed his natural style - and opting instead for the anchor role. As a result there was a considerable fall in his career strike rate which dipped to 90 from an all time high of 104. Possibly, he felt that the big hitters like Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh could do the demolition job while he stayed back to control the innings in the middle stages.

Even on Wednesday, he was shaping up for this role when he walked in at 97 for three in the 16th over as the innings was in need for stabilization. The very fact that he took 55 balls to reach his half century shows that he excelled in this role. And, as the Australians wilted under pressure, Dhoni took full control needing only another 39 balls for his second fifty.

So, obviously, it is not that Dhoni has lost his big hitting skills and that is good news for Indian cricket. As captain he is aware of his greater responsibilities but when the occasion demands he can also lead from the front with a big - and quick - hundred.

Fortunately, the Indian batting is so strong that even if two or three big names in the line-up fail there are always a couple of others who will come good as was the case on Wednesday.

The Indian batting at full strength - there was no Yuvraj in the starting line-up at Baroda - is a sight for the gods and quite often this brilliance rubs off on the bowlers as events at Nagpur underlined.

Praveen Kumar for one was a transformed bowler. He took a lot of flak for conceding 77 runs in his ten overs at Baroda and there were strong calls for him to be replaced by Munaf Patel. But his prodigious swing and lack of pace can be deceptive and he troubled the top order batsmen no end on his way to impressive figures of two for 37 from eight overs.

The Australians could well point out that they were not at full strength with Brett Lee and James Hopes missing from the line up. But then, the Indians too did not have Yuvraj at Baroda. Let it just be said that the Aussies won fair and square at Baroda and the Indians did likewise at Nagpur - only by a much more emphatic margin.

The best thing to happen is that the teams are level going into the third match of what has all the ingredients of an engrossing tussle.