Credit: ICC
On February 27, 2011, the match between India and England concluded in a tie at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Winning the toss, India skipper MS Dhoni elected to bat first. Openers Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar delivered a rapid start to the hosts however, the former departed after scoring 35 off 26 but Tendulkar stayed at the crease and stitched a 134-run stand with Gautam Gambhir. The southpaw fell to Greame Swann in the 30th over of the match, after hitting 51 off 61.
Tendulkar, who looked in brilliant touch with his bat, went on to score his 47th ODI ton. The Master Blaster’s innings came to an end after he lost his wicket to James Anderson. The veteran scored 120 off 115. Yuvraj Singh, who came at number four, scored 58 off 50 to help India reach 338 runs in 49.5 overs. Tim Bresnan picked up 5/48 figures in his 10 overs and helped England fold the hosts before 50 overs.
Chasing the target, England openers Andrew Staruss and Kevin Pietersen looked aggressive and notched up 68 runs within 10 overs. Munaf Patel got rid of Pietersen (31 off 22) in the 10th over but Strauss refused to relent and continued his onslaught. Along with Ian Bell, the left-handed batter stitched a 170-run partnership off 156 balls.
Zaheer Khan stepped up and delivered breakthroughs
With 58 required off 44, England were heading towards a comfortable victory but Zaheer Khan held his nerves and dismissed Bell and Strauss on back-to-back deliveries. In his next over, the pacer went on to get the better of Paul Collingwood. In the final overs of the game, Bresnan displayed fighting spirit and scored 14 off just nine.
Munaf Patel got the task to defend 13 runs for India in the final over of the match but Ajmal Shahzad didn’t lose hope for England and cleared the fence on the third ball. With five needed off three, Ajmal along with Swann displayed courage and amassed four runs to help the English team to settle for a tie.
