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Relieved he might be after a consolation win against the seemingly unstoppable Australians, but Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on Saturday, rued the fact that the ODI side lacks a settled bowling line-up.
PHOTOS: Pandey guides India to consolation victory; Aus take series 4-1
India won the fifth ODI by six wickets courtesy an unbeaten 104 from youngster Manish Pandey but the bowlers bled runs in the series, which the visitors lost 1-4. Dhoni though still found positives from the showing.
Unsettled bowling line-up
1. "I think we have been competitive in the series. The goal was to win matches. The first four games, I thought were close, but we didn't close it down well. That's important in the ODI format. Every over matters, especially in a high- scoring game. Giving those 15-20 run overs, it becomes slightly easier for the opposition," Dhoni said.
Lower-order batting hurts
2. "The top order has been together for a long time now. Where we have been hurt a little bit is the lower-order batting, where Manish did really well today, and also the fact that we have not had a settled bowling attack," said Dhoni, who himself played an important 34-run cameo at the SCG with a last-over six that helped Pandey to finish off things with two balls to spare.
Have to improve fielding
3 "We have to improve our fielding slightly. Grounds over here are quite big, and once you know the fielder is not that quick or doesn't have a good fielder, you will put pressure on that fielder," said the wicketkeeper-batsman.
The Men in Blue will now have to shift focus towards the three-match Twenty20 series starting January 26 and Dhoni believes the team will have to lift its fielding to do well in the shortest format.