No margin for error now: Dhoni

Having wrested the momentum back from Australia after almost making it past the post in the opening one-dayer at Baroda and subsequently scoring comprehensive wins in Nagpur and New Delhi, India let the fourth one-dayer slip out of its grasp. And that despite having the visitors on the mat early on.

Australia's stunning come-from-behind win at the PCA Stadium has also raised fresh questions about Team India's consistency, rather the lack of it.

A supremely talented team, it is the inconsistency that has ensured that India failed to attain the top spot on merit; and even when it got their by default, it failed to stay put.

It is this consistency that Team India has to show in abundance in the remaining three matches if they are to pocket the Hero Honda Cup, a win that will also ensure them the top spot in the ICC ODI rankings. On this occasion, on merit!

And captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is aware of what his team needs to do most if they are to attain the said objective -- be consistent.

"Every game is important now. It is now very important not to have an off day," he admitted, ahead of Thursday's fifth one-dayer at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.

"As the games decrease in number, one doesn't have much time to recover," he said, adding there is no margin for error.

So is there any particular area that needs to be addressed in the remaining games?

"Batsmen shouldn't rely much on the lower order," came the prompt reply. "When you have seven batsmen in the team you need to first get a good start and build your innings from then on."

One cannot disagree with the captain's assessment here. But what about the bowling? The bowlers have been anything but consistent, and it is a factor that hasn't worked well for the home team in the series, save the Mohali game.

"We have always got off to a good start with the ball, either in terms of wickets or in terms of containment," said Dhoni, trying his best to defend his under-fire bowlers. "Ashish Nehra obviously has been the pick of our bowlers and Praveen (Kumar) has also done well. Ishant (Sharma) has struggled a bit, but it is more so because he has been targeted by the Australians."

But Harbhajan Singh's woeful form, five wickets @ 40.80, must surely be a worry?

"Harbhajan has bowled well in the last couple of games," explained Dhoni, adding, "he started off badly but has now got his rhythm back and so I can't complain much."

India's captain also refused to admit that the visitors, reeling from a spate of injuries, are still in the series thanks to the generosity of their hosts.

"That's what you expect from the Aussies," said Dhoni. "They may have lost several key players but they continue fighting with whatever resources they have."

If the Australians, with their 'resources' do eventually win the series, Dhoni will be left with no option but to admit what this talented Indian team lacks the most -- consistency.