The Hindu : Sport : Kartik is India’s hero

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Oct 19, 2007
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Sport

Sport

Kartik is India’s hero

S. Dinakar

Mumbai: Murali Kartik lived a dream at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday. He sliced through the Aussie line-up with six for 27 and then displayed a cool head as India clinched a humdinger by two wickets.

Australia took the Future Cup series 4-2 but India competed well. An eventful series ended with scenes of jubilation in the Indian camp. In the middle Kartik and Zaheer Khan jumped for joy.

The unbeaten ninth-wicket duo added 52 runs in 62 balls amidst much pressure. Zaheer (31 not out, 43b, 3x4, 1x6) and Kartik (21 not out, 34b, 3x4), a right-left combination, survived with some luck, pluck.

Plucky stand

After the top and middle order capitulation — India was tottering at 64 for six — Robin Uthappa (47 off 59 balls) showed much character. Harbhajan Singh batted with rare resolve on a bowler-friendly surface. The seventh-wicket pair put on 65 in 13.1 overs to orchestrate an Indian recovery.

Lee, who sent down a compelling first spell of 6-1-10-1, bowled a free-stroking Sachin Tendulkar with the one that went straight through. Bracken ended Yuvraj Singh’s tenure with a delivery of pace and bounce that left the left-hander. Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s technical shortcomings on a track of this nature were exploited by Bracken.

When he snaffled up the Indian captain off Bracken, ’keeper Gilchirst claimed his 400th ODI catch. What a cricketer!

Action aplenty

The last few minutes of a tense duel were action packed. Brett Lee fumed after having a vociferous caught behind decision against Kartik turned down. Zaheer slammed Lee for a stunning straight six. Kartik edged Nathan Bracken between the first and the second slips and Zaheer flicked Mitchell Johnson past the ropes. Kartik played and missed at Bracken. The winning runs came off leg-byes.

SCOREBOARD

Australia: 193 in 41.3 overs

India: S. Ganguly c Gilchrist b Johnson 0, S. Tendulkar b Lee 21, D. Karthik c Gilchrist b Johnson 0, Yuvraj c Gilchrist b Bracken 15, R. Uthappa lbw b Clarke 47, M.S. Dhoni c Gilchrist b Bracken 5, I. Pathan c Clarke b Hopes 0, Harbhajan c Ponting b Johnson 19, Zaheer (not out) 31, M. Kartik (not out) 21; Extras: (b-4, lb-12, w-20) 36; Total (for eight wkts. in 46 overs) 195.

Fall of wickets: 1-3 (Ganguly), 2-8 (Karthik), 3-38 (Tendulkar), 4-49 (Yuvraj), 5-63 (Dhoni), 6-64 (Pathan), 7-129 (Uthappa), 8-143 (Harbhajan).

Australia bowling: Lee 10-1-37-1, Johnson 10-0-46-3, Bracken 10-3-30-2, Hopes 5-0-13-1, Hogg 8-0-40-0, Clarke 3-0-13-1.

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