The Hindu : Salaam, Sehwag

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Oct 19, 2003

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Sport - Cricket

Salaam, Sehwag

By K. Srikkanth

I am a great believer in positive batting and Virender Sehwag's unbeaten hundred on the third day of the second Test certainly left me pleased.

We should not forget that when Sehwag walked out to open, the pressure was certainly on him. He had not made too many runs in the first Test, and, in the second, India was up against a mammoth Kiwi first innings total.

He has responded with an aggressive innings, one that has also been intelligent. In the past, he may have been guilty of perishing to rash strokes, but during this effort, he has picked the deliveries and chosen the bowlers to attack.

In the afternoon he saw off the threat from the new ball along with Akash Chopra — this was an extremely crucial phase — and was rightly circumspect against left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori, the principal threat in the New Zealand bowling.

However, as soon as off-spinner Paul Wiseman was introduced, the Delhi batsman went after him. This was an innings that was well planned by Sehwag. Rightly, the second half of his innings was quicker.

He also, wisely, resisted the temptation to square-cut — the trap was laid for him — and mixed caution with aggression. On Sunday, Sehwag will have the opportunity to progress to a much bigger score.

Akash Chopra once again displayed a sound temperament. He not only strove to stay in the middle, but also did not miss out on the scoring opportunities. The opening stand served India well.

Stephen Fleming should have enforced the declaration in the morning, allowing his pacemen to exploit some early life in the wicket; there has been some movement for the seamers in the first session of play. The New Zealand skipper certainly missed a chance there.

The Kiwis could also have speeded up the rate of scoring on the second day, to ensure an early declaration on the third morning. That did not happen.

There has been a lot of talk about the Mohali pitch. Though it continues to favour the batsmen, Vettori did manage to turn a few viciously. He is a quality bowler and, as we have seen in this series, an extremely useful lower-order batsman.

The Kiwi batsmen continued to pile up the runs after that solid beginning on the first day. However, they could have taken some chances in the later stages when the Indian bowlers must have surely been a tired lot.

Scott Styris and Craig McMillan helped themselves to centuries, and the latter appears to be in prime form, gaining in confidence with every innings of his comeback.

Unless the events on the fourth day turn out to be dramatic, the match is heading towards a draw. If the Indians continue to bat sensibly, they should not encounter too many difficulties before crossing the follow on target.

www.kris-srikkanth.com

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