On This Day: Suresh Raina registers maiden ODI half-century in fighting chase vs England

Suresh Raina registers maiden ODI half-century: The Indian southpaw had stood tall on his potential when the team needed him to.

During the second ODI of England’s tour of India in 2006 in Faridabad, the then rookie India batsman Suresh Raina had registered his maiden ODI half-century to win his first ‘Man of the Match’ award in international cricket.

Raina, who came in to bat at No. 6 in the 22nd over in a 227-run chase, shared a 118-run partnership for the sixth wicket alongside the then wicket-keeper batsman Mahendra Singh Dhoni (38).

Having made his attacking instincts clear by hitting two boundaries through the off-side, the southpaw made sure that India don’t lack behind in the chase especially after losing half their side.

From lifting the English pacers on the leg-side to coming down the track to their spinner Ian Blackwell, Raina put on display a wide range of shots in his coming-of-age innings.

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Requiring 65 runs to win in the last 10 overs, a set pair of Raina and Dhoni sealed the chase with an over to go. On the second delivery of the 43rd over, Raina ran a single off England all-rounder Paul Collingwood to complete his half-century.

Needing 34 runs in the last six overs, Raina took the attack on Kabir Ali as he hit him for three consecutive fours to reduce the equation to 19 runs off 30 balls.

The then 19-year old batsman had put India in a winning position to the extent that even Dhoni’s dismissal in the 46th over didn’t affect the hosts’ chase. Raina, who scored 81* (89) with the help of eight fours and a six at the Nahar Singh Stadium, ended up scoring two more half-centuries in the series.

Having scored 242 runs in six matches at an average of 48.40 and a strike rate of 73.33, Raina top-scored for India in the seven-match series.

Suresh Raina registers maiden ODI half-century

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