The Hindu : Sport : Ashraful slams century

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 20, 2004

Sport

Sport

Ashraful slams century

By Sanjay Rajan

— Photo: V.V. Krishnan

ON CLOUD NINE: Mohammed Ashraful is elated on completing his century.

CHITTAGONG, DEC. 19. Mohammad Ashraful's build belies his strength. At 5'4" and frail, he could pass off for a schoolboy. He was one when he made history on debut in September, 2001 by becoming the youngest batsman to score a Test century. It was a mismatch against Sri Lanka at the Sinhalese Sports Club that he had enlivened.

The 20-year-old right-hander enthralled the crowd at the M.A. Aziz Stadium here on Sunday with a strokeful century, his second in Test cricket. Not much has changed otherwise. It had been defeat then, and now, his side is set to crash to its 20th innings defeat in 34 outings, in the second Test of the Videocon Series against India.

At stumps on day three, the host, asked to follow-on after conceding a first innings lead of 207 runs, was 118 for nine when bad light stopped play, after Irfan Pathan scythed through the top-order with his third five-wicket haul in four innings.

It is possible that India relaxed its grip in the morning, expecting the enormity of the task to weigh Bangladesh down. It had, until the Dhaka Dynamo took charge.

Ashraful's onslaught shook the Indian attack, and his effort brought the host seven runs short of staving off the follow-on. That would have indeed made it memorable. The debate has begun if the impossible last-ball single that he attempted, after playing and missing Pathan, was necessary in the first place, as it only led to last-man Nazmul Hossain being run out by wicketkeeper Dinesh Kaarthick.

Carefree approach

Among the first things that struck you about the innings was the young man's carefree approach. A leg-spinner turned batsman, Ashraful enjoyed every moment of his stay.

Resuming at 54 for three, Habibul Bashar and Ashraful put on 66 in the first hour against the left-arm medium-pace duo of Pathan and Zaheer Khan, who persistently pitched it short to bait the former. Bashar's strength is his weak link as well: the cut and the pull. He was lucky when a few top-edges fell in no man's land.

Ashraful is blessed with nimble feet. Once he quickly got inside the line of a Zaheer bouncer and despatched it over the ropes. He has admirable hand-eye coordination, as he picked Pathan from just outside off-stump and sent it crashing to the mid-wicket fence.

Bashar provided a difficult caught and bowled opportunity to Pathan, before Anil Kumble had him stumped while giving the charge.

The pitch was aiding spin. India's spin twins were gaining bite. Only, the two were finding it difficult to get the edges for the four men around the bat to pouch. As a result, the 115-run partnership for the fifth wicket between Ashraful and Aftab Ahmed set the tone and tenor of the chase.

Off-spinner Harbhajan was providing the batsmen with width, while Kumble's metronomic accuracy was surprisingly not procuring him results in spin-friendly conditions, even as Ashraful reached his half-century. During the course of it he became only the third Bangladesh batsman after Bashar and Javed Omar to score 1000 Test runs. It was his 23rd match.

Harbhajan set a six-three leg-side field, with a slip, leg-slip and short-leg, but Ashraful possessed the range of shots and quicksilver feet to counter it. At lunch, the score was 174 for four.

Ashraful was in a murderous mood after lunch, as he stepped out and on-drove Harbhajan for a six and struck Pathan for consecutive boundaries. He then reverse-swept Harbhajan and on-drove him to reach his century, which came off just 124 deliveries, with 15 boundaries and two sixes.

Inspired by his partner's ways, Aftab cut Pathan to the fence twice and then drove Harbhajan for a six. Zaheer, replacing Pathan in the attack, had Ashraful play uppishly towards short mid-wicket, only it was too difficult for V.V.S. Laxman to hold on.

Zaheer's 100th victim

Kumble broke the stand when he had Aftab leg-before with a delivery that hurried through. Zaheer had new-man Manjarul Islam leg-before the following over. It was the Baroda seamer's 100th Test scalp.

Ashraful was unstoppable as he raced to 150, scoring three boundaries off Kumble square of the wicket. The second new ball was taken in the 81st over. Zaheer had Khaled Mashud caught behind. Pathan dismissed Md. Rafique and Talha Jubair off successive deliveries, but Ashraful fought on gamely and shielded last-man Nazmul while putting on 21 runs. It would have been a dream had Ashraful saved the follow-on.

The host capitulated in the second innings. After claiming Nafis Iqbal with the very first delivery of the innings, Pathan's first spell read 9-2-32-5. There wasn't much fight left in the home side thereafter.

In the morning, a minute's silence was observed by the players to mourn the death of Vijay Hazare. The Indians wore black arm bands as a sign of respect.

SCOREBOARD

INDIA — 1st innings: 540

BANGLADESH — 1st innings:

W. Iqbal c Gambhir
b Harbhajan
31

(115m, 91b, 5x4)

J. Omar c Dravid
b Kumble
10

(103m, 78b, 1x4)

M. Mortaza lbw b Kumble 4

(13m, 15b, 1x4)

H. Bashar st. Kaarthick
b Kumble
22

(74m, 42b, 3x4)

M. Ashraful (not out) 158

(275m, 194b, 24x4,
3x6)

A. Ahmed lbw b Kumble 43

(94m, 72b, 4x4, 1x6)

M. Islam lbw b Zaheer 0

(4m, 3b)

K. Mashud c Kaarthick
b Zaheer
22

(55m, 44b, 3x4)

Md. Rafique c Dravid
b Pathan
4

(22m, 16b, 1x4)

T. Jubair b Pathan 0

(1m, 1b)

N. Hossain (run out) 0

(14m, 1b)

Extras (b-17, lb-8, w-3,
nb-11)
39

— —

Total (in 91 overs) 333

— —

Fall of wickets: 1-48 (Omar), 2-54 (Iqbal), 3-54 (Mortaza), 4-124 (Bashar), 5-239 (Ahmed), 6-240 (Islam), 7-300 (Mashud), 8-312 (Rafique), 9-312 (Jubair).

India bowling: Pathan 23-7-86-2 (nb-2, w-1), Zaheer 18-3-76-2 (nb-7, w-1), Kumble 26-9-55-4, Harbhajan 22-5-79-1 (nb-1), Tendulkar 2-0-12-0 (nb-1, w-1).

BANGLADESH — 2nd innings:

W. Iqbal lbw b Pathan 0

(1m, 1b)

J. Omar c Kaarthick
b Pathan
6

(34m, 15b, 1x4)

H. Bashar lbw b Pathan 17

(81m, 45b, 2x4)

A. Ahmed c Kaarthick
b Pathan
4

(2m, 3b, 1x4)

Md. Rafique c Sehwag
b Pathan
22

(31m, 21b, 4x4)

Md. Ashraful lbw
b Kumble
3

(31m, 13b)

M. Islam c Gambhir
b Kumble
0

(6m, 10b)

K. Mashud c Dravid
b Harbhajan
0

(10m, 9b)

M. Mortaza c Harbhajan
b Tendulkar
6

(8m, 9b, 1x4)

N. Hossain (batting) 8

(17m, 8b, 2x4)

T. Jubair (batting) 25

(13m, 20b, 5x4)

Extras (b-9, lb-7, w-7,
nb-4)
27

— —

Total (for nine wkts.,
in 26 overs)
118

— —

Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Iqbal), 2-30 (Omar), 3-34 (Ahmed), 4-75 (Rafique), 5-76 (Bashar), 6-77 (Islam), 7-78 (Ashraful), 8-80 (Mashud), 9-84 (Mortaza).