Stuttering South Africa is good news for India

But when the chips were down, England were lucky to have bowlers like Stuart Broad, who helped script an amazing turnaround in their fortunes.

The six-run win over South Africa on Sunday is indeed a morale booster for a team, who were at the receiving end after their shock loss to Ireland on Wednesday.

The revival in Chennai brought life back into the England camp and the players will be a lot more confident when they face Bangladesh in Chittagong on Sunday. They will return to Chennai to take on West Indies in their final group encounter on March 17.

England have at least ensured that all the matches they played so far were closely contested ones and the spectators had plenty to cheer.

The team might even benefit from playing such close matches during the knockout stage. The presence of Graham Gooch in the England camp will also be a plus point considering his exploits in the World Cup held in the subcontinent in 1987. In England’s first match in Nagpur, Netherlands, inspired by a Ryan ten Doeschate century, gave them a scare by posting 292, but half centuries from Strauss and Jonathan Trott eventually ensured a comfortable win.

It was a testing moment for England though. They went a step further in the Bangalore game against India and the final flourish from their lower-order batsmen ensured a thrilling tie.

However, a few days later, they were at the receiving end at the same venue when Ireland, powered by Kevin O’Brien’s sterling century, produced the first major upset of the tournament.

But in their crucial game on Sunday, England clicked as a team, with everyone contributing their part, and proved their critics — who had a field day after their defeat to Ireland — wrong.

If England regained their confidence on Sunday, South Africa, touted as one of the title favourites, lost their early momentum and will have to reassess their batting strategies for the upcoming games.

Their inability to handle pressure under crunch situations was highlighted again when their batsmen spoiled a golden chance to secure the top spot in Group B on Sunday.

A stuttering South Africa is good news for India, who comfortably grabbed the Group B top position after defeating Ireland in the other match on Sunday.

Yuvraj Singh, after a spectacular bowling spell, took his time and built a good innings to power the team to a five-wicket victory. Yuvraj’s wicket taking capabilities would be pleasing news for Team India as they have struggled to take wickets after the initial burst from Zaheer Khan.

The India pacer was bang on target again but captain MS Dhoni would be a bit concerned about the form of his star spinner Harbhajan Singh, who has only picked up two wickets from three matches. The team still has time to get their bowling combination right.

The Irish can take heart from their performance against India as they once again showed that they are well equipped to play in the big league. They will take a lot of positives from Sunday’s match in their bid to make it to the knockout stage.

pradeep@khaleejtimes.com