I think there are two ways of looking at the disappointing result in the one-dayer at Bengaluru. We controlled the game for 85 overs of the contest, but lost out in the last 15. The other way is for us to look at how we got a great score on the board, where James Franklin played a crucial part.
The flip side of it all is you could have sat back and admired Yusuf playing one of the most impressive innings in one-day cricket. We may have been at the receiving end but it was a pretty special effort.
I guess we are getting there as a team. In some cases we are batting well like at Bengaluru. In some other cases we had some good bowling efforts. We have not been able to pull through as a team as India has been able to. India have played better as a team. If we look to bring all facets of the game into play, then we can only improve. I am very confident that going forward during the World Cup we will be able to do that.
We have made a few plans and tried to execute it to the best of our abilities, but they have come unstuck. The greatest challenge is to ensure that the plans fall into place. It is not as much as about going back to the drawing board as it is about asking guys to pick themselves up and show the ability to which they can perform. We certainly believe in ourselves. Who knows, maybe the last day of the tour is something which brings us good news.
One positive aspect of the last two games has been the batting of Franklin. He has been around for a period of time. He came in because of an injury and not surprisingly like when it happens when someone goes out, the other steps in. He is primarily a batsman now and he has shown what he can bring to the squad.