SIMPLY SUPERB: A brilliant display by mercurial fielders like Yuvraj Singh, Mohd. Kaif and Suresh Raina again in the third one-dayer at Lahore on Monday can prove to be a pointer to the outcome of the series. - PHOTO: S. SUBRAMANIUM

Lahore : A day can be an eternity in limited-overs cricket. Down on luck and form, the Indians regrouped magnificently in Rawalpindi. High on morale and confidence, the Pakistanis stumbled in the second ODI.

Indeed, a lot can swing in a day, from Irfan Pathan's two-way movement, to the fortunes of a team; the second game swung away from Pakistan after Inzamam-ul-Haq elected to bat on a wicket with moisture.

The Hutch ODI series has reached a critical stage. At 1-1, it can tilt either way and Monday's game at the Gaddafi Stadium assumes significance. The day-night game here could well hold the key. As Inzamam said, the team winning here will enter the last two games with an enormous psychological advantage.

Akhtar out of the series

Pakistan will be without pace spearhead Shoaib Akhtar for the rest of the series, though. Akhtar's ankle injury refuses to heal. The `Rawalpindi Express' has attempted to bowl at the nets, but has had to cut short his stints because of searing pain.

There is a light sprinkling of grass on the surface, but Inzamam said the pitch would favour the batsmen. The toss he felt might not be a crucial factor as the 11 a.m. start may mean the moisture in the wicket could have dried up. And the evening dew might not turn out to be a major factor with the match scheduled to finish early in the night.

Inzamam said even without Akhtar, Pakistan had a pace pack that could make inroads and did remind India about the victory in Peshawar.

But the host will have to tread carefully. With Virender Sehwag regaining touch and Sachin Tendulkar asserting himself at the top of the order, the Pakistani pacemen will have to maintain the pressure from both ends with the new ball. Otherwise, they could find the game running away from them quickly.

While Mohammed Asif continues to impress, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan provided width to the batsmen. Umar Gul operated promisingly in the second ODI and he could be asked to share the new ball with Asif.

The Indians have an injury concern with Sehwag having bouts of muscular pain in his left shoulder, which did trouble him during his blazing effort on Saturday. We may have to wait until the morning of the match to get a clear picture.

Gains for India

There were several gains for India in Rawalpindi. The sharp decline in Irfan Pathan's pace has stood in the way of him extracting more life out of a placid surface. But if there is juice in the pitch and humidity in the air, he can still be a handful; particularly with the white ball that swings more.

The Indian fielding in the second ODI was outstanding. The presence of Yuvraj Singh, Mohammed Kaif and Suresh Raina in the circle has created pressure on the opposition, resulting in run-outs.

The team-management has put its faith in a four-man pace attack, which also reflects on the competence of the Pakistani batsmen against spin. Tendulkar and Sehwag sent down ten overs of spin between them in Rawalpindi.

The presence of off-spinning all-rounder Ramesh Powar as the Super Substitute, meant, if India defended a total in the second half of the match where there could be more assistance for the spinners, it could have still brought the off-spinner in for a batsman.

Harbhajan Singh's injured index finger is healing and the off-spinner did send down a few deliveries at the nets. But then, it is unlikely that he would play having last bowled in a match during the Faisalabad Test.

India had skipper Rahul Dravid at No 3 in Rawalpindi and it was smart thinking; Sehwag and Tendulkar had provided India a tremendous start and the side was chasing a moderate score. Dravid's solidity shut the door on Pakistan.

And Yuvraj has been dominant in the middle with improved shot selection and decisive feet movement. The shift in his stance has helped him enormously, and he is now in a better position to meet the ball.

The Pakistanis have the option of promoting the influential Shahid Afridi to the opening slot. Shoaib Malik has been in prime form, and the combative Younis Khan has pulled his weight.

But when the ball moves, the line-up of strokemakers comes under the scanner. Fielding is another area, the Pakistanis need to improve upon...enormously at that.

Inzamam said he would be inaugurating a state-of-the-art general hospital in his hometown Multan on Tuesday.

Mohd. Sami has replaced Akhtar for the last two one-dayers.

The teams:

India (from): Rahul Dravid (captain), Virender Sehwag (vice-captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Mohammad Kaif, Yuvraj Singh, M.S. Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar, S. Sreesanth, Zaheer Khan, Ramesh Powar, Harbhajan Singh, Murali Kartik, R.P. Singh, Gautam Gambhir. Coach Greg Chappell.

Pakistan (from): Inzamam-ul-Haq (captain), Younis Khan (vice-captain), Salman Butt, Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Yousuf, Shoiab Malik, Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Mohammad Asif, Umar Gul, Yasir Arafat, Imran Farhat, Arshad Khan, Faisal Iqbal. Coach: Bob Woolmer.

Umpires: Simon Taufel & Asad Rauf. Third umpire: Zameer Haider. Match Referee Chris Broad.

Hours of play: 11 a.m. (local time) to 2.30 p.m., 3.15 p.m. till end of match.

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