3 epic Indian wins in warm-up matches
Warm-up matches are the best preparation a team can get before a big tournament. There is nothing like getting an opportunity to try out all the 15 members in the squad and give them enough time in the middle before they actually face sterner tests.
Warm-up games are not considered as official international matches and hence wins registered and records made are not counted. Also, teams are allowed to play all the members of the squad and there is nothing like playing XI. However, only 11 players can bat and be on the field at a time.
In the past, few of India's warm-up games in ICC tournaments have turned out to be dramatic. These Indian wins in practice games would have held a special place in the hearts of the fans if they were official matches. Unfortunately, they are forgotten and are not talked about now.
Let us take a look at 3 of India's epic wins in practice games which are forgotten.
#3 India vs Australia (World Cup 2011)
Team India started the 2011 World Cup on a winning note by beating the Australians in their first warm-up game at Bangalore. Australia's eternal weakness once again led to their downfall as the Indian spinners bamboozled the men in yellow.
Batting first, India lost wickets at regular intervals and found themselves in a deep trouble at 138/8. Virender Sehwag scored a quickfire half-century and Yusuf Pathan chipped in with a useful 32 but no other batsman could kick on to get a big one. The tail wagged and pushed India to 214 which was never going to be enough. However, the Indian bowlers had other plans.
The mighty-looking Australian line-up crumbled like a pack of cards as seven wickets were shared by Piyush Chawla and Harbhajan Singh. From 118/2, Australia lost their last eight wickets for just 58 runs and were bowled out for 176.
India claimed a 38-run win in what looked like a cakewalk run chase.
Brief scores: India 214/10 (Sehwag 54, Y.Pathan 32; Lee 3/35) beat Australia 176/10 (Ponting 57, Paine 38; Chawla 4/31)