Team India aims to finish with a flourish

A morale-boosting series win sealed, India would be aiming to finish with a flourish when they take on England in the inconsequential fifth and final cricket one-dayer at the picturesque HPCA stadium here tomorrow.

A 4-1 victory might not heal the scars of a Test series loss against the same opponents but it will surely inject a fresh lease of life in Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men ahead of their next Test assignment against Michael Clarke's Australia.

The skipper himself will certainly feel good as he is leading from the front and walking the talk of shouldering more responsibility upfront having successfully wielded his willow.

There is an old adage that 'revenge is a dish best served cold' and certainly the irony is not lost out when one considers the problems that the Englishmen faced whenever their caravan headed north be it Delhi or Mohali.

Dhoni would certainly expect that the same script is followed to the 'T' when his side steps on to the field for the 43rd international venue in India.

With the series already decided, the match is of academic interest but for the team management and the national selectors, there are a few areas that they would like to check out.

Cheteshwar Pujara has been eagerly waiting for his ODI debut and one would expect that that the talented Saurashtra batsman would finally get a chance considering that he has not been released for the high-profile Ranji Trophy final against Mumbai starting today.

Knowing Dhoni's penchant for sticking to tried and tested combinations, it will be interesting to know if the likes of Pujara and Amit Mishra, who has so far only warmed the dug-out will get a chance to be in the thick of things. The skipper hit the 'bull's eye' with his ploy of sending Rohit Sharma as an opener and which certainly means ominous signs for Gautam Gambhir.

... contd.

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