126/2 Kohli into the attack now and his captain will be desperate for him to grab a wicket. This has been a very accomplished partnership and these two have made the Indian attack look very light in fire power, in huge contrast to their own bowling perfomance in the first innings. 7 off the last over and Pakistan are in cruise control.
126/2 Khan follows his batting partner to reach the 50 milestone for his 7th ODI fifty against these opponents. He does so in style to with a huge six. Jamshed not to be outdone goes for a big one as well and succeeds to conclude that over with 15 from it.
111/2 Jamshed reaches his 7th ODI half century much to the delight of his team mates. He has done well here under pressure which has since been shifted onto his opponents.
108/2 Both batsmen now on 44 and the pressure is firmly on India to pull a rabbit out of the hat. A very good, intelligent perfomance from the two at the crease now. They showing the value of Junaid's riproaring bowling performance.
101/2 And that is the 100 up for Pakistan. It's becoming a question of when, rather than if they are going to up the rate and walk away with this game. They are in a very secure position and the law of averages suggest that they'll coast home. It is debatable as to whether the law of aversages applies to cricket though.
99/2 Jamjed nearing his half century with ease and Khan also making his presence felt with what appeared an easy couple of consecutive boundaries on the leg side which is nearly followed by another to third man but it gets cut off just short of the rope. A good over for the batsmen with 12 coming from it.
87/2 As far as runs are concerned, India and Pakistan are just about on par at the same stage of their innings'. As we know India were a further 3 wickets down. A quick wicket or two here should make things interesting. Ashwin bowling with a short leg in place now. Pakistan not flinching one bit. Four simple runs from that over.
83/2 It has been more than 50 balls since the last boundary and Jamjed says that's enough. Yuvraj kindly obliges with a full toss and it is whacked for one bounce four to relieve some pressure.
72/2 Pakistan are mindful of the value that comes with batting for as many of the 50 Overs as possible. Gritty displpay from the current pair who has passed the 50 mark in their partnership at a very useful time.
69/2 Another tidy over by Singh and you wonder how much the batting conditions has to do with this slow run rate? Dhoni leading his team with a bit of an attacking mindset though, still with fielders in catching positions. 3 from that over.
69/2 With Pakistan continue to keep the scoreboard ticking but they are by no means running away with the game. As long as they bat at this speed, or lack of, India will be in with a sniff.
66/2 A play and a miss by Jamjed followed by another appeals gets the Indians all excited, but alas, it is all to no avail. Pakistan playing as calm as they could and gentlt going along at the alarming run rate of 3.45 per over. Four from that over.
60/2 The Indian field go up in unison for a big appeal which appears to be for a combination of lbw and caught at slip but the shout is declined. Tidy bowling by the Indian spinners thus far.
57/2 five runs from that over which Pakistan won't mind too much. This partnership is just what they needed and it is developing securely at the moment. They're playing some shots but not giving much away.
52/2 Pakistan's recent ascendency sees some spin into the attack in the form of Ashwin. He's off to a good start and induces the edge but without a second slip the ball trickles down to third man. He concedes 3 runs and stems the tide ever so slightly. Pakistan looks much steadier now after the early attack from the Indian seamers.
49/2 Jamjed timing it nicely now. He plays an elegant cover drive for four followed by an equally good straighter drive but only gets one for the latter, warmly welcoming Sharma back to bowl. Pakistan have now scored at least six an over for the last 3 overs and this partnership has started to look ominous. Nine coming off the last one.
40/2 And now Khan attacks, using his feet and punching through cover. As India found, the outfield prevents a stroke deserving of four from going to the boundary and the batsmen run 3. Jamjed looks confident and pulls another one, this time only for a single. Younus follows suit, mistimes a pull shot but it lands safely for two more. These two look like they have no intention of hanging around here for too long. Six runs from that concludes a good over for Pakistan.
34/2 Kumar comes on for the seventh consecutive over of this opening spell and Jamshed making his intentions known by trying to hammer it with two successive aggressive strokes, both going straight to fielders. He succeeds on the last ball and swivels to pull it towards find leg for four.
28/2 Sharma continues and Jamjed tries to relieve some pressure with an attacking shot but almost gifts the Indians a chance as the ball drops just short of the cover fielder. Khan takes the strike and is off the mark with an edged four from the penultimate ball of the over. He follows that with an aggressive stroke which is cut off just short of the boundary and they run two to get seven off the over.
21/2 After a suicidal attempt at a run, India miss a chance, however Dhoni's persistence with Kumar pays off as he takes his second ODI wicket, getting Azhar Ali our for 9 of 38 deliveries. good pressure bowling and rightfully rewarded. That will remind Pakistan that here's but a long way to go. Younis Khan is next in. A fine over ending with as a wicket maiden.
21/1 Sharma back into the attack now as Dhoni looks to rotate his bowling attack. Pakistan picking off singles from time to time which at this stage is all they require. An extras added to the total are going to hurt India. They simply cannot afford any. 4 from that over which in the context of the match is quite a few.
17/1 Jamshed trying to use his feet in an attempt to unsettle Kumar's good rhythm. It doesn't work though and the young man and his team mates will be pleased with this debut so far. Only two from that over, which for Pakistan, will just about do for now.
15/1 Dinda will be unhappy with that. Starts the over with another delivery on leg stump and gets swiped away for two. Considering that at the same stage of their innings, India were 20/4, then it highlights the importance of extremely accurate bowling. India can't give anything with Pakistan having time on their side. The bowler recovers and pegs Ali back for the rest of the over.
13/1 India are very animated in the field and rightly so. Kumar bowls his allocation of two bouncers in that over and he looks amped. A good ball to end it with Azhar playing and missing outside his off stump. One from it.
12/1 Change of bowling sees Ashoka Dinda into the attack and he doesn't relent either, bowling in the right areas from the get go. His first over concedes four runs.
7/1 Dhoni and the slips astonishingly standing up to Kumar and it almost pays off with an edge from Azhar falling just short of first slip, to the surprise of the crowd. Jamshed gets two off the last ball of the over.
6/1 Ishant Sharma probing and prompting unsteady strokeplay from Azhar in that over. He has got his line and length spot on India will want to keep this up. They smell blood. Azhar gets off the mark from the last ball of the over.
5/1 Kumar gets a maiden there and his good start looks like no fluke.
5/1 Sharma continues the pressure from the other end and only concedes one run from that over.
4/1 What a start. It could not have been better for India. They replicate Pakistan's straight bowling. Jamshed leaves a delivery that pitches outside off and Kumar strikes with one that comes back sharply and rearranges the wood work. Game on? The wicket followed by two unsuccessful LBW appeals and Pakistan look rattled. Once again, the best possible start for India with Kumar striking with his first wicket of ODI Cricket.
Dhoni after a mammoth batting performance which took it's physical toll on the player leads the team out onto the field. They will be in search of some early wickets to sow some seeds of doubt in the Pakstani minds. Pakistan on the other hand will want to get some early momentum but in the same vain should look to play a measured innings in their chase of 228 to win. Hafeez and Jamshed walk out to the middle to get things under way and they will start by facing young Kumar who opens the bowling for India.
Pakistan has a target of 228 to chase down which one feels they would have taken if offered to them when they put India in to bat. However, with India struggling at 20 for 5, Pakistan would have hoped to chase a significantly lower target. It was not to be as captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni pulled off a heroic display, working extremely hard in the early part of his innings, and pummeling the bowling attack toward the end, racing to 113 from 125 balls. The captain will be summoning his troops to follow suit and show some fight whilst they defend this modest total. On what looks like a flat, slow scoring wicket, with a very slow outfield and the mometum shifting with Dhoni's heroics, India will feel they can defend that. It is important to add though that with cool heads and well planned approach, Pakistan should come out on top. India will most likely have to bowl them out for a win and on paper, their attack seems to lack the firepower that Pakistan showed up front with some devastating and dominant seam bowling, reminiscent of their legends, Wasim and Waqar.
227/6 - A big swing first up from Dhoni and Junaid's second delivery is right in the blockhole where it should be. So is the third but Ashwin plays it as a full toss with no reward as it goes straight to a fielder at point. He clips the next one away and they scamper through for two. An audacious four follows with an intelligent stroke dissecting point and cover, timed to the boundary.The last bowl is right up there again and they get a single from it. That ends a good recovery by India. That is as good a bowling and batting display that you'll see in one innings of 50 over cricket
217/6 - That is the 200 up for India and captain Dhoni goes into the nineties with consecutive boundaries off the first two balls of the over. Dhoni goes to 95 and Irfan looks as rattled as the first few Indian batsmen did early in their innings. And that's his CENTURY! A huge captain's knock, third consecutive boundary this one is a six over cover. This has been a majestic innings by the captain, gritty and determined. Will it be enough though? And now Ashwin improvises, walks across his stumps and plays a ball outside off stump for four down to fine leg. Yes. You read that correctly. 21 runs off that iver with one to go and on this pitch one could argue that India's score looks defendable. Time will tell.
196/6 - Ajmal comes on to bowl his last over of the innings. Ashwin attempts a reverse sweep but executes poorly for no run. He'd want to ensure that Dhoni sees as much of the strike as possible. Only 3 runs off that over and Ajmal deserves credit for that.
193/6 - Four from the first ball of the over puts the bowler under some pressure as Dhoni gets a leading edge to the third man boundary which takes everyone by surprise. Dhoni, fit as he is, appears to be taking some physical strain due to the absence of boundaries. Ashwin tries to join the party, swings big and attracts a huge edge which once more falls safely. Third consecutive over with nine from it.
184/6 - BOOM! SIX! Dhoni heaves one into the stands for the maximum allocation of runs from a delivery. Ajmal responds immediately with a good ball for no run and Dhoni paddles the next around his legs for a single. 9 off that over as well and the run rate for the innings passes four for the first time.
175/6 A lovely shot. Dhoni welcomes Irfan back into the attack with a well timed pull for four in front of square which takes his score to 66. That was only his third boundary so it has been a really good, hard working effort by the captain. Irfan shows his dismay by bowling two successive short ones, the second of those gets a big skied edge to third man but falls safely. 9 from that over and India will have an eye on the 200 mark to give themselves a chance.
159/5 - Dhoni goes for this one and hits it over cover where a fielder meets the ball after a few bounces. He gets two for his trouble. 7 from that over and you sense now that Dhoni absolutely has to stay for these last few overs. We know he can amp it up.
159/6 Gul starts with a fullish one outside off, similar to his last over. This time Dhoni goes for it, swings, and misses. Same result, different method by the batsman. He repeats the attempted swing next ball and edges it to third man for one. Gul shares some words with him followed by the exchange of wry smiles between the two. Both look pumped up for the end of this innings. Ashwin meanwhile, plays a gentle stroke around to fine leg and adds two to the total. Gul dishes up a full toss with minimum consequence and the over ends with a single to third man. 5 from the over.
154/6 With Ashwin and Dhoni getting after the quick bowlers, Misbah re-introduces spin into the attack. Ajmal remains in keeping with the trend of the innings and keeps it tight, allowing India to squeeze 3 runs out of it.
151/6 - Gul takes some sting out of the recent run rate rise by bowling a beauty outside off which Dhoni plays and misses, but follows up with a loose one right in the captain's slot who whips it away to the mid wicket boundary to go onto a well played half century under tough ciscumstances. A sneaky single ends the over which sees them gather 5 runs.
146/6 - Junaid provides Dhoni with a free hit after overstepping and the Indian captain needs to make the most of it. he does exactly that and pulls one, timed to perfection, over the long on boundary for the first six of the innings. Almost trouble immediately thereafter as he plays one to short fine leg and is almost run out but the attempted throw misses the stumps. Dhoni gets a single as an eventful over comes to an end. 14 from it.
132/6 The pace returns in the form of Umar Gul and once more he gets his line and length spot immediately, making it difficult for the batsmen to score. When he pitches a shorter one Dhoni pulls straight to the fielder at the boundary, followed by a replica of that shot from Ashwin. At the third time of asking, Dhoni finds the gap with a similar shot, and Gul will know that his fuller deliveries would be better to persist with at this time of the innings.
125/6 Hafeez into his final over now. Ashwin now using his feet and he looks fairly comfortable at the crease so far. A good few singles from that over which Hafeez won't mind. It concludes with a run a ball from it and he completes a very good bowling performance after bowling his 10 consecutively. He finishes with 1 for 27.
119/6 - Dhoni cuts away in front of square and again the outfield ensure that no boundary is acquired. Azhar Ali who did the fielding their picked up a niggle and heads off for treatment. And then, FOUR! Ashwin gets a thick edge and this time the ball races away for only the second boundary in 26 overs. He confidently follows that up with a safly skied stroke through cover and gets 2 more. Safe to say that India needed that. 10 runs from that over which is the best of their innings thus far.
106/6 - Dhoni goes for a big one, skies it and it fails to reach the boundary but also lands clear of the fielders. He doesn't seem to have any intentions of continuing the defensive approach during this power play.
106/6 - Ajmal replaces Malik in the attack which will most likely curtain India's hopes of getting some much needed runs in this powerplay. Dhoni gets a single and allows Pakistan to bowl at Ashwin who sees out the rest of the over without adding to the total. Picth conditions aside, this a good bowling performance from the Pakistani's
104/6 - Hafeez gets his man. WICKET! He bowls Raina for 43 at the commencement of the batting power play. The sense prevails that Raina chose the wrong bowler to get after as Hafeez has been very good in this spell. Ashwin is the next man in gets off the mark with little fuss. Pakistan's tails are up again.
101/5 - The runs still coming very slowly with only one from that over. To be fair, this was a very good toss to win as the pitch and outfield is certainly not condusive to fast run scoring. India will just need to keep plugging away.
101/5 - Hafeez continuing to generate some good turn and also some bounce. Dhoni looks to get him away and comes down the track but finds a fielder at long on and only gets a single for his efforts. That's the end of the over and they will have a drinks break.
100/5 - That over sees India get to the 100 figure. One senses that if one of these two batsmen can stay until the end then India will have a great chance of competing.
97/5 - Raina and Dhoni are doing what they can to play some positive strokes and nearing the 100 mark in the innings which should be a gentle boost for them. They are slowly getting back into this game which still has heaps of cricket to be played.
93/5 - The spinners are doing a good job to keep India under pressure and their lines and lengths are proving tough for the Indians to put away. Another good over ends with only two from it.
91/5 - Defense is the order of the day for India as they accumulate two runs from that over, one of which was gift wrapped to them by a Misbah missfield. They should not mind the slow rate for the time being.
89/5 - A bowling change sees Malik into the attack to continue with spin and maintains the containment of the Indian innings. Just the 3 from that over then, but Pakistan will be craving another wicket to break this partnership.
86/5 - DROPPED CATCH! Dhoni is actually the one whose resistance almost crumbles as he steps down the wicket and goes for a big one over the top of mid wicket. He hits it just above Misbah's head who should take it comfortably but spills it. How important will that moment be in the context of the game?
84/5 - India's resistance continues and they pick off 3 from that over. The partership is going along nicely and Pakistan will hope that the famine of runs results in a loss of calm by one of these two. Raina looking the most susceptible to that at the moment.
81/5 - Hafeez continues to spin the ball significantly. Still around the wicket to Raina and over it to the right handed Dhoni. Raina looks to use his feet again after a few successive dot balls, followed by an attempted slog sweep to no avail, as the captain completes another maiden.
81/5 - Patience? India disagree as Dhoni brings up the 50 partnership with a lovely stroke for four. That is the first boundary for 14 overs and is unsurprisingly well received by the home fans. Only a single more and that's the over.
76/5 - With the scoring rate slowing down slightly since the spinners came on, the batsmen seem a bit hesitant with their running between the sticks. They will need to remain patient though which will be fairly tough with two maidens on the trot.
76/5 - India will be thinking - time over runs - here, and will prioritise the aim of batting out the 50 Overs. They should not mind that Ajmal just bowled a maiden over. Ajmal on the other hand will consider it a job well done in terms of maintaining the pressure on the batsmen.
76/5 Enter the captain. Hafeez starts his spell coming around the wicket to the left handed Raina who uses his feet nicely to play a full toss toward the mid-wicket boundary. A combination of bad timing and a slow outfield again prevents a four. Later in the over gets one to grip into the turf and turn which will encourage the spinners.
71/5 - The introduction of spin arrives as Ajmal enters the attack. India safely navigate the over with two from it. A good start by the spinner, but equally good for India, as is every over where they retain their wickets.
69/5 - Will the early persistence with pace pay off for Pakistan? Some basic strokes and secure running between the wickets suggest that it might be time for a change. Pakistan will hardly want these two to get too comfortable. Dhoni has thrived in situations like these before which Pakistan will be mindful of.
65/5 Raina edges one to thrid slip but it doesn't carry and the fielder lets it through his grasp gifting a single to the batsman. Hafeez opting to continue with the pace attack, which could turn out to be a blessing in disguise for India if they get to the latter part of the 50 over innings. Raina plays a pull shot as comfortably as Dhoni did earlier and this partnership is starting to look handy.
60/5 - Raina overtakes the extras as the top run contributor to the innings so far with a cut down to third man. Dhoni then confidently plays a short one that hurried onto him and gets a run from it to boot. 3 more from that over to the total. India will have that.
59/5 - A chancy lbw shout ends up as 4 leg-byes which once more gently relieves some pressure from the batsmen. A few more singles to keep the runs ticking. Raina plays a lovely cover drive which deserves a boundary but the slow outfield prevents it from going all the way.
50/5 - Hafeez's intentions are clear. He wants his strike bowlers to proceed with the early pressure that they've created and thus brings Irfan back for his second spell. The batsmen are slowly starting to get the scoreboard ticking and with so much cricket left to play, that is all they should be doing at the moment. The Pakistan captain won't be too happy with the needless extras that have come at regular intervals.
44/5 - Play resumes and Gul dishes up a bouncer which Raina considers pulling, but rightfully withdraws from the shot. As has become custom, a fuller length ball ensues which is well spotted by Raina. Dhoni concludes the over with a calm stroke for two through the leg side.
40/5 - Some welcome runs in the form of wides this time, followed by a drinks break which is in all likelihood even more welcome after am intense onslaught of quality seam bowling.
35/5 Is the situation well set up for Dhoni to play a captains knock of note here? He is off the mark with a scampered single after a cautious stroke into the short cover area. Junaid bowls a wide with an attempted bouncer, follows that up with two fuller deliveries again and concludes the over.
30/5 - Gul continues and adds to the mounting pressure with some water tight bowling. Only the one run from it. In all honesty, it appears hard to decipher where India will get some runs from, but they will need to.
29/5 - WICKET! Junaid grabs another with some exemplary seam bowling. Sharma the victim this time as her leans forward to play a full delivery outside his off stump. He gets the edge and Hafeez takes a lovely catch. Needless to say, India faces a long uphill climb here.
27-4 - Indeed, Gul enters the attack. At least it's a right-armer, not a left-armer India have to face from this side for now. Three slips in place for him, too, though one of 'em will fall away soon enough. Slower and shorter than Irfan, Gul's approach doesn't really warrant such field placements.
24-4 - Prolific swing from the left hand of Junaid, really, with Raina now beaten time and time again outside his off-stump. This isn't going to relent, as Gul is due to enter the attack next. First, though, some sort of solace in the form of four glanced down the leg-side for Raina.
20-4 - Given the dire nature of his team's circumstance, Rohit is well within his rights to take in a maiden over on the dogged defence.
20-4 - WICKET! Another one goes. A duck to end an otherwise prolific year for Kohli. ODI cricket's highest scorer in 2012 manages diddlysquat this time around. He, too, is bowled by a left-arm seamer. That's the third instance of this sort today. There is plenty of swing and seam on the go out there, so much so the bowler is being afforded as many as three slips. Not one of them needed yet, though, with the stumps instead rattled again. Again an Indian batsman doesn't cover the line appropriately. Sharma in now, and all he can do is watch from the other end as Yuvraj perishes. WICKET! This dismissal is entirely the batsman's fault. He should have played straight, instead he looked to turn it through the on-side. The result left the stumps toppled, again. Raina in now. Time spent sweating under the covers seems to have brought a considerably testing dynamic to this pitch.
19-2 - WICKET! Another big, early breakthrough for Pakistan. Irfan delivers a length similar to that of his fellow left-armer, though doesn't find as much lateral movement. The angle outdoes Gambhir regardless, who was always troubled by the bowler approaching from over the wicket. The gap is vast, and the ball duly snipes through to disturb the proverbial furniture. Yuvraj, fresh from his Man of the Match performance in the final T20I, is the new man at the crease now.
17-1 - WICKET! The southpaw seamer rattles Sehwag, setting him up superbly to eventually clean bowl the batsman. Pegging his length back, he snipes through the right-hander's defences, and later sends down a much fuller delivery to topple the stumps. Sehwag wanted to swat that over the off-side, exposing all three stumps with some questionable footwork, and paying the price. Kohli in now.
17-0 - Tasked with staving off the advances of the tall fast bowler again, Gambhir lives dangerously, missing one outside the off-stump and then edging the next wide of second slip for four fortunate runs. The left-hander isn't at all comfortable against the left-armer.
8-0 - The left-arm fast bowler will be the first to admit his opening line is too straight to the right-handed Sehwag, who welcomes a rogue no-ball and later clips four off his pads and through the on-side. That traveled through the air, but there was no square-leg fielder at hand for the catch.
0-0 - It is, in fact, Irfan - not Junaid or Gul - to bowl the first over. A couple of slips in place for the lanky left-arm seamer, who is spot on in terms of line and length straightaway. Gambhir is more than happy to take in a string of sighters outside his off-stump, leaving as much alone as possible, before middling one with some solid forward defence.
Handshakes, hugs and other such pleasantries in the past, all and sundry head out to the middle for the start of play. Gambhir and Sehwag to open the batting, while Gul and Junaid will probably open the attack.
Weather-wise, it's typically sub-continental in Chepauk today - hot and humid. Last night's rain is threatening to return, too, but probably not enough to truly negatively affect this fixture. This pitch has a total of about 280 in it for the team batting first, though a damp outfield might cut that by 20-odd runs. Expect the slow bowlers to have a big say, of course.
Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ashok Dinda.
Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Misbah-ul-Haq, Kamran Akmal, Azhar Ali, Shoaib Malik, Junaid Khan, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Mohammad Irfan.
India bring in the veteran Virender Sehwag ahead of fellow opener Ajinkya Rahane. The tourists have named batsmen Azhar Ali and Younis Khan and seamers Junaid Khan and Mohammad Irfan in their XI, while there is no place for the talented Umar Akmal. Former captain Shoaib Malik, instead, cracks the nod.
Visiting skipper Misbah-ul-Haq triumphs at the flip of the coin and Pakistan will bowl first. Home captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, meanwhile, reminds of the new rules in ODI cricket - one of which allows for two bouncers per over.
Bowden reveals play will start at 10:00 local time (04:30 GMT), with the toss 30 minutes before that, provided there is no more rain. No reduction, just the delay, so the fixture will remain 50 overs per side.
Overnight rain has delayed the toss and, indeed, the start of play. Umpires Billy Bowden and Ravi Sundaram will inspect conditions at 08:45 local time (03:15 GMT).
Hello and welcome to our over-by-over commentary of the first ODI of the three-match series between India and Pakistan at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.