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This time... Dhoni blames the batsmen

June 22, 2015 09:12 IST

‘We didn't get to a good start, and whenever there was a partnership we lost two wickets together’

‘If you have 200 on the board, it is quite easy for the other teams to chase so I won't blame the bowlers for this game’

India's captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni tries to stop a ball. Photograph: Bangladesh Cricket/Twitter

India is No 2 in the International Cricket Council’s One dayers list but the two time World Champions slumped to a new low. The Men in Blue suffered their first ever ODI series defeat against Bangladesh following an embarrassing six-wicket defeat in the second ODI that gave the hosts an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series in Mirpur, on Sunday.

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India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni blamed poor batting for the debacle in the series.

"We need to put runs on the board. We didn't get to a good start, and whenever there was a partnership we lost two wickets together. You have to take risks in such a game, but if you keep losing two wickets in a row, it becomes difficult to do so. If you have 200 on the board, it is quite easy for the other teams to chase so I won't blame the bowlers for this game," Dhoni said.

"We, as batsmen got starts, but we didn't make it big. Where we lacked was the fact that we lost wickets," Dhoni added on the batting front.

Bangladesh's Mustafizur Rahman celebrates with his teammates. Photograph: Bangladesh Cricket/Twitter

Asked about the splendid show by the Bangladeshi batsmen, Dhoni said," They are bowling well as a unit. You can't really rely on just one or two bowlers. Even when they didn't get a wicket, they kept things tight. They got a bit of reverse but their lines and lengths were good."

Dhoni said the team will try to play freely in the third ODI on Wednesday.

"We will come and enjoy, maybe play a bit more freely. We won't think too much about the result. It does not matter whether we lose 1-2 or 0-3. That will be the last match of a hectic season and we are looking forward to it."

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