Sunday, Jan 12, 2003
Sunday, Jan 12, 2003 |
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Cricket
By S. Dinakar
At the Eden Park, here, on Saturday, the Indians almost went down in a contest, in which they should have cantered home, especially after that wonderful hundred by Virender Sehwag, and a fine piece of pace bowling, earlier in the day, from Javagal Srinath. Instead, we had the side hopelessly sliding down the slippery slope, collapsing, rather shockingly, from 182 for three in 41.5 overs, before Sehwag was dismissed, to 199 for nine in 48.4 overs. When No. 11 Aashish Nehra swung the fifth ball of the final over from paceman Andre Adams, to notch up a last-gasp win, it meant that the Indians had got away... but only just. They had pressed the panic button and so nearly paid the price, `running and batting their way' almost to doom. In an eventful final over, when four runs were needed for victory, the first two deliveries produced a leg-bye and a dot ball, and after Mohammed Kaif, whose confidence appears to have taken a beating on this tour, swung over a straight delivery from Adams, Zaheer Khan charging down the track, contrived to get himself run-out off a wide. A frantic leg-bye off the next delivery saw Nehra taking the strike. Adams erred by not bowling a fuller length to the tail-ender and Nehra did put away the short ball, to signal a one-wicket victory that makes the scores 2-4, with Tuesday's game at Hamilton left.
Different beginning
It had begun so differently for India though, with Sehwag and Sourav Ganguly providing a much-needed solid start, adding 70 in 15 overs, the Delhi batsman finding the gaps with ridiculous ease in the arc between point and extra-cover, and the captain, rediscovering his timing in drives square off the wicket. The fact that pace spearhead Shane Bond was wayward, did not help New Zealand's cause. The spearhead of the Kiwi attack could not bowl at the climatic stages due to the flare up of an ear infection. And after Ganguly fell for 23, probably getting the faintest of inside nicks to an innocuous Adams delivery, Sehwag and birthday boy Rahul Dravid raised 72 for the second, the vice-captain playing the second fiddle with Sehwag pulling off spanking strokes. It was a night when Sehwag sizzled, conjuring several stunning blows, that included sixes off Scott Styris over the cover fence, and long-off, and a straight hit at the expence of paceman Kyle Mills for the maximum. He also lived dangerously, offering half-chances and there was a regulation catch at first slip too that Stephen Fleming put down, when Sehwag, on 63 then, edged Daryl Tuffey. Rahul Dravid was adjudged leg-before to Styris, Sachin Tendulkar did not last long, nicking Tuffey to 'keeper Brenden McCullum, however, Man of the Match Sehwag smashed Mills to the cover point fence to reach his second hundred of this ODI series, and received a warm hug from non-striker Yuvraj Singh. Sehwag had notched up 112 (139b, 11x4, 3x6) when Fleming, at first slip, finally pouched him off Mills, and Yuvraj too was caught by the New Zealand skipper at the same position, off veteran Chris Harris, whose introduction into the attack was delayed. The wily Harris was not easy to get away, and the pressure built up on the Indians even as the Kiwis regrouped. Bangar was declared leg before to Adams, when the delivery appeared to rap him a shade high, and Ajit Agarkar was the victim of a `ridiculous' run-out. Then arrived further drama, especially in the last over... before Nehra's face-saving stroke. Earlier, after the weather cleared up rather astonishingly, it was a committed performance by the Indians on the field, until the last phase when Shane Bond cut loose, swelling the Kiwi total to 199 for nine, which the Indians, docked one over, had to cross in 49.
Srinath breathes fire
Given that there still may have been a certain amount of moisture on the surface, it was only logical that Ganguly elected to bowl, and it did turn out to be a lively pitch for the pacemen, with nice bounce and carry. And Srinath breathed fire, when play began just 15 minutes late. The Karnataka paceman has been outstanding for India in this series and it was no different before a goodly crowd on Saturday, where Srinath's analysis of 10-2-13-3 - he now is just three short of 300 ODI scalps - reflected on yet another exemplary display, where, apart from getting the ball to straighten and leave the right-hander, he sent down lovely off-cutters. Mathew Sinclair, opening the innings, was repeatedly beaten outside the off-stump by Srinath, before being done in by one that nipped back. Srinath had consumed Chris Cairns with an off-cutter in Wellington, and here, he nailed the all-rounder with a much meaner version of the same ball, the delivery clipping the bails, leaving the Kiwi clueless. The paceman snared Kyle Mills outside the off-stump in his later spell, maintained an impeccable off-stump line, landed the ball in the right area, and both contained and struck - in fact he was niggardly. The signs are good from this genial cricketer ahead of the World Cup. It was Lou Vincent (53 not out, 107b, 3x4, 1x6), batting at No. 6, who held the innings together for New Zealand running his singles well, pulling and flicking for a majority of his runs. The frontline batsmen did not last long. Fleming, after having essayed a glorious off-drive off Aashish Nehra, aimed a big drive off the next delivery only to find Dravid accepting the offering gleefully. Earlier, the New Zealand skipper had been caught at square third man off a Zaheer Khan no-ball. Chris Harris, probably batting a touch too high at No. 3, tasted another failure in his comeback, shuffling across to Ajit Agarkar, who replaced Anil Kumble in the eleven, and paying the price. He had once again failed to open his account. Scott Styris, a busy batsman, and Vincent, back in the side, thanks to Astle's injury, joined forces at 50 for four, then added a valuable 80 for the fifth wicket in 19.4 overs, providing a life-line to the Kiwis. Caught behind, once again off a no-ball from Zaheer, Styris pulled, cut and punched Agarkar, dealt firmly with the short-pitched stuff from Sanjay Bangar, in for Dinesh Mongia. Styris had cracked seven boundaries in his 52-ball 42, before he scooped a catch to Bangar at cover off Ganguly, attempting to drive on the rise. Just one run later, Brenden McCullum was run-out at the bowler's end, with the athletic Yuvraj at point, and bowler Srinath combining to effect the dismissal, and the Kiwi innings lost momentum. With Bangar tending to pitch too short, which he cannot afford to do at his pace, Ganguly sent down a tidy spell, even bowling in the latter stages of the innings, before Shane Bond, spoilt his analysis, striking the Indian captain for two sixes, straight and over mid-wicket. In fact, the last wicket pair of Vincent and Bond, in a rousing stand, added 52 in 3.2 overs, with the final two overs from Ganguly and Zaheer, yielding 18 and 19 runs, the fast bowler even clouting the left-armer for a straight six. From 147 for nine, the Kiwis had managed 199. It could have proved so costly for the Indians, who once again let things drift towards the end... both while bowling and batting. Where's that killer instinct?
SCOREBOARD
India bowling: Srinath 10-2-13-3, Zaheer 10-0-53-1 (nb-6, w-2), Nehra 10-1-31-1 (nb-1), Agarkar 8-0-34-1 (nb-1), Bangar 4-0-22-0, Ganguly 8-2-31-1.
New Zealand bowling: Tuffey 10-0-46-1 (w-3); Bond 6-1-20-0 (nb-2, w-1), Adams 9.5-0-41-3 (nb-1, w-6), Mills 10-0-43-1 (nb-2, w-1), Styris 10-1-40-1 (w-1), Harris 3-0-6-1.
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