Date: October 17th, 2011.
Location: Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi.
Series Status: India leads 1-0.
The caravan moved north to the capital. The Feroz Shah Kotla, with its historic walls and notoriously low bounce, presented a starkly different challenge to the batting paradise of Hyderabad. The English team, battered by Deva's 179*, arrived looking like men walking to the gallows.
Alastair Cook spun the coin. MS Dhoni called Heads.
It was Heads.
Dhoni: "We will bowl first. The pitch looks dry and cracked. It might break up later, but we want to know the target. The dew factor is less here than in the south."
England Innings:
England batted with extreme caution, scarred by the previous loss.
Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott ground out a partnership, but it was painfully slow. The pitch was a graveyard for stroke-making. The ball stopped on the batsman, making timing impossible.
Vinay Kumar was the destroyer-in-chief. He bowled cutters that gripped and turned.
Over 35: Cook tried to accelerate. He stepped out to Vinay. The ball dipped. Caught at mid-on.
WICKET (Cook 40).
Umesh Yadav rattled the stumps of Kevin Pietersen with pure pace, the ball skidding low to beat the bat.
Deva bowled 10 tight overs for 28 runs, playing the holding role, frustrating the middle order.
England crawled to 237/8 in 50 overs. It was a competitive total on this minefield.
238 to win. On a slow Kotla track, this was tricky.
Overs 1-10:
Parthiv Patel fell early, trapped LBW by Tim Bresnan for 12. The ball kept low, hitting him on the shin.
Ajinkya Rahane struggled to time the ball on the sluggish surface. He was caught at mid-on off Graeme Swann for 14.
Score: 45/2.
Virat Kohli walked out at No. 3. The local boy. The crowd chanted "Kohli! Kohli!"
But Kohli, usually fluent, found the pitch difficult. He was joined by Siddanth Deva at No. 4.
This wasn't the explosive partnership of Hyderabad. This was a grind. A test of patience.
Deva recognized the surface immediately. He tried to be watchful, patient, ugly but effective.
Over 20: Graeme Swann to Deva
Swann flighted it outside off.
Deva waited. He played it with soft hands, guiding it past slip.
2 Runs.
Over 25: Samit Patel to Kohli
Kohli tried to force a drive. The ball stopped. Inside edge.
It missed the stumps by an inch.
Kohli punched his bat, furious. "It's stuck in the pitch, Sid! It's like batting in clay!"
Deva walked down the pitch. "Play late, Cheeku. Don't punch it. Caress it. Use the wrists, not the shoulders."
They added 80 runs in 20 overs. It was slow, agonizing cricket, but it kept India in the game. They ran hard, turning dots into singles, frustrating the English fielders who were crowding the bat.
Wicket: Kohli fell for a gritty 37, caught at deep square leg trying to accelerate against the spin of Swann.
Score: 125/3. 30 Overs gone.
Equation: 113 runs needed off 120 balls.
Enter Suresh Raina.
With Raina at the crease, Deva decided it was time to shift gears. He had assessed the pitch. He knew the bowlers' plans.
Over 35: Jade Dernbach
Deva was on 48.
Dernbach bowled his back-of-the-hand slower ball.
Deva picked it from the hand. [Skill: Eidetic Memory - Variation Recognized].
He stepped out. He didn't hit it hard; he chipped it over extra cover.
FOUR.
Fifty for Siddanth Deva. (65 balls).
Over 40: Tim Bresnan
India needed 70 off 60. The Required Rate was 7.
Deva signaled to Raina. "Now."
39.1: Bresnan to Deva. Length ball.
Deva cleared his front leg. He hit it over long-on.
SIX.
Commentary (Sunil Gavaskar): "That's the release shot! He held back for 40 overs, respecting the conditions. Now he unleashes the power! He played the situation perfectly."
39.2: Short ball.
Deva pulled. Flat.
FOUR.
39.3: Single.
Raina joined the party, slashing Dernbach for two boundaries in the next over. The left-right combination destroyed the English death bowling plans.
Deva stayed till the end. He finished on 88 off 98 balls*. A masterclass in adaptation. He didn't offer a single chance after the 10th over.
India chased down the target in 48.2 overs.
Result: India won by 7 wickets.
---
Date: October 20th, 2011.
Location: PCA Stadium, Mohali.
Series Status: India leads 2-0.
Mohali. The site of the 264. The ground was his spiritual home. The ground staff had prepared a belter. A batting paradise with true bounce and a lightning-fast outfield.
Cook finally won a toss. "We'll bowl," he said, desperate to change the rhythm. "There's dew expected later."
Parthiv Patel finally came to the party. He smashed a quick 38 off 25 balls. Rahane scored a classy 45.
But both fell in quick succession to the extra pace of Steven Finn.
Score: 95/2 in 15 Overs.
Virat Kohli (No. 3) and Siddanth Deva (No. 4) were at the crease.
This was different from Delhi. The ball was coming onto the bat. It was asking to be hit.
Over 20: Steven Finn to Deva
Finn bowled fast. 145kmph.
Deva loved it.
19.2: Back of a length.
Deva stood tall. Punch through covers.
FOUR.
19.4: Bouncer.
Deva hooked. The ball flew into the floodlights.
SIX.
Commentary (Ravi Shastri): "He loves this ground! The ball flies off his bat here! He is looking ominous! You cannot bowl short to him on this surface!"
Kohli and Deva put on a show. They added 150 runs in just 18 overs. It was a highlight reel of modern batting. Kohli's wrists, Deva's power.
Kohli fell for 78, trying to hit Swann out of the park.
Suresh Raina came in.
Deva was on 85.
Over 40: Jade Dernbach
Deva went berserk.
Ball 1: Cover drive. FOUR.
Ball 2: Slog sweep. SIX.
Ball 3: Reverse sweep. FOUR.
Ball 4: Quick double.
Ball 5: Helicopter shot (Dhoni style). SIX.
Ball 6: Cut shot. FOUR.
26 runs off the over.
Century for Siddanth Deva.
111 off 75 balls.
He got out the next over, tired, caught at long-off trying to clear the boundary again.
India posted 338/6.
England fought hard. They had nothing to lose.
Alastair Cook scored a captain's knock of 60. Kevin Pietersen looked dangerous on 40, hitting three sixes off the spinners.
At 200/2 in 30 overs, they were threatening. The game was in the balance.
Over 32: Deva to Pietersen
Deva went round the wicket. He bowled a wide yorker.
KP chased it.
Edge.
Dhoni dived to his right. Catch taken.
WICKET (Pietersen 70).
Over 34: Deva to Ravi Bopara
Slower ball. Knuckleball. 110 kmph.
Bopara didn't pick it. He swung too early.
Bowled.
WICKET (Bopara 12).
Deva finished with 2/55.
England collapsed to 298 all out.
Result: India won by 40 runs.
Series: India leads 3-0. Series Sealed.
Ravi Shastri: "Series sealed, Sid. But two games to go. Will you rest?"
Deva: "Rest is for the retired, Ravi bhai. We want 5-0."
---
Date: October 23rd, 2011.
Location: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.
England made changes, bringing in Stuart Meaker and Jonny Bairstow. They were desperate for pride.
The Toss: India won, elected to Field.
Dhoni: "We want to test our bowling under pressure. No dew expected."
England Innings:
This was England's best batting performance. Jonathan Trott anchored with a solid 80. Kevin Pietersen finally converted a start, scoring 80. Jonny Bairstow smashed a quick 40 on debut.
England posted 265/8. A competitive total.
Deva was expensive but effective. He took 3 wickets, including Trott (Run Out with a direct hit from cover) and Bresnan (Bowled).
His figures: 10-0-60-2 (plus 1 Run Out).
India started poorly. Parthiv (12) edged to slip. Rahane (0) was bowled by a beauty from Finn.
Kohli fell for 20, chipping a catch to mid-wicket.
Score: 45/3.
Siddanth Deva (No. 4) and Suresh Raina (No. 5) at the crease.
Target: 266.
Required Rate: 6.00.
Deva was in a mood. He didn't want to drag the game. He wanted to finish it before dinner.
Over 15: Stuart Meaker (Fastest bowler in England squad)
Meaker bowled at 150kmph. He tried to bounce Deva.
Deva met fire with fire.
14.1: Pull shot. Flat. SIX.
14.2: Cut shot. FOUR.
14.3: Upper cut. SIX.
Commentary (Nasser Hussain): "He is treating pace with disdain! Meaker is quick, but Deva is quicker with his hands! He is using the pace against the bowler!"
Deva reached his 50 in 28 balls.
Raina played the anchor initially, then joined the fun. The left-right combination unsettled the English bowlers. They couldn't set a field.
They stitched a partnership of 180 runs.
Over 38: Samit Patel
Deva was on 95.
He stepped out. Lofted drive over long-on.
SIX.
Century No. 2 of the Series.
101 off 70 balls.*
Deva and Raina accelerated. India reached 245/3. Raina finished unbeaten on 85*. Deva finished unbeaten on 128*.
Deva finished the game in the 42nd over with a boundary through covers.
Result: India won by 7 wickets.
Series: India leads 4-0.
---
Date: October 25th, 2011.
Location: Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
Goal: 5-0 Whitewash.
The historic Eden Gardens was packed. 65,000 people. They wanted blood. It was Diwali week, and the crowd wanted fireworks.
They collapsed. The Indian spinners, Ashwin (3 wickets) and Jadeja (4 wickets), spun a web on a turning track.
Deva bowled just 4 overs, taking 1 wicket (Cook), preserving his energy for batting.
England All Out: 174.
A small target. A tricky pitch.
India lost early wickets again. Parthiv (0), Rahane (10), Kohli (15).
Score: 40/3.
Deva walked out at No. 4.
The Eden crowd remembered his IPL heroics against KKR. They cheered him like a gladiator.
He joined Suresh Raina.
"No heroics," Deva said. "Just bat till the end. The ball is turning square."
Deva played a mature innings. He used the [Chanderpaul Template] to nullify Swann on a turning track. He swept, he cut, he nudged. He didn't hit a single boundary for 10 overs.
He scored 25 off 40 balls. Raina contributed 25 before getting out.
Score: 90/4.
MS Dhoni walked in. They grinded it out against the spin. Deva moved to 50 off 70 balls.
With 20 runs to win, Deva decided to give the crowd a show.
He hit Samit Patel for three massive sixes into the D-Stand.
India needed 2 runs. Dhoni was on 35*. Deva was on 78*.
Deva lofted Swann over long-on for four.
Result: India won by 6 wickets.
Series: India won 5-0.
The confetti cannons fired. The trophy was brought out.
Ravi Shastri: "Man of the Match for a composed 78 not out... Siddanth Deva."
Deva collected the trophy.
Shastri: "And... Player of the Series. For scoring 467 runs in 5 matches at an average of 155 and taking 7 wickets... SIDDANTH DEVA!"
The crowd chanted his name. It was deafening.
Shastri: "Sid, 5-0. A complete whitewash. You dominated from start to finish. How does this compare to the World Cup?"
Deva: "World Cup is special, Ravi bhai. But this... this shows we are consistent. We promised we would bounce back after the Test series. We wanted to show the world that in our conditions, we are the kings."
Shastri: "You have scored runs on slow tracks, fast tracks, turning tracks. Is there anything you can't do?"
Deva: "I can't tell that, then the opposition will prepare for it," Deva laughed.
Dhoni collected the Winner's Trophy. He handed it straight to the youngsters—Varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav.
Deva stood at the back, arms around Kohli and Raina.
The Whitewash was complete. India was on top of the world.
And the Devil was the king of the jungle.