Ganguly fashions easy victory

By Vijay Lokapally

JAMSHEDPUR, MARCH 12. It was a battle of wits between two captains and Sourav Ganguly won it hands down. The left-hander had been talking of the need to personally make an impact on the minds of his colleagues and here was a stirring deed to prove that he indeed believes in leading by example.

The banner hanging from the dressing room gave the message to the Indian camp. `The Will To Win' it read and there was a striking urge to improve among the Indians, so ably led by Sourav Ganguly, who can do nothing wrong these days.

The convincing six-wicket victory fashioned by Ganguly and his men put South Africa in a difficult spot, what with the first two of the five-match series going India's way. The drop in form of some South Africans favoured India, which produced all- round excellence to shut out the South Aricans quite effectively.

In crafting his 12th one-day century, Ganguly confirmed that captaincy will not be a burden. The responsibility has come as a motivating factor for the graceful batsman who played some silken and some robust strokes in his matchwinning knock. All four of his sixes were clean hits and highlighted the splendid timing that he combined with power when executing such shots.

Winning the toss and then carving a neat innings was a worthy contribution from South African skipper Hansie Cronje but he could not inspire an improved show from his mates who had failed to defend 301 at Kochi the other day. It was thus a highly taxing task to prevent India from scaling a target of 200 and Ganguly ensured the victory came with the spirits of the side soaring.

``They batted sensibly and combined aggression with defence'' admitted Cronje as he paid tributes to Ganguly and his mates. The Indian skipper was humble ``the spinners did their job after the seamers had bowled well. It was not easy to bat and I concentrated on staying right through the innings. I knew I had to play the big shots to keep the tempo and I am glad we have proved we have the matchwinning guys in the team.''

The bowlers worked wonders for India in the morning from the time Ajit Agarkar provided the breakthrough. It was a collective assault by the Indians with every bowler playing a significant role. T. Kumaran was whipped in his opening spell but he returned to make a good impression.

Anil Kumble was on the spot right through while left- arm Sunil Joshi cast a lethal net with his variety and deserved the rich haul that came his way. Joshi made the batsmen play and was rewarded for his positive bowling even as Sachin Tendulkar once again commanded respect with his splendid guiles.

An outstanding feature of the Indian performance today was the work behind the stumps by Sameer Dighe, who picked up four catches and effected a couple of good stops. After the nightmare at Kochi, the wicketkeeper had been under severe strain but he redeemed himself with a display befitting his captain's expectations.

The pitch, which was a trifle slow and low in bounce than expected, played on the minds of the South Africans who appeared unsure of their footwork against the slowly-turning ball. From the time Gary Kirsten played across the line in the first over, the team did not recover to post a total which could made the opposition work hard.

As Ganguly made some well-thought bowling changes, the South Africans did not get an opportunity to come to terms with the situation. All the batsmen got their eye in but failed to convert their innings into formidable contributions despite Cronje striving and playing flawless cricket.

Cronje alone could read the Indian bowlers and the pitch which saw the ball stop a few times. But for the South African skipper's ability to play the ball on merit the Indians would have romped home with a lot to spare. Cronje's knock kept the game alive even if the total was always going to be tough to defend when a couple of bowlers were off-colour.

The marked difference between the Indian and South African bowlers was a key factor this day. Led by a determined Agarkar, who bowled a nagging line and seamed the ball deftly, the Indians never allowed the South Africans to relax and regroup. Rahul Dravid was spared the task of bowling much since Tendulkar did a good job and the duo of Agarkar and Joshi struck a wonderful rhythm to rattle the opposition.

In contrast, Cronje lacked the support from his bowlers. The seamers proved ineffective and rapidly faded from the scene while the spinners - Derek Crookes and Pieter Strydom - never made an impact despite Nicky Boje bowling with a big heart. They bowled too short and the Indians relished to feast on them with a flurry of glorious strokes all around the wicket.

Tendulkar struggled to find his timing and succumbed to a very poor stroke, needlessly executed at that stage. Joshi, promoted to unsettle the left-arm spinners in a needless innovation, was foxed when Cronje pressed Crookes into the attack. Ganguly was joined by Dravid and the two came up with a significant partnership that stopped the South Africans in their tracks.

In keeping with the batting trend, Dravid played a loose shot and got out, much to the disappointment of Ganguly at the other end. The Indian skipper kept his focus and in the company of Mohammad Azharuddin carried the team to its goal, even though he slowed down once near his century-mark. For his disciplined essay, however, it was a minor flaw and Ganguly richly deserved the `man of the match' honours. He had truly played the perfect captain on Sunday.

Score Board

SOUTH AFRICA

G. Kirsten b Agarkar 0 (5b) H. Gibbs c Dighe b Joshi 27 (30b, 4x4) J. Kallis c Dighe b Agarkar 18 (27b, 2x4) L. Klusener c Dighe b Tendulkar 19 (31b, 2x4) H. Cronje c Robin b Joshi 71 (87b, 7x4, 1x6) N. Boje c Dighe b Kumaran 28 (45b, 2x4) S. Pollock b Joshi 7 (18b) M. Boucher (not out) 14 (22b) D. Crookes c Ganguly b Joshi 0 (2b) P. Strydom lbw b Kumble 1 (5b) S. Elworthy c and b Agarkar 3 (18b) Extras (lb-6, nb-1, w-4) 11

--- Total (in 47.2 overs) 199 ---

Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Kirsten), 2-41 (Kallis), 3-59 (Gibbs), 4-88 (Klusener), 5-158 (Boje), 6-178 (Cronje), 7-182 (Pollock), 8-182 (Crookes), 9-185 (Strydom).

India bowling: A. Agarkar 9.2-1-34-3, T. Kumaran 8-0- 37-1, S. Joshi 10-1-38-4, A. Kumble 10-0-36-1, S. Tendulkar 9-0-39-1, R. Dravid 1-0-9-0.

INDIA

S. Ganguly (not out) 105 (140b, 10x4, 4x6) S. Tendulkar c Cronje b Pollock 21 (31b, 3x4) S. Joshi lbw b Crookes 0 (2b) R. Dravid c Gibbs b Boje 36 (59b, 4x4)

M. Azharuddin b Cronje 29 (44b, 2x4) A. Jadeja (not out) 2 (9b) Extras (lb-3, nb-2, w-5) 10

--- Total (for four wkts in 47.1 overs) 203 ---

Fall of wickets: 1-33 (Tendulkar), 2-33 (Joshi), 3-121 (Dravid), 4-194 (Azharuddin).

South Africa bowling: Pollock 8-0-25-1, Elworthy 3-1- 17-0, Boje 10-2-34-1, Crookes 10-1-44-1, Strydom 10-0-57-0, Kallis 5-0-19- 0, Cronje 1.1-1-4-1.

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