India won CB series

[Nadeem]

Brisbane: The three-month long tour Down Under could not have ended on a better note for India. An incredible 2-0 win over the World Champions in the CB series marks the young Indian team’s announcement in world cricket as a force to reckon with.

After bagging the first final in Sydney, India beat the Aussies by nine runs at the Gabba in Brisbane on Tuesday. Chasing 259 to square the series, Australia were bundled out for 249 with two balls to spare. The stars of the show were Sachin Tendulkar, who scored a polished 91, and medium-pacer Praveen Kumar, who claimed four crucial wickets to halt the hosts in their tracks.

As the hosts crumbled under the tremendous pressure exerted by India, James Hopes stood tall with 63 off 80 balls. Hopes held the fort from one end and came up with big shots as the the game boiled down to the wire.
Australia needed 13 runs off the last over bowled by Irfan Pathan but within three balls Aussies caved in to be bowled out, falling short by nine runs.

After Matthew Hayden and Andrew Symonds revived Aussie fortunes, Hopes along with Mike Hussey took Australia close to the target with a 76-run stand. But once Hussey was dismissed by S Sreesanth for 44, the hosts had a daunting task on hand.

Hopes batted bravely with Brett Lee (seven), Mitchell Johnson (eight) and Nathan Bracken (one) but in vain.
Earlier, Praveen Kumar once again rattled Australia by removing the top three Aussie batsmen in quick time. Adam Gilchrist was the first casualty of Praveen’s super spell as the southpaw edged the third ball of the innings to MS Dhoni for two.

[Nadeem]

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni lashed out at the Australian media for their unrelenting attempt to pin down Harbhajan Singh all summer after his side had won their first-ever tri-series title here today.
“Tomorrow we would be gone. They now need someone to replace him (to keep themselves occupied),” said a calm Indian captain.


“Sometimes it wasn’t clear if it was only Harbhajan or Michael Jackson (they were covering),” Dhoni said after India beat the Australians by nine runs to win the best-of-three finals by a 2-0 margin.


Dhoni commended Harbhajan for standing up to the pressure and gave a backhanded compliment to the Australian cricketers and media for keeping him stirred.
“As a captain it helped me. More controversies and he became more determined. He is an aggressive, expressive player - someone who fights hard and wins the game.


“The backlash worked for us. After sometime we got used to it. We knew everyday we open the newspaper there would be something.
“The best thing about human beings is that they get used to it. Maybe now in India, I would search the net for what is going on in Australia (now that we wouldn’t be here),” he said

[Nadeem]

Australian media again highlighted off spinner Harbhajan Singh as India claimed epoch-making tri-series victory at Brisbane and described the young side's feat as having "the last laugh after a bitter summer of explosive tensions".

Harbhajan, who had hit headlines throughout the long tour for being at the centre of off-field controversies, proved to be the nemesis of Australian all rounder Andrew Symonds, claiming him in both the tri-series finals while also cheaply removing another detractor Matthew Hayden at Sydney.
“As cricket became a contact sport, Australia were pitchforked out of the finals in straight sets by an Indian side which had the last laugh after a bitter summer of explosive tensions," said leading newspaper The Daily Telegraph.

Australian Associated Press (AAP) reported the home side's plight under the title 'Australia sunk in straight sets' after Ricky Ponting's men lost to India by nine runs and 2-0 in the best-of-three finals.
"Instead of a fitting one-day farewell for retiring wicketkeeper (Adam) Gilchrist, it was controversial spinner Harbhajan Singh who laughed last and loudest, lapping up the triumph on the Gabba boundary in front of ecstatic expat fans," the paper said.
The headline of the main article in another national daily The Australian aptly summed up the tour as it said - 'A summer of spite ends in Indian glory'.

"A fresh, young India beat Australia by nine runs in last night's ultimately gripping second final at Brisbane's Gabba to wrap up the competition after winning by six wickets in Sydney on Sunday," the Australian wrote.