Indian cricket got its first taste of the new proposed One-Day International rules during a practice match between Rahul Dravid XI and Virender Sehwag XI at the M A Chinnaswamy stadium, in Bangalore, on Saturday.
The match, played among the India probables, saw the use of the 'Powerplay' rule, whereby 20 overs of fielding restrictions are used in three blocks, for the first time by Indian cricketers, though not officially.
Both teams fielded 14 players, and each got a chance to play some part in the match.
There was a strange case regarding Parthiv Patel, who was moved to Dravid XI after his name was mentioned in the Sehwag XI line-up given to the media, leaving many confused.
Parthiv replaced Mahendra Singh Dhoni after 25 overs, making it clear that the latter is a certainty for the triangular series in Sri Lanka.
Though the probables played in front of empty stands, except the press box, the contest was fought intensely, and the scores were briefly shown on the giant scoreboard, which got messed up after the Parthiv incident and the use of more than 11 players.
V V S Laxman provided the fireworks in an otherwise ordinary batting display by Sehwag XI, featuring the Delhi opener himself, Gautam Gambhir, Mohammad Kaif and Hemang Badani.
A hamstring problem forced Kaif to retire after scoring five. The right-hand batsman later brushed aside the injury, saying, "Everything is fine. There is no problem."
Dravid was dismissed first ball, but the explosive pairing of Dhoni (35) and Yuvraj Singh took the game away with a quickfire opening stand of 71.
Yuvraj top-scored with 56 from 53 balls, with eight boundaries and a six.
But the batsman who impressed most was Uttar Pradesh youngster Suresh Raina. The left-hander showed a lot of promise during his innings of 38, and considering the effort he put in his bowling and fielding, his selection for the tri-series in Sri Lanka should not surprise many.
As he himself stated after the match: "Today I did well, but tomorrow's match is also important. If I can play another good innings, I think I should make it to the Indian team."
The Indian team will play an exhibition tomorrow - a benefit match for former India and Karnataka speedster David Johnson.
