A disciplined knock

Published : Oct 20, 2001 00:00 IST

G. VISWANATH

THE Indian captain Sourav Ganguly did not pull his punches, on and off the field on what was yet another remarkable day of cricket, when a team batting second challenged and chased a high total of 279 and won the match. But the result of the match left Ganguly fuming because he thought his new ball bowlers Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad did not bowl well enough to make his great effort of 127 (126b, 14 x 4, 5 x 6) and Sachin Tendulkar's 101 (129b, 10 x 4) meaningful.

The Indians did not seem to have the heart to stay in the game after the first spells of Srinath and Prasad had yielded 100 plus runs to the South African opening pair of Gary Kirsten (133 not out, 153 balls, 13 x 4) and Herschelle Gibbs. The defeated captain said at the press conference: "If we cannot defend a total of 279, then we are asking for trouble." He squarely blamed the bowlers, without actually mentioning anybody's name.

The 'Prince of Kolkata' felt let down by the experienced bowlers, one of whom has played for the country for 10 years, and another for six years and more. There were other reasons, too, for Ganguly to feel riled. He himself had come with a painful index finger of his right hand, being hit on the top hand knuckle by fast bowler Mornantau Hayward in India's first warm up match against Nicky Oppenheimer XI at Randjesfontein. He did not let the injury bother him and surprised the South African fast and seam attack that lasted for nearly two thirds of the Indian innings.

While he had shown a certain commitment, there was also a splendid effort for the team's cause from Sachin Tendulkar. It was his first big game for India in three months, having spent the intervening time between the final of the Coca Cola series in Harare and the first match of the Standard Bank tri-series, attending to his troubling great toe of his right leg. In the context of the proceedings, when Ganguly was going great guns at one end, Tendulkar, strived not so much to vie with his captain, but to keep his end safe which resulted in the first wicket stand being stretched to 193.

In the light of these happenings when India's top two batsmen took the fight to the South African camp in the very first match of the tri-series, the lack of a similar application by Srinath and Prasad and the other bowlers who followed them, made Ganguly livid. He had every reason to believe that the opening match was in his pocket and a defeat would have jolted the South African psyche. Things were going so well for the Indians until the second session at The Wanderers.

Five years ago, the Indians had failed to push the South Africans to their limits. The home team had won four of the five matches of the tri-series, the first final at Durban being forced to be abandoned because of a rain storm. The Indians had tasted two victories here 10 years ago in the course of the seven-match series. South Africa started as the favourite, having returned home from Zimbabwe with three wins in its bag. A team winning by margins of 158, 143 and by six wickets deserved the favourite's tag.

Pollock did not believe that there was scope for the left-arm spinner Claude Henderson to play a significant role on an unused pitch at The Wanderers after the completion of the last season. He might have also dropped Henderson because of the fact that Indians are better players of spin. What he did not anticipate was a very calculated assault - not a rush of the blood - by the Indian openers, Ganguly and Tendulkar.

It was not for the first time that Ganguly and Tendulkar had been successful. They have done it before on many occasions. It was a fine understanding between them that had resulted in the world record opening stand of 252 against Sri Lanka in a final of the tri-series at the Premadasa a few years ago. But the important aspect at 'The Wanderers' was Ganguly's remarkable show, playing the line as well as length, to near perfection. He appeared to take chances - he might have missed connecting the ball at least four times - but it was just a question of carrying that little bit of luck with him.

His option to take on Ntini, dancing down the pitch, appeared pre-determined. It worked and completely upset Ntini's line. This was also a match in which Ganguly attempted to hook the ball pitched on the on side. That his individual score in the stand of 193 was 127 is an illuminating detail of the power of his batting he exercised over the South African bowlers. Tendulkar continued to look at things in the same way as he had done until the point of dismissal of his captain, and completed his 30th century.

Pollock admitted he made a mistake after winning the toss. "I thought there will be pace and bounce and that the ball will go through. I was a bit worried initially, but we managed to check them in the end." Pollock was obviously referring to the 86 runs made off 90 balls after the departure of Ganguly, who got to his 17th three-figure knock.

But the batsman for whom The Wanderers has been a lucky ground turned the match around for his team. Though it was Gibbs who exploded into action, it was Kirsten who, once again, showed he's adept at dealing with such difficult situations in an efficient manner. There is no denying the fact that the Indian new ball bowlers gave the left hander the leeway, but it must also be said that on a pitch on which there was predictable bounce, things had completely changed for the better for the batsmen.

The 114 runs Gibbs and Kirsten made deflated the spirit of the Indians. Ganguly shuffled his bowlers by rote, perhaps knowing well that the match had gone out of his control and was drifting towards South Africa's way. The third seamer Ajit Agarkar contained the damage to some extent in his first six overs, but on a day when Anil Kumble was not able to keep the run rate down even in a single over, things were not going right for India. The sledge-hammer blows that Lance Klusener gave Srinath only rubbed it on the Indians and Ganguly in particular. He was, indeed, hurt. The Indian captain's specific remark indicated the unimaginative bowling of the seamers. "There was no variation or change of pace. We have to learn to win on good wickets. I am very disappointed we were not able to defend 279," he said.

The South Africans were happy that someone among them put his hand up and steered his side to an emphatic win. Kirsten was praised by his captain, but the left-hander himself remained well composed and calm, not showing the slightest hint of being excited. "It was a good batting pitch. All I had to do was punch the ball in the gaps," said Kirsten whose 133 was his highest at 'The Wanderers'. The last statement was made by India's coach John Wright: "You don't score 279 in the first match of the tour everyday, especially at the beginning of the tour. This is a positive aspect we have to take into the next matches."

The scores:

India: S. C. Ganguly c Boucher b Kemp 127; S. R. Tendulkar c Gibbs b Kallis 101; R. Dravid c McKenzie b Nel 1; Yuveraj Singh c Kirsten b Klusener 14; V. Sehwag c Gibbs b Pollock 5; A. Agarkar (not out) 12; S. S. Das (not out) 5; Extras (lb-4, nb-6, w-4) 14. Total (for five wickets in 50 overs) 279.

Fall of wickets: 1-193, 2-198, 3-242, 4-257, 5-263.

South Africa bowling: Pollock 10-0-56-1, Nel 10-1-47-1, Kallis 8-0-45-1, Ntini 7-0-33-0, Klusener 9-0-54-1, Kemp 6-0-40-1.

South Africa: G. Kirsten (not out) 133; H. Gibbs c Dasgupta b Srinath 48; J. Kallis b Agarkar 39; J. Rhodes b Srinath 20; L. Klusener c Dravid b Prasad 17; N. McKenzie (not out) 8; Extras (b-4, lb-4, nb-5, w-2) 15. Total (for four wickets in 48.2 overs) 280.

Fall of wickets: 1-114, 2-207, 3-242, 4-270.

India bowling: Prasad 7.2-0-51-1, Srinath 10-0-59-2, Agarkar 10-0-45-1, Kumble 10-0-54-0, Tendulkar 9-0-51-0, Ganguly 2-0-12-0.

GARY KIRSTEN is quite different from a majority of left-handers in the cricketing world in that he is not the flamboyant type. He is essentially a worker of the ball, playing simple shots based on correct footwork. The difference between him and the dazzling type was evident in the first match of the Standard Bank tri-series at The Wanderers Bowl in Johannesburg.

Three hours after India's captain Sourav Ganguly had hammered a brilliant 17th century in limited over internationals, Kirsten countered with an immaculate undefeated 133 and won the 'Man of the Match' award. His huge effort won a very important opening match for South Africa.

The left-hander from Western Province came into his 157 one-day international with 5776 runs and with an impressive average of 40.88. He had scored 10 centuries before taking strike against the Indians at one of the oldest and traditional Test venues in South Africa. It was essential of a batsman like him to look upon the task as a challenging one because South Africa needed 280 runs to win the match. It was the highest target set by a team at The Wanderers in limited-over matches. Kirsten did not disappoint his team, his captain Shaun Pollock, nor himself and the near capacity crowd as made his 11th one-day century.

The role he played was nothing new to him. As an opener he has fought many a battle for South Africa in Tests and one-day internationals. In Test match cricket, he has the responsibility of seeing the new ball attack through, though his partner, Herschelle Gibbs does it in a completely different way. Gibbs likes to dominate the bowlers, whereas Kirsten prefers to wear down the opening bowlers, which is not an easy thing to do on a fresh wicket on the morning of the first day's play. In limited-over matches, Kirsten gives himself more freedom and has adapted nicely to the short version of the game.

Though Gibbs sent the ball speeding to the fence three times to start the South African reply in great style, it was Kirsten who began to plunder runs off the wayward Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad in the first 10 to 12 overs. "We always think the first 15 overs are very important," said Kirsten after winning the 'Man of the Match' award. Kirsten got enough opportunities to find the gaps on the off side and punch the ball for fours. He was the dominant partner in the opening stand of 114 runs after which he played an extremely responsible innings in the company of Jacques Kallis, Jonty Rhodes and Lance Klusener.

He reached to his century off the third ball of the 34th over, whereas Sourav Ganguly's century came off the third ball of the 35th over. Ganguly lifted the ball five times into the stands, while Kirsten did not do it even once. Without his disciplined effort, South Africa might have found itself in a spot of bother. But after reaching the three-figure mark for the 11th time in one-day internationals, he did not remove his helmet to show the South African flag painted on his scalp. He's stopped doing that for a long time. He scored his 133 off 153 balls with 13 hits to the fence. For a batsman who had been named 'South African Cricketer of the Year' three times in a row, his endeavour at 'The Wanderers' against the Indians, chasing a big total, must be deemed a great effort.

More stories from this issue

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment