Dhoni hopes to seal it, session by session

The Indian team know what won the game for them in Chennai, and they are confident they can pull it off again in Mohali.

The Indian team know what won the game for them in Chennai, and they are confident they can pull it off again in Mohali. They may have been at the receiving end for most of the first Test, but they won crucial sessions over the last two days to turn the tables.

“I think it’s important to break it down into sessions,” MS Dhoni said on Thursday. “If you start a game, and think about the fifth day and the possible result, then it becomes difficult.”

A Test match is broken down into 15 sessions, and the players involved in each of those sessions are required to win their little battles either with the bat or ball. But as the team proved in Chennai, there was a Plan B as well. “Over the first three days, I don’t think we won too many sessions. But the last two days, we won the sessions that mattered. Viru started it in the second innings and, of course, Sachin and Yuvi batted really well. Even the bowlers did well.”

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According to one India player, “Dhoni has his plans well-set and he discusses it clearly with his team so that there’s little ambiguity. He loves the army, and it’s like the general giving a briefing to all his soldiers,” he says.

Dhoni admits Chennai was a landmark achievement, but while the long-term plan is focussed on top-spot in the world rankings, the focus for now is to reach the number two position with this series win. “Each match is a new game, and the scoreboard starts with zero. You can’t say that since we won here the last time, we’ll win again,” he says. “We’ll have to play well, for five days.” Or should we say 15 sessions?