India packs a wallop

Published : Nov 01, 2008 00:00 IST

Harbhajan Singh greets Amit Mishra after the spinner had taken five wickets in the first innings. Both Harbhajan and Mishra had a jolly good time with the ball.-S. SUBRAMANIUM
Harbhajan Singh greets Amit Mishra after the spinner had taken five wickets in the first innings. Both Harbhajan and Mishra had a jolly good time with the ball.-S. SUBRAMANIUM
lightbox-info

Harbhajan Singh greets Amit Mishra after the spinner had taken five wickets in the first innings. Both Harbhajan and Mishra had a jolly good time with the ball.-S. SUBRAMANIUM

Australia resorted to desperate means on a pitch that continued to play well. The side, taking a pounding mentally and physically, betrayed a lack of belief in its own ability. S. Dinakar reports.

It was an awesome win that was set up by the batsmen and finished by the bowlers. Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, a rollicking and punishing right-left combination, powered the side to bright starts in both the innings. Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly rolled back the years. Then, the bowlers took centre-stage.

Tendulkar became the first man to go past the 12,000-run barrier. Ganguly, the first Indian left-hander to cross 7,000 runs in Tests, produced a gritty century in the first essay and Gambhir stroked his way to a hundred in the second. And Mahendra Singh Dhoni blitzed.

The scoring was brisk, and the Aussie bowlers were put under pressure. The visitors blinked; never were Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne missed more.

The injured Anil Kumble pulled out of the contest but Dhoni batted aggressively in both innings and led in a manner that was attacking and pro-active.

Despite the batting heroics, the famous 320-run win, India highest in terms of runs in Test match cricket, was orchestrated by the bowlers.

The surface for the second Test was no stark, dusty sub-continental tuner. “Home advantage is important but there are certain norms. There is an ICC Match Referee watching. You will not see a repeat of Kanpur,” curator Daljit Singh had said ahead of the match.

Indeed, the Aussies were found out by a disciplined and varied attack that put considerable work on the ball — the pacemen hit the seam with the new ball, bowled cross seam to get the sphere older and then reserve swung it. Their display was high on skill.

The lanky Ishant bowled at a lively pace, hit the deck with a high-arm action and zeroed in, relentlessly, on or around the off-stump. He derives maximum advantage from his height and his wrist and seam position are excellent.

Ishant’s blistering spell on a hot afternoon on day four was among the highlights of the Test. Ricky Ponting, Ishant’s bunny, was cleaned up by a vicious off-cutter. The Australian captain expected the delivery but not the extent or the precision of the inward seam movement.

For someone so young, Ishant’s changes in pace after rolling the fingers across the ball are praiseworthy. The paceman is also clever in the manner he uses his crease after a galloping, rather straight, run-up. For someone who essentially gets the ball to jag back or straighten, he does not really deliver from wide of the crease. Ishant is hard to pick.

Zaheer Khan was outstanding on the morning of day five, snuffing out all Australian hopes with three wickets in four balls. He’s a versatile bowler.

The left-armer can angle the ball across and swing it away from the right-hander. What makes Zaheer special is the accuracy with which he brings the ball into the right-hander.

His two-way movement also means that he can take the ball away from the left-hander; it is here that Matthew Hayden has run into major problems leading to tentative footwork.

Zaheer also has this precious ability to achieve two-way movement from round the wicket. He is using his pace and the crease judiciously, is a threat with the old and the new ball. An admiring Dhoni said, “Zaheer now is at the peak of his ability. He has also shown great commitment.”

A rhythm bowler, Zaheer’s mind and body are in harmony these days. He is on song even if his bowling is not exactly music to the ears of the batsmen. The Zaheer-Ishant pace pairing is among the finest for the country. This is a left-right pair with skill and heart.

The Indians also picked a nugget for the Test. The golden Amit Mishra gleamed under the bright sun. The leg-spinner has immense possibilities. He rips the ball hard and flights it. There is revolution on the ball; it dips and spins. Importantly, he has a strong leg-spinner; he can work his variations around his stock ball.

The debutant was undaunted by names or reputations. He varied his trajectory and used the googly as a surprise weapon. For someone new to Tests, he is a thinking spinner. Mishra went round the wicket to Michael Clarke late on day two and prised out the Aussie with one that straightened from the leg-stump. This was an interesting change of angle and it worked.

Harbhajan Singh, settling effortlessly into the role of the senior spinner, bowled a lovely off-stump line, rightly using his probing off-spinners as the stock ball and employing the doosra to put seeds of doubts in the minds of the batsmen. He was, rightly, slower through the air, which suggested the ball was ‘gripping’ the surface more.

Indeed, Harbhajan bowled with flight and deception. Like Mishra, he too switched his angles in a canny manner. Hayden was threatening to hit his way back to form when Harbhajan drifted one in from round the wicket. Hayden missed a sweep — normally his strength — and was soon walking back on day four.

The Indians bowled with discipline and control to create the pressure. They bowled in partnerships. There was great variety in the attack as well — right-arm pace, left-arm pace, leg-spin, off-spin.

Virtually bankrupt in spin, Australia required its pace merchants to fire like oxygen. But Brett Lee was off-colour and the rest failed to fire. Worse, the brief animated discussion between the skipper and Lee on day four hardly reflected the World Champion in good light.

There was not much application in batting, save Shane Watson in the first innings and Michael Clarke in the second. The Aussies had succumbed psychologically.

Australia resorted to desperate means on a pitch that continued to play well. The side, taking a pounding mentally and physically, betrayed a lack of belief in its second innings.

The Aussies were outplayed in Mohali... by a mile.

THE SCORE

Second Test, Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, October 17 to 21. India won 320 runs.

India 1st innings: G. Gambhir c Haddin b Johnson 67; V. Sehwag c Haddin b Johnson 35; R. Dravid b Lee 39; S. R. Tendulkar c Hayden b Siddle 88; V. V. S. Laxman c Haddin b Johnson 12; S. C. Ganguly c Lee b White 102; I. Sharma c Katich b Siddle 9; M. S. Dhoni lbw b Siddle 92; Harbhajan Singh b White 1; Zaheer Khan (run out) 2; A. Mishra not out 0; Extras (b 4, lb 10, w 5, nb 3) 22; Total 469.

Fall of wickets: 1-70, 2-146, 3-146, 4-163, 5-305, 6-326, 7-435, 8-442, 9-469.

Australia bowling: Lee 24-5-86-1; Siddle 28-5-114-3; Johnson 27-4-85-3; Watson 24-3-71-0; Clarke 7-0-28-0; White 19-0-71-2.

Australia 1st innings: M. L. Hayden b Khan 0; S. M. Katich b Mishra 33; R. T. Ponting lbw b Sharma 5; M. K. Hussey c Dhoni b Sharma 54; M. J. Clarke lbw b Mishra 23; S. R. Watson lbw b Mishra 78; B. J. Haddin b Harbhajan Singh 9; C. L. White b Mishra 5; B. Lee c Dravid b Harbhajan Singh 35; M. G. Johnson not out 9; P. M. Siddle st Dhoni b Mishra 0; Extras (lb 13, nb 4) 17; Total 268.

Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-17, 3-62, 4-102, 5-130, 6-146, 7-167, 8-240, 9-262.

India bowling: Khan 25-7-56-1; Sharma 21-4-68-2; Harbhajan Singh 29-9-60-2; Mishra 26.4-8-71-5.

India 2nd innings: G. Gambhir c Hussey b White 104; V. Sehwag c Haddin b Siddle 90; M. S. Dhoni (not out) 68; S. C. Ganguly c Clarke b Lee 27; S. R. Tendulkar not out 10; Extras (b 3, lb 4, w 5, nb 3) 15; Total (for three wkts. decl.) 314.

Fall of wickets: 1-182, 2-224, 3-290.

Australia bowling: Lee 14-0-61-1; Siddle 15-1-62-1; Johnson 14-0-72-0; White 8-0-48-1; Watson 5-0-20-0; Hussey 8-0-38-0; Clarke 1-0-6-0.

Australia 2nd innings: M. L. Hayden lbw b Harbhajan Singh 29; S. M. Katich c Tendulkar b Harbhajan Singh 20; R. T. Ponting b Sharma 2; M. K. Hussey lbw b Harbhajan Singh 1; M. J. Clarke c Sehwag b Mishra 69; S. R. Watson lbw b Sharma 2; B. J. Haddin b Khan 37; C. L. White c Dhoni b Khan 1; B. Lee b Khan 0; M. G. Johnson c & b Mishra 26; P. M. Siddle not out 0; Extras (b 4, nb 4) 8: Total 195.

Fall of wickets: 1-49, 2-50, 3-52, 4-52, 5-58, 6-142, 7-144, 8-144, 9-194.

India bowling: Zaheer 15-3-71-3; Ishant Sharma 13-4-42-2; Harbhajan Singh 20-3-36-3; Mishra 11.4-2-35-2; Sehwag 5-2-7-0.

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