Sanghvi stakes claim with splendid display

By G. Viswanath

NAGPUR, FEB. 17. Australia's first innings on Indian soil lasted five hours and two minutes. To have bowled out a team which has been on a roll, winning fifteen Test matches in a period of sixteen months was no small achievement by the India `A' team, the members of which assembled here after nightfall on Friday and took the field without a net session. It was an admirable performance from the home team that bowled at virtually Australia's Test match batting line-up. The only batsman missing in the top order was Mark Waugh.

But even in the five hours of such a fine display in which two left-arm bowlers, seamer Ashish Nehra and spinner Rahul Sanghvi were prominent at different stages of the first day's play, the proverbial `being so near and yet so far,' was evident.

India `A' was close to skittling out Australia inside three hours, what with a dream start. But the Indian bowlers let a wonderful opportunity slip by, allowing two practitioners of fast bowling - Jason Gillespie and Michael Kasprowicz - to build a splendid 155-run eighth- wicket partnership that eventually was responsible for Australia posting a face-saving first innings total of 291.

Kasprowicz who was picked as a fourth seamer by the Australian selectors only because of a crippling elbow injury to Brett Lee, bested his previous highest score in first class cricket (73 for Leicestershire vs Hampshire in 1999) by 19 runs. Gillespie fell one run short of his previous highest of 58 for South Australia against Western Australia in Perth four seasons ago.

Nehra troubles top-order

But before the Australian speedsters decided to put their heart and soul and raised their hands to rescue Australia's first innings, Nehra, unseen and unknown to Steve Waugh's team, showed speed and spirit in his first spell of seam bowling. He might have been lucky winning an appeal for leg before against Justin Langer from umpire B.K. Sadashiv, but there was no doubt in the dismissals of Michael Slater and captain Steve Waugh.

Last October, the Australians had to contend with a robust left- arm fast bowler in Zaheer Khan in the quarterfinal match of the ICC Knock-out in Nairobi; today it was Nehra who troubled the Australian top-order, slanting the ball in from over the wicket and perhaps beating them for pace, too.

The element of pace might have surprised the Australians. The last time Nehra's name was heard at the highest level of Indian cricket was two years ago in Colombo for India's Asian Test Championship match against Sri Lanka.

Nehra played that Test and took a wicket, but since his return from Colombo two years ago, he was never again discussed by the national selectors. This season he has been among the wickets for Delhi and North Zone and the selectors were keen to have a second look at the Delhi seamer.

He had Slater bowled of the underedge and Waugh nick to Nayan Mongia, trying to force a shot away from his body. In between, he had Langer lbw with a delivery that hastened off the pitch, but the ball appeared to be climbing at the point of impact on the batsman's back pad.

Nehra's first three overs cost him 16 runs, but he also got India `A' three quick and good wickets. His next ten overs cost him 62 runs, a high percentage of it being scored by Kasprowicz (dropped by Mohanty at deep mid wicket when he was on 20) and Gillespie. Laxman might have delayed the second spell for Nehra, not calling him to bowl immediately after Australia lost its seventh wicket at 133. He was called to bowl after the eighth-wicket pair had already put on a century partnership. What Nehra proved was that he was an attacking and wicket-taking bowler. He took wickets with the new ball which actually put the pressure on Australia.

In what was the first show of defiance and aggression, left- hander Matthew Hayden and Ricky Ponting put in a near- hundred runs for the fourth wicket. Ponting took time to settle down before playing some firm shots, straight and square of the wicket, mostly off Mohanty. He hit nine fours in his 82 minute stay before top-edging off-spinner Harbhajan Singh to Mohanty at mid wicket. Ponting became the first Australian batsman to make a half century on the tour.

Slump after lunch

Australia's problems started immediately after lunch and after the dismissal of Damien Martyn, who fell a bat-pad victim to Harbhajan. Sanghvi soon had Hayden and Gilchrist, caught at mid- on and mid-wicket respectively. Sanghvi then broke the big partnership between Kasprowicz (92, 12 x 4s, 3 x 6) and Gillespie (57, 9 x 4), when he took a full-blooded drive of the latter with both hands.

Damien Fleming played straight into the hands of substitute Mohammad Kaif, but Colin Miller denied a hat-trick for Sanghvi. However, the left-arm spinner took his tally to five when Kasprowicz slashed him to point fielder Dinesh Mongia. Sanghvi's five-wicket haul in 18.1 overs must have made him front-runner for the left-arm spinner's position for the first Test. Harbhajan bowled well within his limitations, but leg- spinner Balaji Rao disappointed, conceding 44 from 36 balls.

There was no palpable alarms for the Indian openers Shiv Sundar Das and Sadagopan Ramesh, though the latter once took his eyes off the ball to be hit on the face in spite of the protective helmet. Ramesh hit nine fours in his undefeated 43, but Das fell an unfortunate run out victim, Steve Waugh's throw from third man reaching at comfortable height for Gilchrist to whip off the bails.

It ought to be a good day's work by the India `A' team, having bowled Australia out for 291 and made 71 for the loss of one wicket. It would have been fantastic had the spinners crushed their rivals under their feet after lunch. It was a big miss, India `A' might not get a second chance in the next 12 hours of play in this first warm-up game for the Australians.

The scores:

Australia - 1st innings: M. Slater b Nehra 5, M. Hayden c Mohanty b Sanghvi 49, J. Langer lbw b Nehra 8, S. Waugh c N. Mongia b Nehra 0, R. Ponting c Mohanty b Harbhajan 56, D. Martyn c Das b Harbhajan 6, A. Gilchrist c Harbhajan b Sanghvi 5, J. Gillespie c & b Sanghvi 57, M. Kasprowicz c D. Mongia b Sanghvi 92, D. Fleming c (sub) Kaif b Sanghvi 0, C. Miller (not out) 0, Extras (lb-4, nb-9) 13, Total (in 69.1 overs) 291.

Fall of wickets: 1-6, 2-24, 3-25, 4-116, 5-128, 6-128, 7-133, 8- 288, 9-288.

India `A' bowling: Mohanty 12-2-62-0, Nehra 13-2-78-3, Harbhajan 20-3-63-2, Sanghvi 18.1-8-40-5, Rao 6- 0-44-0.

India `A' - 1st innings: S.S. Das (run out) 12, S. Ramesh (batting) 43, V.V.S. Laxman (batting) 6, Extras (lb-4, nb-6) 10, Total (for one wkt. in 18 overs) 71.

Fall of wickets: 1-36.

Australia bowling: Gillespie 5-2-19-0, Fleming 5-1-17-0, Miller 4-0-14-0, Kasprowicz 4-0-17-0.

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