Test interestingly poised

By S. Dinakar

KANDY, AUG. 23. This Test match could hot up. Two days of intense cricket, with fortunes swinging one way, then the other, and the contest has interesting possibilities.

From an Indian perspective, there is a big `If' though. `If' India strikes early on Friday, and does not allow the Lankans to stretch the fourth innings target beyond 250, the team will have a fighting chance to level the series.

The Asgiriya Stadium pitch, more inclined towards pace till this stage, could start assisting spin from the fourth day, and Muttiah Muralitharan could be a distinct threat.

When stumps were drawn on the second day of the second Test on Thursday, Sri Lanka, with a first innings lead of 42, was 52 for one in the second. Importantly for India, the dangerous Sanath Jayasuriya was out of its way, inner-edging Zaheer Khan on to his stumps.

Marvan Atapattu with an elegant 30 and Kumara Sangakkara (13), who was lucky when his miscued hook off Zaheer was put down with 'keeper Sameer Dighe and Harvinder Singh making a hash of the opportunity, being the unbeaten batsmen.

The Indians could have been in a position of strength had they closed out the Lankan innings after making considerable inroads on Wednesday. That opportunity was lost and on Thursday, when the side required a big innings from one of its specialist batsmen, there was none to deliver it.

And it was a brilliant hundred that pulled the chestnuts out of the fire for the Lankans, a priceless 104 (235m, 149b, 17x4, 1x5) by the gifted Mahela Jayawardene. A hundred of rare quality that pegged the Indian attack back. Light of feet, possessing quick reflexes and decisive in his shot selection, Jayawardene's positive approach shone through even when Sri Lanka was under considerable pressure.

On Thursday, the Indians began their reply 15 minutes into the day's play after Harvinder Singh ended Chaminda Vaas' brave innings (42, 64b, 7x4) with the third ball of the day (the Lankan innings ended at its overnight score of 274). And India was just 11 when Shiv Sundar Das was adjudged leg-before by umpire Wijewardene, the ball from Chaminda Vaas holding its line, even as the little batsman shaped to play on the on-side.

Rahul Dravid, back at No 3., twice flicked Vaas to the fence, but the experienced left-arm seamer then straightened one from over the wicket, the ball striking the vice-captain well in line, the only element of doubt being the height.

Ganguly's horror run continued, despite the skipper promoting himself to No. 4. The left-hander, after essaying a couple of attractive strokes square of the wicket on the off- side, reached out to drive left-arm paceman Ruchira Perera, and Hashan Tillekeratne took a high blinder at gully, latching to the rapidly traveling ball in a flash.

Mohammed Kaif was shaping well when he was done in by a lifting delivery from Dilhara Fernando, the looping ball pocketed by a diving Atapattu at gully. Opener Sadagopan Ramesh fought hard for his 47 (95b, 5x4), and came up with some attractive shots too like clipping Fernando delightfully off his legs to the square- leg fence. However, the left-hander was consumed by Fernando, nicking a delivery that moved a shade away from him, to 'keeper Sangakkara.

And when Hemang Badani pulled Ruchira Perera straight into the hands of Fernando at mid-wicket, India had lost its last specialist batsman and the score now was 154 for six. Harbhajan Singh joined wicket-keeper batsmen Dighe at this stage and the two, with the young Sardar in particular batting with refreshing freedom, raised 64 crucial runs for the seventh wicket in just 55 minutes.

The Punjab cricketer took on Fernando, smashing him through covers and then pulling him, before turning his attention to Muralitharan. Before he finally gave Muralitharan the charge to be bowled, Harbhajan 44 (72b, 9x4) had infused life into the Indian batting. Sameer Dighe (28) batted usefully too before Vaas, the pick of the Lankan bowlers with four scalps, trapped the wicket-keeper batsman leg-before. Vaas led the side off the field.

On Wednesday, it was a batsman who hogged the limelight for Lanka. Indeed, the side, after Ganguly opted to field under cloudy conditions, made a disastrous start with batting mainstay Sanath Jayasuriya perishing following a horrendous mix-up with Marvan Atapattu. The Lankan skipper was stranded at the non- striker's end, when he attempted a second run after glancing Zaheer.

Local hero Kumara Sangakkara and Atapattu proceeded to play some spanking strokes, the former standing up on his toes and crashing Prasad through the covers and the latter cutting Harvinder stylishly to the point fence.

Both had moved into their 30s when they departed, the left-handed Sangakkara, reaching out for a front-foot drive off Ganguly, getting a thick edge, and Ramesh diving to his left at gully to pull off a sensational catch, and Atapattu, inner-edging an angling Zaheer Khan delivery on to his stumps, shaping to leave, but unable to take his bat away in time. An unusual dismissal.

Russell Arnold did not last long, pushing at a Zaheer delivery that straightened from around the off-stump, and Dravid completed the catch at first slip. Hashan Tillekeratne, finding life difficult in his come-back, scratched around for 56 minutes, before slashing at Prasad for Dighe to do the rest. Half the side had departed for 138 and the Indian seamers had their tails up. Suresh Perera-the Lankan selectors decided on the brave course by playing this all-rounder under a `chucking cloud'-joined Jayawardene and this was the beginning of the Lankan comeback.

Jayawardene and Perera had added 51 for the sixth wicket in even time when Perera was trapped leg-before by Ganguly.

With Vaas Jayawardene marched towards his hundred, steering and glancing Zaheer for boundaries, going down on his knees to caress Prasad through the covers and reaching the three- figure mark (144b, 17x4, 1x5) by swinging off-spinner Harbhajan Singh to the mid-wicket fence. Jayawardene soon departed, snared outside the off-stump by a persistent Prasad.

``I rate this among my best hundreds. The conditions were difficult for batting in the morning with the ball seaming around,'' he said later.

Vaas carried on defiantly, and though Lanka lost a couple of more late wickets-Dighe took a particularly good low catch in front of first slip when Fernando nicked Zaheer-the close of play score of 274 for nine represented a reasonable fightback by Sri Lanka.

Zaheer operated with fire in certain spells, Prasad was persistent, Harvinder striving for pace sprayed the ball around, and Ganguly, finally giving himself a long bowl, made the batsmen play more often that not, and picked up a couple of wickets too. Harbhajan, introduced into the attack just before tea, was grossly under bowled though. There was excessive appealing by the Indians too, a tendency that can prove counter- productive.

Scoreboard

SRI LANKA - 1st innings:

Marvan Atapattu b Zaheer           39
(108m, 79b, 6x4)
Sanath Jayasuriya (run out)         3
(21m, 8b)
Kumara Sangakkara c Ramesh
b Ganguly                          31
(79m, 51b, 4x4)
Mahela Jayawardene c Dighe
b Prasad                          104
(235m, 149b, 17x4, 1x5)
Russel Arnold c Dravid b Zaheer     5
(38m, 27b)
Hashan Tillekeratne c Dighe
b Prasad                           10 

(56m, 32b, 1x4)
Suresh Perera lbw b Ganguly        18
(69m, 31b, 3x4)
Chaminda Vaas b Harvinder          42
(110m, 64b, 7x4)
Muttiah Muralitharan
b Harvinder Singh                   5
(16m, 10b, 1x4)
Dilhara Fernando c Dighe b Zaheer   4
(34m, 24b, 1x4)
Ruchira Perera (not out)            0
(4m, 1b)
Extras (lb-7, nb-5, w-1)           13
                                  ---
Total                             274
                                  ---

Fall  of  wickets:  1-18 (Jayasuriya),  2-78  (Sangakkara),  3-82 
(Atapattu),  4-101 (Arnold), 5-138 (Tillekeratne), 6-189  (Suresh 
Perera),  7-  232  (Jayawardene),  8-245  (Muralitharan),   9-274 
(Fernando).

India  bowling: Zaheer 22-6-62-3, Harvinder 14.3-1-62- 2,  Prasad 
18-4-52-2  (w-1, nb-2), Ganguly 17-5-69-2 (nb-3), Harbhajan  7-1- 
22-0.

INDIA- 1st innings:

Shiv Sundar Das lbw b Vaas           8
(18m, 17b, 1x4)
Sadagopan Ramesh c Sangakkara
b Fernando                          47
(152m, 95b, 5x4)
Rahul Dravid lbw b Vaas             15
(33m, 19b, 3x4)
Sourav Ganguly c Tillekeratne
b R. Perera                         18
(38m, 18b, 2x4)
Mohammed Kaif c Atapattu
b Fernando                          17
(68m, 44b, 2x4)
Hemang Badani c Fernando
b R. Perera                         16
(76m, 52b, 1x4)
Sameer Dighe lbw b Vaas             28
(108m, 79b, 5x4)
Harbhajan Singh b Vaas              44
(60m, 72b, 9x4)
Zaheer Khan c Tillekeratne
b Muralitharan                       0
(30m, 9b)
Venkatesh Prasad (not out)           1
(25m, 15b)
Harvinder Singh b Muralitharan       6
(20m, 17b, 1x4) 

Extras (lb-7, nb-23, w-2)           32
                                   ---
Total                              232
                                   ---

Fall  of wickets: 1-11 (Das), 2-36 (Dravid), 3-68  (Ganguly),  4- 
120 (Kaif), 5-123 (Ramesh), 6-154 (Badani), 7-218 (Dighe),  8-223 
(Zaheer), 9-223 (Harbhajan).

Sri  Lanka  bowling: Vaas 21-3-65-4 (nb-13),  Fernando  14-2-66-2 
(nb-9),  R. Perera 7-2-23-2, Muralitharan 20.1-5-62-2 (nb-1),  S. 
Perera 2-0-9-0 (w-2).

SRI LANKA- 2nd innings:

Marvan Atapattu (not out)              30
(80m, 61b, 5x4)
Sanath Jayasuriya b Zaheer              6
(19m, 5b, 1x4)
Kumara Sangakkara (not out)            13
(50m, 43b, 1x4)
Extras (lb-2, nb-1)                     3
                                       ---
Total (for one wkt.)                   52
                                       ---

Fall of wicket: 1-20 (Jayasuriya).

India bowling: Zaheer 7-1-29-1, Harvinder 3-1-8-0 (nb- 1), Prasad 
4-1-4-0, Ganguly 2-1-2-0, Harbhajan 2-1-7-0.

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