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Cricket
By Sanjay Rajan
HIGH FIVES: An ecstatic Anil Kumble celebrates the departure of Adam Gilchrist, his tenth victim of the match, on the third day of the second Test on Saturday. - Photo: V.V. Krishnan
CHENNAI, OCT. 16. The smile was back on Sourav Ganguly's face; more a smirk than a smile, really, the kind which appears when the Indian captain knows that he is on course to a victory. This time it surfaced after Anil Kumble pushed back Adam Gilchrist's leg-stump, a short while before close on the third day of the second Test for the TVS Cup Border-Gavaskar Trophy at the Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday. With the danger man dismissed, and Australia only nine runs ahead with six wickets in hand after having wiped out the 141-run first innings deficit, India is in a strong position to level the series here. Notwithstanding the situation that it finds itself in, Australia can be proud of its stand-in captain Gilchrist, who walked in at No. 3 when the Indian spinners were threatening mayhem. The left-hander took the bull by the horns, as he batted and led from the front to very nearly regain the initiative. It was always going to be difficult for Gilchrist's men after Md. Kaif and Parthiv Patel — both of whom notched up half-centuries — helped the host achieve a substantial first innings cushion on a pitch that was clearly going to assist those spinners capable of making an impact on it. With India ahead by 56 runs on first innings overnight, Kaif and Patel added 44 more runs to take their seventh-wicket stand to 102. It wasn't just the runs, it was about surviving the first hour, when the quality Australian pace attack was deadly. The second new ball was just 12 overs old. Kaif — who reportedly had to be administered drips, after severe dehydration led to his developing cramps — and Patel were up to every challenge posed by the Australian attack. Michael Kasprowicz, and not Glenn McGrath, opened the attack with Jason Gillespie. Kasprowicz possesses a lethal off-cutter, which is what makes him a dangerous customer. Warne was introduced in the ninth over of the day. The blond leg-spinner went on to record his maiden five-wicket haul against India, but at no point was he on top of the batsmen.
Dominant role
Kaif, who last played in a Test in 2001, batted like an experienced campaigner. The Uttar Pradesh batsmen has an easy approach; there is decisiveness about his defence. The left-handed Patel is attractive. He cover-drove McGrath to the fence and when `Pigeon' came around the wicket, Patel drove him with as much flourish for two runs. The two young men were dominant, as they reached their individual half-centuries in chinaman bowler Simon Katich's first over. But Patel departed immediately, gloving Warne behind, playing for the turn. Kasprowicz returned in place of Katich, and Warne bowled with three men around Anil Kumble's bat. But the Bangalorean batted in an inspired manner, driving Kasprowicz through the covers for a boundary and on-drove Warne to the fence. At lunch, India was 363 for seven. Kaif made a brief appearance in the middle, post lunch, before retiring hurt. The Indian innings ended within 23 minutes; Kumble stepped out and was beaten and bowled by Warne, Harbhajan was caught and bowled by Warne and Kaif was run out two deliveries after he returned.
Zaheer bowls well
Justin Langer and Matthew Hayden provided Australia a 53-run start; the two should have been dismissed for nothing, but 'keeper Parthiv Patel (and later Dravid) couldn't hold Hayden's edge off Zaheer Khan, and Langer survived a close leg-before appeal off Irfan Pathan. Pathan troubled Langer constantly, while Zaheer bowled extremely well; working up a good pace and bowling up to the batsman. Off-spinner Harbhajan was introduced in the ninth over and Kumble, who wrecked the Australian first innings, in the 15th. The leg-spinner had Hayden edging behind, where Parthiv dropped him, again. Langer is a no-nonsense cricketer, who possesses a Steve Waugh-like approach to the game. However, he was the first to be dismissed, edging to Dravid at slip, driving the ever-accurate Kumble away from his body. Ganguly possibly didn't expect Gilchrist to walk in at No. 3. Australia's stand-in skipper had been toying with the idea of manning the crucial position in the absence of Ricky Ponting. Simon Katich had batted beautifully in this position in the Bangalore Test. But then, Katich is a defensive player and the situation here demanded aggression: and, who better than Gilchrist himself to take charge. Hayden let his side down for a second time in the match — a settled batsman is not expected to lose his wicket — the opener played across the line to Kumble. The leg-spinner took three wickets today, for a 10-wicket haul in Test cricket for the sixth time. Gilchrist put on 45 runs with Katich, before the latter was trapped leg-before by Zaheer. Gilchrist departed a short while later. Australia's coach John Buchanan said, "we'd have obviously preferred to finish without losing a wicket, but we a still have three quality batsmen. We'll try and make it hard for India."
SCOREBOARD
Australia bowling: McGrath 25-4-74-0 (nb-3, w-2), Gillespie 35-8-70-2, Warne 42.3-5-125-6, Kasprowicz 25-5-65-1 (nb-3), Lehmann 5-0-26-0, Katich 2-0-7-0.
India bowling: Pathan 6-2-17-0, Zaheer 10-3-15-1 (nb-1), Harbhajan 18-3-46-0, Kumble 15-1-53-3, Sehwag 1-0-5-0.
Weather: Partly cloudy with a possibility of a shower. Temperature is likely to touch a maximum of 34 degrees Celsius, and dip to a minimum of 25.
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