Virat Kohli celebrates after scoring a century, the first by an Indian in his World Cup debut match, at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Saturday. Picture by Prem Singh

Dhaka, Feb. 19: The Bangla Tigers didn’t roar as they did in 2007, but still sent a mild shiver down a billion and more spines this evening.

India won their World Cup-opener by 87 runs, but the talking point was Bangladesh captain Shakib-al-Hasan’s decision to field after Mahendra Singh Dhoni lost another toss.

Concerned about dew at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, a truly First World venue, Shakib gambled in the hope that India’s awesome line-up would be restricted to around 260-270.

He couldn’t have got it more wrong as India, powered by vice-captain Virender Sehwag’s career-best 175 (140 balls, 14x4, 5x6) and Virat Kohli’s 100 not out, amassed 370 for four.

Kohli, who should soon be playing Test cricket, became the first Indian to score a hundred on his maiden World Cup appearance.

Sehwag took the 10th edition’s first MoM award and, at one stage, it seemed he would eclipse guru Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 200 not out. However, it’s another city which could see that happening.

Sachin, by the way, is now the most capped player in ODIs. Earlier in the season, he’d become the No. 1 in Tests.

“My aim was to bat a minimum of 30-40 overs, but I batted for 47.3 and was happy that, at least once in my career, I’d batted for so long... I wasn’t thinking of 200 (when he got out), I was only thinking of batting 50 overs,” Sehwag said in his take-it-or-leave-it manner.

The way he applied himself was refreshing and India’s opponents later in the tournament are sure to revisit their strategy for the game-changer.

Virender Sehwag during the match. (Prem Singh)

Sehwag’s first appearance for India was in ODIs, as far back as April 1999, but he’s made more of a mark in Test cricket. Today, the 32-year-old made a point: that he must not be underestimated in the 50-over game.

Incidentally, Sourav Ganguly’s 183 against Sri Lanka, in the 1999 World Cup, remains the highest individual score by an Indian in the tournament.

Given that Bangladesh had upset India in the last World Cup, Shakib ought to have put runs on the board and made the Dhonis chase in front of a highly charged and partisan crowd.

He didn’t put India under pressure and Bangladesh took away precious little from the opener.

“I couldn’t believe it when Shakib declared he’d field,” former India captain Ravi Shastri, who was on toss-duty for TV, told The Telegraph.

Shakib’s defence, at the media conference, was most unconvincing. “I always thought we had a better chance chasing. Had we managed a few early wickets, it would have become difficult for India. Our opening bowlers didn’t execute plans and that was costly.…”

Frankly, India didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. That the batsmen would step up was expected. If anything, what got reinforced is that our bowling may prove an embarrassment against a formidable opposition.

India decided on a 3-1 combination and the beneficiary, Sreesanth, was hit all over the park. His third over went for 24 and if India didn’t have the luxury of 370, that could have been the turning point for Bangladesh.

What matters is the points column and India, after the win, have taken the first steps towards gaining momentum. It’s not going to be an easy World Cup, so full points means a lot.

India’s next match, against England, is eight days away. Enough time to work on the bowling worries and ensure that run-outs, such as Sachin’s, aren’t repeated.