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InDepth headlines national business sports cricket regional entertainment technology world travel autos health | in-depth coverage > India-Pakistan Cricket Series 2005 > Indian fightback leaves Kolkata Test evenly poised 18.23 IST 18th Mar 2005 By Manish Kumar 
A splendid fightback by India left the second Test against Pakistan at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata hanging in balance as the hosts gained a lead of 147 runs but had lost three wickets at the end of the third day’s play on March 18.India were 133/3 in their second innings with Rahul Dravid (54) and skipper Sourav Ganguly (4) at the crease when bad light stopped play. If the body language of the Indians wasn’t good yesterday, then they more than made up for it today, by looking like a unit with a purpose, with the players pepped up as the third day’s play started with Pakistan resuming their first innings at 273/2 with the centurions Younis Khan and Yousuf Youhana. And the body language combined with the determination to succeed brought the required results as Lakshmipathy Balaji trapped Youhana plumb in front of the wicket on the first ball of the fifth over of the day. Youhana, expecting an outswinger, shouldered arms and was wrapped on the pads in front of the wicket by an inswinger. The former Pakistani vice-captain scored a brilliant 104. Left arm fast bowler Irfan Pathan unlike yesterday wasn’t off-colour today. He approached the bowling crease in his run-up with a sting in his tail and bent his back to generate speed. And that again bore fruit as Pathan had the Pakistani skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq (30) edge an outswinger into the hands of keeper Dinesh Karthik. The next Pakistani dismissal was the result of great thinking and a strong throw of Sachin Tendulkar. Younis drove a full one back past Balaji and ran down the pitch. Ganguly from mid-off and Sachin from mid-on gave chase and Ganguly pulled the ball up just before the ropes and flicked it to Sachin to throw. Sachin, with the strongest arm in the Indian team, threw the ball to the longest distance and the ball thudded into Karthik's gloves at the far end, and he had the bails off before Asim Kamal (6) got back for the third run. The first wicket for the spinners came after Lunch as Anil Kumble had Younis caught at second slip by V V S Laxman and ended the Pakistani vice-captain’s splendid knock of 147 runs. India then piled on the pressure with close-in fielders and tight bowling and it resulted in the dismissal of the last Test’s hero Kamran Akmal. The Pakistani keeper scored a century in the last Test, but today he fell on a duck spooning a simple catch to Sachin at mid-on off Harbhajan Singh. With Akmal’s dismissal, Harbhajan became the most successful off-spinner for India, with 190 wickets, overtaking the great Erapalli Prasanna. The other hero of Mohali, Abdul Razzaq (17) then became Kumble’s second victim edging a simple catch to Dravid at first slip. Ganguly took a running catch to dismiss Mohammad Sami (7) off Harbhajan and Kumble then took the last Pakistani wicket by having Mohammad Khalil (4) caught at mid-off by Virender Sehwag. Danish Kaneria (3) remained not out as Pakistan were bowled out for 393 runs in their first innings and that meant India had a slender of lead of 14 runs in hand. The Indian second innings got off to a disastrous start even though Sehwag hit three fours in the first over bowled by Khalil. Sami on his first ball of the innings shattered the stumps of Gautam Gambhir (1) by a yorker. Sami struck again in his next over when Sehwag (15) edged his delivery onto his stumps. India looked in trouble at that stage at 23/2, but from there on Dravid and Sachin began a superb counter-attack by unleashing an array of strokes. Sachin, though tentative in the beginning, began to play splendidly after getting off the mark and soon overtook Dravid. The Maestro flicked the incoming deliveries through mid-wicket and square-leg region for fours. And the outswingers were sent to the covers and point boundary by his rampaging willow. Sachin soon reached his 41st Test 50 when he cut a Razzaq delivery to deep point for four. This was the third consecutive fifty of the series for the Batting Genius. And when Sachin is in full flow, there seems to be no delivery that can dismiss him. But a human error can. Razzaq bowled a bouncer in fading light, and the ball passed from very near to Sachin’s bat and swung after passing it and Akmal had to dive to collect it. Razzaq appealed half-heartedly, no one else in the Pakistani team appealed and the umpire Steve Bucknor raised his finger and it seemed that he was waiting to do so. There was ample daylight between Sachin’s bat and the ball but Bucknor, standing in his 100th Test, failed to notice it. Sachin was understandably aghast and visibly upset and left the field shaking his head. And this is not the first time that Bucknor has given Sachin out even though the Maestro was clearly not out. Sachin scored 52 runs off 91 balls with nine exquisite fours and added 98 runs for the third wicket with Dravid. Dravid carried on from where he had left in the first innings. The Indian vice-captain matched Sachin shot by shot and executed the drives and flicks with great elan and brought up his fifty with a pull to square leg for four. With two days left in this Test and a lead of 147 runs in hand, India should be looking to bat till Tea tomorrow and give Pakistan a target in excess of 350. But till now this Test has been a roller-coaster ride as far as the fortunes are concerned. That precisely, is the beauty of Test cricket. in-depth coverage > India-Pakistan Cricket Series 2005 > |
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