November 13, 2007	Tuesday	Ziqa’ad 02, 1428

KANPUR, Nov 12: Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik on Tuesday cited Yuvraj Singh’s early let-off as partly responsible for his side’s 46-run loss to India in the third one-day international in Kanpur on Sunday.

Yuvraj, who went on to reach 77, was dropped by Salman Butt on 26 and celebrated the reprieve by forming a 100-run partnership with skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

It proved to be a decisive moment as India reached 294 for six before bowling out the tourists for 248 to take a 2-1 lead in the five-game series.

Malik told the Telegraph: “We spilled Yuvraj’s catch early on in the innings and that proved costly. He didn’t look back after that and his partnership with Dhoni was the turning point.”

“We were expecting to limit India to 250 and that would have been gettable.”

Malik is now calling on his players to regain focus for Thursday’s fourth game at Gwalior.

“There isn’t much to think about. The trick lies in the ability to regroup quickly and prepare for the battle ahead. There are two more matches to go and we can still win the series.”—Agencies