A Laxman surge puts India back on rails

By S. Dinakar

COLOMBO, JULY 28. India lives to fight another day. In a perform or perish situation, the previously beleaguered side, shrugging away the blues, finally stung and stung hard.

And in the moment of triumph for the Indians, none stood taller than V.V.S. Laxman, that gifted batsman from Hyderabad, who, battling with an injured right knee that might require surgery soon, remained unbeaten on a heroic unbeaten 87.

Nothing illustrated the spirit and passion with which Laxman played more than the winning run, a hectic, scampered single, after Hemang Badani turned Russell Arnold to square-leg. He was risking further damage to the knee, but an Indian win was more important to this soft-spoken man who was adjudged the man of the match this day.

There were occasions when Laxman appeared in pain, but this was a day when he overcame more barriers than one. It was stirring stuff.

At the Premadasa Stadium here on Saturday, India outplayed Sri Lanka by seven wickets, with 26 balls remaining, to register its first victory in four matches and stay afloat in the Coca Cola triangular competition. Chasing Sri Lanka's below par 183, India knocked off the runs in 45.4 overs, delivering the host its first defeat in four games, and opening up the tournament.

Earlier, there was a huge turnaround in the Lankan innings with the side, coasting at 143 for two at one stage, losing its last eight wickets for 40 runs. The Indian bowlers and fielders picked themselves up just when the game appeared to be slipping away.

The win also meant Rahul Dravid, standing-in for the suspended Sourav Ganguly as skipper, had now led India to victories in both the matches he has captained, the other occasion being the Rajkot one-dayer against Zimbabwe last year.

``You could see the quiet determination in the side today. We might get on a roll,'' the Karnataka cricketer said following a much-needed win.

Back to Laxman. The man oozes class, and when he gets into the groove and finds his range, is an inspirational player who can spell danger to any team, anywhere. On Saturday, he went one better.

``Once you are in the playing eleven you have to give 100 per cent, you have to work around the pain. I was determined to hang in there, and win the game for the team,'' said Laxman and these were the words of a true soldier.

Following his outstanding effort today, the team management is re-considering its earlier decision to send Laxman back home. Whether such a move would help the cricketer in the long term, even if he has offered to stay back, is open to question.

Walking in at one for one, after Amay Khurasiya's ill- advised drive against a Chaminda Vaas delivery had only resulted in the ball rattling the timber, Laxman, who faced 127 balls and struck ten fours, collected his runs coolly and calmly, driving the ball elegantly through the off-side, and conjuring beautifully balanced strokes off his legs, apart from pulling with power.

His onslaught on Vaas in the fifth over set the tone with Laxman picking three fours, twice driving the bowler through the covers and then pulling him with disdain.

At the other end, Sehwag, not too comfortable against Dilhara Fernando's red-hot pace-he was dropped on nine by Mahela Jayawardene at slip, unable to keep a lifter from the Lankan tearaway down-settled down to play a useful supporting role.

The first 50 was reached in 11 overs, with Sehwag, growing in confidence, driving Vaas to the cover boundary and striking a slower one from Fernando straight down the ground.

However, when the Delhi batsman was promising more, he attempted to hit offie Kumara Dharmasena over mid-on, only succeeding in finding Kumara Sangakkara in that region. Sehwag made 27, but more importantly had added 66 in 81 balls with Laxman for the second wicket.

Laxman gave a hint of a chance at 35, but Jayawardene at silly point was slow to react when the ball flew off the edge as the Hyderabad batsman pushed at off-spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan.

Dravid, looking solid, joined Laxman and the two senior batsmen gradually put the game beyond Lanka, which for once, did not quite come up with the right answers.

Muralitharan sent down a teasing spell, but did not have the runs to back him, while Dharamasena was accurate more than threatening. Lanka needed wickets, but they weren't coming.

The hundred was reached in 23.3 overs, and Dravid too was getting into his stride with fine drives, the one through mid-on off Dharmasena standing out.

At the 35th over mark, the score was 147 and now it was only a matter of time for the Indians. There was still time for Vaas to grab his 200th ODI wicket, getting Dravid (43, 79b, 3x4) to nick one to 'keeper Kaluwitharana. Laxman and Dravid had raised 84 valuable runs in 142 balls for the third wicket.

And then, the Hyderabad stylist and Badani finished things off with some sensible cricket. The Indians had finally pulled one back after going down in their last four ODIs.

Good start by Lankans

Earlier, Lanka got off to a bright start after Sanath Jayasuriya called right on a warm, bright morning that followed two days of cloudy conditions.

He had a different partner this time, the diminutive Romesh Kaluwitharana. This also meant Avishka Gunawadene was omitted for the match to finally give the promising Kumara Sangakkara a game.

One of the premier ODI opening combinations before the partnership was broken up, Jayasuriya and Kaluwitharana did not take too long to reveal that the `fizz' was still intact.

The Lankan captain signalled his intentions with `pick-up' shot off Ashish Nehra on the on-side, the ball soaring over the mid- wicket fence.

However, left-arm seamers Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra, both under an injury cloud, and facing an uncertain future over the next two months, were charged up.

In fact, Jayasuriya was lucky to survive one shout. The Lankan shuffled across to Nehra, even as he shaped to play on the leg- side, was rapped on the pads, the Indians appealed vociferously, but umpire Peter Manuel remained unconvinced.

Jayasuriya continued unruffled, cover-driving Zaheer, square- cutting Nehra, and striking Sodhi straight down the ground, the ball streaking to the fence on all the occasions.

The runs came at a good clip, and Kaluwitharana was changing gears too, pulling Harbhajan past the ropes, the ball by no means short but the little batsman rocking back and still going through with the shot. However, the Lankan survived a close leg-before appeal after going down on his knees to sweep a Harbhajan Singh delivery that came in with the arm.

The Punjab off-spinner appeared to lose his cool and it was good captaincy on the part of Dravid who walked up to the bowler and had a quiet word with him.

The hundred arrived in 23.2 overs. Soon Jayasuriya (57, 74b, 5x4, 1x6) having completed his half century, swung Harbhajan Singh straight into the hands of Khurasiya at deep midwicket. The opening pair raising 103 in 24.2 overs.

Not much later, Kaluwitharana made his exit, stepping forward to drive Yuveraj's left-arm spin and holing out to Sodhi in the covers.

Dravid intelligently switched his bowlers around and there was reward for him when Mahela Jayawardene, going through the `horrors', jumped out to a well tossed up delivery from Hemang Badani, and curling ball kissed the outside edge of the bat before Dighe, despite a fumble, held on to the catch. The part- time left-arm spinner had done the trick and Jayawardene walked back a disappointed man, his place for the next game in serious doubt.

Marvan Atapattu, meanwhile, collecting his runs in ones and twos, with typically neat placements into the gaps, had progressed to 34 (51b) when his blistering pull off Sehwag, bowling off-spin, was splendidly taken by Sodhi at mid-wicket.

The third wicket fell at 143 and then things began to happen rather dramatically as the home team went on to lose the next seven for just 40 runs. It was a sensational collapse.

Vaas' elevation as pinch hitter, denied Sangakkara his fair share of overs to face and defied logic. And his attempt to sweep Harbhajan only resulted in Laxman holding the catch at short-fine leg.

Then two wickets fell in two balls as Dravid brought back his pacemen for a final fling at a stage when the spinners were doing their job. The ploy worked.

Zaheer unleased a well-directed yorker that crashed into Suresh Perera's stumps, the promising youngster failing for once. And off the next delivery, the first of the 45th over, Nehra nailed Russel Arnold, the southpaw's uppish cut being held by Yuveraj.

The tail was blown away for once, Zaheer forcing Dharmasena to nick one behind, Nehra beating Muralitharan's swipe and hitting the stumps and Sangakkara, running out of partners in his comeback match, running himself out in a desperate bid to retain strike with only No.11 Dilhara Fernando for company. In the end, it was the Indians who ran away with the match.

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