Chennai, Sep 12 : New Zealand all-rounder James Franklin said Mahendra Singh Dhoni's decision to bowl after winning the toss was surprising as experience shows that it was a bat-first wicket.
“Honestly, India's decision to field raised a few eyebrows in our camp. Having had the experience of playing IPL here, we always knew it was a win the toss and bat first pitch,” Franklin said after stealing a one-run win at the M A Chidambaram Stadium in Chepauk here, last night.
Sent into bat, New Zealand rode on Brendon McCullum's blistering 91 to post a competitive 167 for five on the board and then restricted India to 166 for four.
India looked at ease till Virat Kohli's (70) dismissal, but their chase fell apart when comeback man Yuvraj Singh (34) departed in the final over. Even though Dhoni remained unbeaten on 22, it was not enough to see the Men in Blue home.
“Our plan after Virat's dismissal was to not let the new batsman settle in and get the required run-rate up and try to induce mistakes from them,” Franklin said.
“Dhoni is a big hitter, but the ball was gripping and stopping a bit on the batsmen. It was about bowling cleverly.”
