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History with a new twist
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It was a repeat of the 1987 Indo-Pak Test all over again in Bangalore this time in terms of results. But Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar did salvage something for the Indian fans
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Younis Khan (left), Inzamam-ul-Haq (right), shone for Pakistan.
"IT IS history, it is actually nothing," Rahul Dravid said last week. The Indian cricket team vice-captain was replying to a television query on whether the loss against Pakistan in 1987 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium was a bad premonition for the latest Indo-Pak Test. However, history did strike back as India suffered a 168-run defeat to top up a memorable 100th Test for Inzamam-Ul-Haq.
The latest Test here in Bangalore adhered to a traditional batsmen-friendly sub-continental script before kicking up some dust in the eyes of Sourav Ganguly's team and eased into burly Inzamam's pocket on a tense final day.
While it was left to Virender Sehwag (bottom right) to be the lone warrior for India.
Runs were aplenty as Younis Khan and Virender Sehwag slammed double centuries and Inzamam languidly signed across his talent with a 184. Wickets too were up for grabs despite a feather-bed of a pitch as Danish Kaneria and Harbhajan Singh had their quota of five-wicket hauls. And smart catches too were taken, the best perhaps being the one snapped up by Younis Khan to send back Dravid on the concluding day while the pitch with its share of wear and tear helped the odd delivery to whiz.
Yet the pitch was just plain water when compared to the raging sea that Sunil Gavaskar nearly parted with a classic 96 in 1987. Roger Binny, former India allrounder, who also played in the 1987 Test here in which Imran Khan's men sealed a 1-0 series triumph, said: "The wicket for the 87' Test was bad. It was disappointing to lose that match, it was a case of so near and yet so far. Our spinners then did not bowl as well as the Pakistanis did on an absolute turner. Compared to that pitch, the one for the latest Test is a good wicket. In cricket anything can happen and I guess our players got themselves under pressure on the last day."
The match signed itself out with two distinct photographs — a grim Ganguly, a radiant Inzamam. And the backdrop, a raucous one at that as the crowd booed the Indian captain, applauded the Pakistanis and yet reserved its loudest cheers for Sachin Tendulkar. Indian cricket might follow a crazy graph of constant rise and fall but if there is one thing that remains constant, it is Sachin Tendulkar's ability to gift awe to an ever-increasing fan base.
Danish Kaneria
The cricket caravan has rolled away and silence reigns at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. A few memories linger, meanwhile the pigeons are busy fluttering around the pitch.
K.C. VIJAYA KUMAR
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