The Hindu : Sport : Batsmen Kumble, Harbhajan take the day’s honours

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jan 26, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Sport

Sport

Batsmen Kumble, Harbhajan take the day’s honours

S. Ram Mahesh

Gilchrist pips Boucher for World record

Adelaide: India, on Friday, did its utmost to fray Australia.

The touring side established a prominent first-innings score of 526 in the fourth Test here at the Adelaide Oval, and although it failed to separate Phil Jaques and Matthew Hayden in 21 overs before stumps on the second day, the weight of the score and the choice of five bowlers will give India the opportunity to level the series.

Should the side reprise the resilience and purpose shown in the series thus far — Friday’s eighth-wicket stand of 107 between Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh merely the most recent representative — India will fancy its chances.

Poor catching

A measure of how ragged India ran Australia — besides captain Ricky Ponting’s expressions of angst — can be had from the catching. The side dropped five chances on Friday (two of them acutely difficult) in addition to the two they shelled on Thursday. The culprits — Jaques, Hayden, Michael Hussey, Michael Clarke, Ponting and Adam Gilchrist — will look to make amends over the next three days.

India, resuming on 309 for five on Friday, had the ideal pair to wrench the crucial morning session. Sachin Tendulkar, recalling a more intuitive period of his batting, and M.S. Dhoni, sputtering thus far in the series but ever capable of a lethal turn, were in place against the second new ball. And they set a frothy pace, dabbing and running, adding 27 in 3.3 overs.

It was another pair, however, the odd batting couple of Kumble and Harbhajan, that swung the day. When Tendulkar fell for 153, India had lost two wickets for 50 runs in 10.3 overs on the second morning. A lower-order collapse, like the one in the first innings at Perth, would have handed Australia the advantage.

Instead, Kumble and Harbhajan, through intelligence, skill and plain doggedness, set about squeezing Australia like a tourist on his last tube of toothpaste. They were brought together during a catalytic three-ball phase.

Having lost Dhoni to a slapped cut down deep point’s pocket, Tendulkar pulled the admirable Brett Lee onto his left knee. The master batsman took time off for treatment, prompting the umpires to call for early drinks. Lee bounced Tendulkar the ball after the drinks break, a nasty, cramping climber that cut back. Tendulkar, in the midst of a most absorbing battle with the fast bowler, couldn’t back down.

Fruitful alliance

Kumble, who had crossed Tendulkar as the top-edged hook floated to square leg, was let off next ball. The Indian captain was lifted off his feet by a short delivery, but Jaques, at short leg, couldn’t hold the catch. Harbhajan shot his spin partner a reassuring glance — not that Kumble, the fiercest of competitors needed any — and thus began a fruitful alliance.

The pair was helped by the fact that none of Australia’s pacemen found swing. The second new ball hardly moved in the desiccated air, compelling Lee, Clark, and Johnson to flog a pleasant strip short of a length. The choice of length (and the reluctance to vary it more often) meant they rarely gave an ageing ball the chance to reverse swing, although the conditions were favourable.

Harbhajan, predictably, was adventurous, striking Mitchell Johnson over mid-on with a tensile snap of the wrists and twisting the next ball to fine-leg. But, there were few senseless slogs, Kumble ensuring as much with words of counsel after one fatuous heave.

The skipper himself was watchful and opportunistic: his telescopic reach and springy stride kept periling balls out; but, he descended on half-volleys, first front leg, eager and awkward, then bat, loopy and just fast enough, finally back leg, sinking to turf and completing the cover-drive pose. Once, Kumble forced Clark down the long straight boundary — despite, the ill-fitting chest guard and the high-waisted trousers, he looked, in that instant, a supreme batsman.

Harbhajan passed his fourth Test half-century, hitting Symonds to the cover fence and celebrated by lofting the off-spinner to long-on.

Symonds, however, provoked an intemperate sweep that lobbed to Adam Gilchrist off the top edge. R.P. Singh didn’t hang about, but Ishant did.

It was therefore strange that Kumble didn’t evince more confidence in the gangly number eleven.

There was no discernible pattern to the protection — sometimes he ran a single off the second ball in Lee’s over, other times he refused.

Tea was delayed half an hour by the last-wicket pair as Kumble worked towards a second hundred. But, having reached 87, he edged Johnson to Gilchrist for the keeper’s world-record 414th dismissal, surpassing South Africa’s Mark Boucher.

SCOREBOARD

India — 1st innings: V. Sehwag c Hayden b Lee 63, I. Pathan c Gilchrist b Johnson 9, R. Dravid c Ponting b Johnson 18, S. Tendulkar c Hogg b Lee 153, S. Ganguly lbw b Hogg 7, V.V.S. Laxman c Gilchrist b Lee 51, M.S. Dhoni c Symonds b Johnson 16, A. Kumble c Gilchrist b Johnson 87, H. Singh c Gilchrist b Symonds 63, R.P. Singh c Johnson b Clarke 0, I. Sharma (not out) 14, Extras (b-8, lb-21, nb-13, w-3) 45; Total (in 152.5 overs) 526.

Fall of wickets: 1-34 (Pathan), 2-82 (Dravid), 3-122 (Sehwag), 4-156 (Ganguly), 5-282 (Laxman), 6-336 (Dhoni), 7-359 (Tendulkar), 8-466 (Harbhajan), 9-468 (R.P. Singh).

Australia bowling: Lee 36-4-101-3, Johnson 37.5-6-126-4, Clark 31-6-92-0, Hogg 31-2-119-1, Clarke 10-0-39-1, Symonds 7-0-20-1.

Australia — 1st innings: P. Jaques (batting) 21, M. Hayden (batting) 36, Extras (lb-3, nb-2) 5; Total (for no loss in 21 overs) 62.

India bowling: R.P. Singh 4-0-14-0, Pathan 6-0-17-0, Ishant 4-0-12-0, Harbhajan 4-1-9-0, Kumble 3-0-7-0.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport