India defeated Australia by 320 runs in 2nd Test Match at Mohali

India drubbed Australia by 320 runs at Mohali to take a 1-0 lead in the Border-Gavaskar series. This is India's biggest ever Test win (excluding innings victories).

India dominated this match with everybody chipping in significantly. Debutant Amit Mishra had 7-wicket match haul, while Sourav Ganguly and Gautam Gambhir slammed centuries in first and second innings respectively. But the 'Man of the Match' was the captain himself. MS Dhoni was given the award for his knocks of 92 and 68*.

Earlier, Australia, who resumed the play on Tuesday with their overnight score of 141/5, were bundled before the lunch in reply to India's 515 runs on the last day of the second Test.

Zaheer Khan fastened India's winning bid as he took three quick wickets of Brad Haddin, Cameron White and Brett Lee while Amit Mishra wrapped up the proceedings by claiming Mitchell Johnson and Michael Clarke.

Zaheer struck in the very first over of the fifth day and dismissed Haddin for 37 runs after he added 84 runs with Clarke for the sixth wicket. A good length ball from Zaheer came back to beat Haddin and crash into the middle and off-stump.

In his next over, he got White come forward for the drive. The ball took an outside edge and Dhoni took a good catch behind the wicket. Lee didn't even last a ball. Zaheer pitched a short stuff that beat Lee and uprooted the off-stump.

After Lee fell, India hoped to finish it quickly but a 50-run partnership between Johnson and Clarke frustrated the hosts. Mishra then foxed Johnson with his flight caught him off his own bowling. Clarke, who slammed a fighting 69, fell as the last wicket as he pulled a good length ball from Mishra and Sehwag at midwicket pouched it safely.

Australian coach Tim Nielsen had confessed after the close of fourth day's play that team played for a win but the gameplan backfired. Of course, with 515 runs to chase in four sessions on a spinning track can never be easy and playing aggressively cost Australian heavily.

Scorecard

Sachin becomes highest run-getter in Test Cricket

The long wait is finally over! India's prolific batsmen Sachin Tendulkar surpassed Brian Lara's record to become highest run-scorer in Test cricket history. He achieved this milestone against Australia in the second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Mohali.

West Indies batting great Brian Lara scored 11953 runs in 131 Tests at an average of 52.89 while the Indian maestro reached this mark in 152* matches at an average of 54.11 runs.

In his 19-year-old career, Sachin made and broke many records. Sachin made his Test debut in 1989 at karachi against Pakistan then he was only a 16-year-old boy.

He's come a long way since then and has been India's batting mainstay for years. The 35-year-old is already the world's top-scorer in One-Day Internationals (16,361) and has the most centuries in Test matches (39) and one-dayers (42). He has scored 49 Test half-centuries and 89 ODI fifties.

Sachin crossed 12000 run mark in Test Cricket

Sachin's Career Records

I salute and congratulate to Sachin (The greatest cricketer ever) for his phenomenal achievement.

First Test Match ended in a draw

A target of 299 in a minimum of 83 overs, after Ricky Ponting had declared the Australian second innings at 228 for six after just five overs of batting on the final morning, the Indians finished at a comfortable 177 for four after six of the 15 last hour mandatory overs had been bowled when the two teams decided to shake hands and call it a day and match.
It was a tension filled-day for the Indian batsmen, whose reputation had taken a beating in the last series in Sri Lanka. Ponting had also timed the declaration well, giving himself the option of taking the second new ball for at least a few overs if it was required. The overnight batsmen Brad Haddin and Shane Watson were clearly under instructions to hit out. As many as 35 runs were added in a mere five overs before the bowlers were given the task of bowling the Indians out.
It is not very often that the Indian batsmen have come to the party in the fourth innings, be it batting out time or achieving a target. Monday was different even if wasn’t so at the beginning. With Virender Sehwag again finding the lone slip, Mathew Hayden pouching him low off Stuart Clark and the one man born to kill time, Rahul Dravid uncharacteristically falling to a catch at short midwicket, the stage seemed set for the usual ten pin like fall.
The fifth day pitch, with its varying bounce and wide cracks, and the Australian wisecracks were all dealt with ease. Young Gautam Gambhir (29) played his part in a 53-run third wicket stand with Tendulkar (49) but it was the master’s day even if he missed overtaking Brian Lara’s Test aggregate of 11,953 by 15 runs.
Its Tendulkar's calm batting that set the tone for Laxman (42 not out) and Ganguly (26 not out) to follow.

Scorecard

Ponting slammed his maiden ton in India in the first Test Match on Day1

Riding on skipper Ricky Ponting's 123 runs, Australia were 254 for the loss of 4 wickets at the close of day's play in Bangalore Test.

Ponting, who averages a little over 13 against India on their soil, had vowed to break the jinx before the series commenced and he did it in style as he slammed his maiden hundred on the Indian soil in the first Test.

This was his 36th Test century and sixth against India. Putting a 166-run partnership with opener Simon Katich, he strengthened Australia's position in the match. After Katich went, Mike Hussey joined him and added 60 runs.

Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh continued to be Ponting's nemesis as he got rid of the Australian skipper for the ninth time in Tests. Harbhajan pitched the ball outside the off-stump; Ponting expecting it to rise, tried to sweep, but the ball kept low and hit his pad. Vice-captain Michael Clarke joined Hussey (46*) after his departure and added 28 runs for the fourth wicket but Zaheer Khan trapped him for 11 runs in the last over. Umpires called it a day with four balls to spare.

While his captain's innings remains the highlight of day, Katich's contribution was no less significant as he kept one end intact and allowed Ponting to score freely. He scored 66 runs before Ishant Sharma got him caught behind.

Katich's opening partner, Hayden had a disappointing day as he perished to Zaheer for a zilch. Put in to field first, Zaheer struck with the third delivery of his first over. A fuller delivery forced the Australian to play it and wicketkeeper MS Dhoni made no mistake behind the stumps when the ball brushed past Hayden's bat.

Highlights of the day:

Ricky Ponting, playing in his 200th Test innings, posted his 36th hundred - his sixth against India and his first in India.

Ponting's 123 off 243 balls is his highest score against India in India, eclipsing his 60 at Kolkata in 1997-98.

Harbhajan has dismissed Ponting nine times in 10 Tests - the most times he has been dismissed by any bowler.

The 166-run stand for the second wicket between Katich and Ponting is Australia's best for this wicket-position at Bangalore, outstripping the 78 between Allan Border and Andrew Hilditch in 1979-80.

Cameron White became the 402nd Australian player to make his Test debut.

Scorecard

Saurav Ganguly anounced his retirement from test cricket

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly is to retire after the upcoming Test series against Australia in India.

Sourav Ganguly has said he will retire after the upcoming Test series against Australia. His statement, a moment of unscripted drama at the end of a routine press conference in Bangalore, ends widespread speculation over his future.

"Just one last thing lads, before I leave, I just want to say that this is going to be my last series," Ganguly said after taking the last question of his press conference. "I've decided to quit. I told my team-mates before coming here. These four Test matches are going to be my last and hopefully we'll go on a winning note."

With that, he got up and walked out, offering no explanation for what led to the decision.

Ganguly, 36, has played 109 Tests, 49 as captain, amassing 6,888 runs at an average of 41.74, including 15 hundreds and 34 fifties.

He played 49 Tests as captain, the most by an Indian. The 21 matches won during his tenure is also an Indian record, and his win percentage of over 40 is the highest for players who have captained India in more than one Test.

In 311 ODIs, he scored 11,363 runs at 41.02. He captained India in 147 ODIs. His last ODI was against Pakistan in Gwalior on November 15, 2007. He is one of only three players to complete the treble of 10,000 runs, 100 wickets and 100 catches in ODIs, Sanath Jayasuriya and Sachin Tendulkar being the others. Along with Tendulkar, he formed a prolific partnership at the top of the order, with 6609 runs at an average of nearly 50 per stand in 136 innings.

Ganguly made his debut in international cricket in 1992 by being selected for the one-day team and later entered the Test format in 1996.

His highest Test score was 239 and ODIs 183. In the latest shorter version of the game -- Twenty20 -- he scored 726 runs, at an average of 25.92, the highest being 91.

Starting with a hundred on debut, Ganguly's Test average has never dipped below 40.

"I salute to the southpaw for his remarkable contribution and achievement that felt us(Indian) proud. "

India level series against SA in Kanpur Test

Kanpur: It's a famous victory at the Green Park as India level the three-Test series against South Africa. Harbhajan Singh (four for 44), Ishant Sharma (two for 18) and Virender Sehwag (a blistering 22) have turned the match around. The stand-in skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni joined a very exclusive set of captains by winning very first test as a captain. South Africa resumed the third day positively but the ball turned viciously and the changes became even more rapid survival became impossible for the South Africans.They had only 61 to defend. To chase 61 India lost only two wickets of Sehwag and Jaffer. Saurav Ganguly was named the Man of the Match while Harbhajan got Man of the Series award.

Brief Score

South Africa

Batting

Ist Innings: 265/10, Smith-69, Hashim-51

2nd Innings: 121/10, Smith-35

Bowling

Ist Innings: Morkel-3/63, Steyn-3/71, Harris-3/101, Ntini-1/47

2nd Innings: Morkel-1/8, Harris-1/36

India

Batting

Ist Innings: 325/10, Ganguly-87, Laxman-50

2nd Innings: 64/2, Sehwag-22

Bowling

Ist Innings: Harbhajan-3/52, Ishant-3/55, Chawla-2/66, Sehwag-1/18, Yuvraj-1/39

2nd Innings: Harbhajan-4/44, Sehwag-3/12, Ishant-2/18, Sreesanth-1/9

Zaheer named Wisden's Cricketer of the year in their 2008 edition

Zaheer Khan has been chosen as one of the Wisden’s ‘Five Cricketers of the Year’ in their 2008 edition, to be released on Wednesday. Zaheer has been honoured in the 145th edition of the world’s longest-running sporting yearbook with a profile written by ToI’s Pradeep Vijayakar for his outstanding bowling on India’s tour to England last year in which he took 18 wickets in three Tests. India won the series 1-0 under the captaincy of Rahul Dravid, their first series triumph in England since 1986. Zaheer is joined by two other pace bowlers, England’s Ryan Sidebottom and West Indian Otis Gibson, who is also fast bowling coach for the England team. Gibson, last year at the age of 37, took all ten wickets for 47 runs for Durham against Hampshire in the English county championship. The other two are West Indies batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul England batsman Ian Bell. South Africa’s Jacques Kallis has been chosen as ‘Leading Cricketer in the World’, an award first constituted in 2004 and previously awarded to Ricky Ponting, Shane Warne, Andrew Flintoff and Muttiah Muralitharan. For the first time, five legendary cricketers who for some reason or the other were never named among Wisden’s Five, have been profiled. These include former India left-arm spinner Bishan Singh Bedi, who is profiled by former England captain Mike Brearley. The other four are Pakistan batsman Inzamam-ul Haq, West Indies fast bowling great Wes Hall, Australian pace legend Jeff Thomson and Pakistan’s master leg-spinner of the 80s, Abdul Qadir. Zaheer is the 13th Indian Test player to be named in the list of the famous five that was first instituted by Wisden in 1897.

SA crushed India by an innings and 90 runs in 2nd Test at Ahmedabad

India had to score 418 to avoid an innings defeat. South Africa declared immediately in the morning. India were thus left with the task of getting 418 runs to make the visitors bat again and avoid a humiliating innings defeat. Virender Sehwag started the day with a typically characteristic blast, pulling Dale Steyn for two sixes over fine leg in the first over itself. But SA got him soon enough as Ntini trapped him plumb in front in the eighth over. Sehwag’s second innings average dipped to 28.34 in the second innings, as compared to his first innings average of 67.69. Smith’s men netted Rahul Dravid and Wasim Jaffer’s scalps as well before lunch. VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly added 55 for the fourth wicket, but just as we thought something special was in store, Laxman perished to a faint edge. India’s fight back entered its best phase as Dada joined forces with Mahendra Singh Dhoni to take the innings to tea without any further loss of wickets. Sourav Ganguly scored his sixth fifty against South Africa, while Dhoni got his first. Dhoni escaped a difficult chance at fine leg and a much easier stumping opportunity off Paul Harris. After both added 110 runs for the fifth wicket, Ganguly got caught behind off a full length delivery off Steyn. Dhoni got out to a bad stroke and Irfan Pathan (43 not out) was the only one standing amongst the ruins as the tail failed to take the match into the fourth day. India finished at 328, to lose by an innings and 90 runs inside three days. This is South Africas biggest win over India. AB de Villiers (217 not out) was declared Man of the Match. Steyn finished with eight wickets, while Makhaya Ntini netted six. South Africa go one-up in the three-Test series.

Brief Score
India
Batting
Ist Innings: 76/10, Pathan-21*, Dhoni-14
2nd Innings: 328/10, Ganguly-87, Dhoni-52, Pathan-43*
Bowling
Ist Innings: Harbhajan-4/135, Sreesanth-2/87, Kumble-1/78
2nd Innings: Did not bowl
South Africa
Batting
Ist Innings: 494/7 Declared, Kallis-132, AB De Villiers-217*
2nd Innings: Did not bat
Bowling
Ist Innings: Steyn-5/23, Ntini-3/18, Morkel-2/20
2nd Innings: Steyn-3/91, Ntini-3/44, Morkel-2/87, Kallis-1/26, Harris-1/68

India bowls out for 76 on day 1 at Ahmedabad Test Match

India’s first innings lasted just 20 overs. The hosts, after winning the toss and batting, on a lively pitch, dished out a diabolical performance and were bowled out for 76. The intensity of the South African seamers, led by Dale Steyn 8-2-23-5, who was suffering from flu till Wednesday evening, Makhaya Ntini 6-1-18-3 and Morne Morkel 6-1-20-2, made a mockery of the Indian batsmen and their reputations. India were dismissed 10 minutes before lunch. It was India’s second lowest total at home, narrowly beating the 75 they aggregated against West Indies in 1987 at New Delhi’s Feroze Shah Kotla. That too was thanks to Irfan Pathan’s spunky unbeaten 21. Pathan’s 39-minute, 17-ball effort showed that there were more devils in the minds of the Indian batsmen, than the pitch. The manner in which the South African openers Neil McKenzie and Graeme Smith played to take South Africa past India’s score in the 16th over itself along with Jacques Kallis (60 not out) and Ab de Villiers (59), who added an unbeaten 106 for the fifth wicket, reinforced the view. Apart from Harbhajan Singh, who struck once between lunch and tea and twice after tea in a threatening 12-over spell, to dislodge McKenzie, Hashim Amla and Ashwell Prince, the Indian bowling was inspid. It allowed South Africa to recover from a wobbly 117-4 to a secure 223-4 at stumps on Day 1. It gives the visitors a lead of 147 runs with six wickets in hand. Earlier, the positive decision that Anil Kumble took by electing to bat and opting to play five bowlers (the last time India did that at home was against England at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, March 2006), deserved better results. But the ‘best batting line-up’ in the world, contrived to embarrass their captain and the nation. It took the South Africans only 21 balls and 17 minutes to start India’s slide. After a couple of wayward overs, Ntini reaped the rewards of pitching the ball up and getting Wasim Jaffer edge to Graeme Smith at first slip. Sehwag, who supposedly has a ‘chink’ in his armour against the short ball has a bigger ‘chink’ against the three quarter length delivery. Shaun Pollock, Glenn McGrath and Mohd Asif have all succeeded bowling that length to him and getting him bowled off the inside edge. Steyn hit that length and did the same. When Laxman joined Dravid, India had two men who love batting together, at the wicket. But they didn’t last long. Ntini had started hitting the right length and troubled Laxman with full length deliveries seaming away. Laxman, who was playing and missing at those deliveries, left one in the next over that darted in from outside off stump and hit it. At 3 for 30, Ganguly walked in to a crisis. That metamorphosed into a catastrophe two balls later when he played onto Ntini. The quickie had taken three wickets in the span of 12 balls. Dravid and Dhoni took the score past 50. That’s when Smith replaced Ntini after a dream spell of 6-1-18-3, with Steyn. The bowler responded by castling Dravid with the ball of the series, a full length delivery that pitched on middle stump and hit off. Morkel got rid of Dhoni and Kumble off the same over and Harbhajan played all across a full swinging delivery from Steyn to be lbw. At 55 for 8, India looked in danger of beating their record for the lowest score against South Africa (66 in Durban in 1996). But Pathan helped India avoid that embarrassment. A 100 looked in sight as RP Singh seemed determined to hang on and support Pathan. But Steyn’s mop up job denied India that luxury.

Kaif recalls for 2nd Test as Sachin injured

Sachin Tendulkar aggravated the groin injury he picked up during the Australia tour on Saturday and will therefore be unavailable to play the second Test at Ahmedabad starting on April 3. Tendulkar’s place will be taken by UP captain Mohammed Kaif, who returns to the Test team for the first time since the West Indies tour in 2006. It is possible that Tendulkar may not be available even for the third Test at Kanpur, but a final decision on that will be taken after the Ahmedabad game. Skipper Anil Kumble also suffers from a right groin strain which forced him to not field on the final day at Chepauk. Kumble’s condition will be assessed by physio Paul Close on April 2 in Ahmedabad. It is learnt that Kumble is also a doubtful starter even as Close told BCCI that he is ‘‘confident of getting Kumble to play the second Test’’, informed board secretary Niranjan Shah. Piyush Chawla is most likely to replace Kumble in the playing XI if the veteran misses out.

Dravid crosses 10000 run mark in test cricket

When Rahul Dravid pushed a ball from South African fast bowler Mornie Morkel wide of mid-on and took off for a run, it wasn’t just another single that he was completing. It was his 10,000th Test run, one that he celebrated with uncharacteristic glee, hands raised in celebration, even as he pointedly gestured to his personal support staff, seated at the Anna Pavilion, and said a silent ‘thank you’ to all those who have enabled him to pursue his single-minded goal, that of being recognised as one among the world’s best batsmen. The journey to greatness has been a long one. The year 1990 seems so far away, but that’s where Dravid’s cricket story begins. It was the final year of college for some, but it was the first year among the big boys for Dravid. Then a slightly freckled, wiry lad, he is today only the sixth man to have scored over 10,000 Test runs. Then a shy introvert, today he is among the country’s most articulate sportspersons. Then a murderer of spin bowling, today he wears down the best and fastest of fast bowlers. It has been some journey, but he now stands alongside batting legends such as Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Allan Border, Steve Waugh and Sunil Gavaskar, all of whom will no doubt fondly welcome the latest entrant to Club 10,000. From St Joseph’s Boys School to St Joseph’s Commerce College (SJCC) is a natural step for most Josephites in Bangalore, but for Dravid it was much more than that. Here was where he would get three degrees for the price of one. It was a great place to study; the college believed in creating well-rounded personalities rather than just bright students; and most importantly, SJCC had a fantastic cricket team, one of the hardest to break in to, even if, sadly enough, that is no longer the case. Many a talented cricketer had made his way into the college after being a star in school cricket, only to then warm the benches for a year or two before getting a look in. This was simply due to the strength of the team and not any senior versus junior issues, as is (or not) the case with Indian cricket these days. But Dravid at 17 had special ability and it was more than apparent when he was not put on the waiting list. In fact, when he was returning from injury once and straightaway included in the XI for a three-day final, his long innings prowess being apparent even then, the lad he replaced was so incensed that he left the college the following year. Single-mindedness has always been Dravid’s big asset, and this was something that his friends were exposed to pretty early. It was a two-day fun-trip out of Bangalore, again in 1990, where even as most of the team drank the night away at a cool hill station, Dravid spent the night practicing. No, it wasn’t cricket. He found out that the wicketkeeper was a great dancer and decided it was time for some lessons. What the dance teacher didn’t realise was that this was no ordinary pupil, who would go away after a while; the lessons went on for the whole night. You can see that his feet movement is near perfect on the cricket field these days and has been so for more than a while. Apart from being consistent, as his Test average of over 55 shows, he’s been known for his perseverance, focus and total commitment to his and the team’s cause. In the second half of his career, he’s added balance. Balance not just at the batting crease but life in general, with his young family now taking up a lot of his quality time. That, perhaps, was one of the reasons he gave up the captaincy, not knowing that he was giving up his place in the One-day team too with that one unexpected action. But he was not running away from responsibility, rather it was a new one, that of raising his little son, that had taken precedence. On Saturday, Dravid, the eternal team man, put all the recent bad blood behind him and turned the spotlight back on himself with an individual achievement that also gave him access to the even more exclusive 10,000-run Test and ODI club, where he joined Tendulkar and Lara as only the third batsman to achieve the grand double. Dravid can, for sure, rest content that he has done more than enough to be described as one of the greatest batsmen in the world.

DRAVID’S AGGREGATE OF 7,677 (AVG.57.72) IN 150 INNINGS IS THE BEST BY ANY NO.3 BATSMAN IN TEST CRICKET.

His tally of 19 centuries at No.3 position is the third best in Test cricket - the top two being Ricky Ponting (27) and Don Bradman (20). Rahul Dravid, during the course of his 111 off 291 balls against South Africa at Chennai, reached a number of milestones... When on 48, he completed his 4,000 runs in 51 Tests at home (4063 at an average of 51.43 in 51 Tests) and became the third Indian after Sunil Gavaskar (5067 at an average of 50.17 in 65 Tests) and Sachin Tendulkar (5056 at an average of 54.95 in 63 Tests) to aggregate 4000 runs or more in India. When his score reached 80, he became the third Indian after Tendulkar and Gavaskar and the sixth in Test cricket to amass 10,000 runs. His feat of reaching 10,000 runs in 206 innings is the second fastest in Test annals, next only to Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara, who both recorded the milestone in 195 innings. When he reached 100, he became the third Indian after Tendulkar (39) and Gavaskar (34) and the 12th overall to register 25 centuries or more in Test cricket.

Dravid's Test Records

Tests: 120, Innings: 206, NO: 25, Run: 10031, HS: 270, Average: 55.41

Century: 25, Half Century: 51, Catch: 169, Wickets: 1

Salute to Viru's swashbuckling knock

The daredevil from Delhi displays an audacious strokeplay against South Africa, 319 off only 304 balls. The triple ton came off just 278 balls. The knock crossed Sehwag’s previous highest against Pakistan at Multan in 2004 — also the highest by an Indian — and was executed with even greater spunk and style. He hammered 42 fours and five sixes in batting-friendly conditions against a wilting South African attack. A deluge of statistical delights has been dished out in the bargain. This is the 10th straight time Sehwag has crossed 150 after getting a ton. He’s also the first since Denis Compton in 1954 to score over 250 runs in a day (Sehwag scored 257). Sehwag raced to his triple ton off only 278 balls, the fastest 300 in Tests, eclipsing Matthew Hayden’s 300 off 362 deliveries. Only 2 others —Don Bradman and Brian Lara – have two Test 300s. Sehwag only one to score his two 300s at different venues Sehwag has now converted his last 10 centuries into scores of 150 and above, extending his own world record It's the first triple century and the highest score on Indian soil by any batsman. The previous highest was 281 n.o. by VVS Laxman Average score of Sehwag’s 14 tons now works out to 198, a world record. Bradman next with 186 Sehwag got to 200 off 194 balls, the third fastest Test 200. He also has the second fastest (off 182 balls against Pakistan). The fastest 200 was scored by Nathan Astle off 153 balls 386 runs were scored on Friday, the most in a day in India Jaffer & Sehwag put on 213, Sehwag & Dravid have added 255 — the first case of 200-plus stands for first two wickets in a Test.

Stats
The scoreboard says it all

319 runs, 304 balls, 42 fours 5 sixes

Chennai Test ended in a draw

South Africa’s batsmen didn’t really find their feet against the Indian spinners, partly because they weren’t required to, but nevertheless managed to quell any hopes of an unlikely India win in the opening game of the three-Test series. Neil McKenzie led the way to a dreary draw, adding an unbeaten 155 on Sunday to his first innings 94, as South Africa formally declared their second innings closed at 331 for five, with a possible 14 overs left on the final day. Umpires Asad Rauf and Tony Hill, who had been on the field for all the five hot days, then conferred with acting Indian captain Dhoni and called off the match. Some of the blame for the inaction on the final day must be laid at the doors of the Indian spinners, even if the Indian captain Anil Kumble refused to acknowledge it at the post-match press conference minutes after his South African counterpart had admitted that his left-arm spinner Paul Harris wasn’t at his best during the Test. They need to be commended for their never-say-die efforts on Day One and Two but more was certainly expected of the combined experience of Kumble and Harbhajan Singh on this third-day like Day Five pitch, which, it must be said, never broke up but only ended up breaking just the bowlers’ hearts. Skipper Kumble went off the field shortly after lunch with a right groin niggle, which along with Sachin Tendulkar’s absence due to a groin strain and stomach problems, had the substitutes doing duty while vice-captain Dhoni led the side. The sweep was the most used shot on the day, perhaps the planned counter-measure against the spinners. One such shot provided the first real chance of the day, with McKenzie’s overnight partner, Hashim Amla, who turns 25 on Monday, receiving an early birthday gift by getting a reprieve. Sree Santh, positioned at long leg just for this rare chance, ran in a few yards but spilled the somewhat tough chance, only to earn a mouthful from the angry bowler, Harbhajan, who then proceeded to demonstrate to the Kerala pacer how it was done when he dived to stop a certain boundary. Amla (81), then on 55 in the day’s 12th over, was lucky again when RP Singh dropped him off his own bowling 17 runs later. Amla, though, was determined to get out on the day and soon enough he guided a Kumble delivery to Rahul Dravid at slip. Three more wickets fell on the day, Harbhajan picking up Jacques Kallis and Ashley Prince cheaply, after which Sehwag, who in Kumble’s absence was asked to bowl as many as 22 overs,snapped up AB de Villiers. Those wickets, however, came when the possibility of a result was long over.

Brief Score

South Africa

Batting

Ist Innings: 540/10, Hashim-159, Mckenzie-94, Smith-73, Boucher-70

2nd Innings: 331/5, Mckenzie-155, Hashim-81

Bowling

Ist Innings: Steyn-4/103, Ntini-3/128, Harris-3/203

2nd Innings: Did not bowl

India

Batting

Ist Innings: 627/10, Sehwag-319, Dravid-111, Jaffer-73

2nd Innings: Did not bat

Bowling

Ist Innings: Harbhajan-5/164, Kumble-2/106, Sehwag-1/37, Sreesanth-1/104

2nd Innings: Harbhajan-3/101, Sehwag-1/55, Kumble-1/57

Hashim cracks 159 as SA post 540 on day 2 at chennai test

There’s a little bit of steel in everybody’s life claims an advertising line on display at the Chidambaram Stadium. But out in the middle of the ground, there was no life and only steel on a surface that was supposedly made of clay, sand and stone. Why even the tracks just outside the stadium, the ones made of real steel and on which local trains run, seemed to have more life. Having got first use of such a surface, it was no wonder that the South African batsmen simply continued from where they had let off on day one. Batsman after batsman came, saw and went to sleep on the lifeless strip laid out for the first Test between India and South Africa here. No amount of conch-blowing or drum beating by the more than modest crowd that had gathered on another hot day served to wake up the Indian bowlers either, most of whom were forced to go through the motions as the visitors recorded their highest total in this country. November 2004 in Kanpur was when the Proteas had made 510 in their first innings. On Thursday, they made 30 more, ending with 540 from a little over 11 hours of easy-paced batting. Setting of new marks is bound to happen under the circumstances that have prevailed here over the first two days. But what will worry the Indians is that their previous highest against the South Africans is just 466, also made in the same Kanpur Test. The strong 82-run start that openers Wasim Jaffer (25 batting) and Virender Sehwag (52 batting) got them off to and the fact that the pitch doesn’t look ready to break anytime soon, may just help alleviate some of the fears of chasing down such a huge total. The day’s play can perhaps be best summed up by the fact that while only one batsman, Hashim Amla (159) scored a ton, as many as four Indian bowlers conceded over 100. But the Indian bowling didn’t wilt as much halt, a mere 23 overs in the morning session and 27 in the next, showing that like the batsmen, the normally hard-hitting Mark Boucher (70 from 146 balls) included, the bowlers too weren’t in any hurry. Only one man was in a different mood, AB de Villiers, looking to push from the word go. Like on the first day, a little bit of sledging from Sree Santh brought about a break in concentration and off he went edging to ’ketkeeper MS Dhoni. The 66-run fifth wicket association gave way to a 99-run partnership between Amla and Boucher which strangely enough was broken by way of a runout on a day when the Indian outfielding went from bad to worse. The mistake though was made by Boucher who called Amla for a run only to later turn his back on him. Having batted for nearly seven hours, Amla, who struck seven of his ten fours today towards the offside, may have even been relieved.

SA got a fantastic start on Day 1 at chennai

A brown, barren pitch, a green, quick outfield and a really bright, hot day greeted the Indian and South African teams when they took the field for the opening Test. This combination of the pitch and weather allowed a confident batting side help themselves to runs against a hapless set of bowlers. The Indian bowlers didn’t exactly restrict the South Africans but it certainly served to keep the visitors from running away with the honours on day one at the MA Chidambaram Stadium here on Wednesday. The visitors ended the extended day’s play on 304 for four, no doubt in a position to call the shots on day two but not exactly in the driver’s seat as yet even if Hashim Amla (85 batting) might think otherwise. It could have been far worse after the South Africans had got off to a fantastic start once South African skipper Graeme Smith called it right at the toss and gleefully conveyed his decision to bat. A 132-run opening stand by the same pair that had in the very recent past erased a five-decade old Indian record, would have put the scare into the Indian camp about things to come. That’s when the Indian spin twins, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, got into the act. They first got rid of the two openers Smith (73) and Neil McKenzie (94) before accounting for the dangerous Jacques Kallis (13) and Ashwell Prince (23). Fighting against the unresponsiveness of the pitch and the aggression of the South African openers was not an easy task. The nature of the pitch also meant that there was less margin for error for the bowlers and so it was never going to be easy to restrict the scoring rate. Then again, being day one, the bowlers couldn’t exactly adapt a defensive approach. Initially the cost was high, McKenzie took the Indian seamers RP Singh and Sree Santh on with some exquisite drives in front of the wicket. Sreesanth did send down some beauties, managing to beat the bat on more than one occasion but that was until the ball was new. With no lateral movement available for love or money, the batsmen were always going to take over soon enough and so it proved with Smith too joining in. McKenzie was always expected to handle the fast men well but it was his handling of the spinners that was a revelation. There seemed no chinks to exploit during his 230-minute vigil and it took all of Harbhajan’s guile to get him out just six short of his century.

Test squad picked for first two tests against SA

Jaffer, Yuvraj retained in Test squad as selectors stick with experience

The Dilip Vengsarkar-chaired national selection committee sprung no surprises in the course of its 90-minute meeting at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday evening. The 14-member team was announced by the BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah after he received the go-ahead from Board president Sharad Pawar, who was busy at a Parliament session. The selectors expectedly stuck to the team that did duty in Australia, but at least for one man, tragedy struck even as the meeting was in progress. Left-arm spinner Murali Kartik, fielding in the Deodhar Trophy tie between Central Zone and West Zone, suffered a ligament tear in his left ankle while attempting to get to a hardhit straight drive by Virendra Sehwag. The unfortunate Railwayman who was first named in the squad was later ruled out. Ironically enough, Karthik’s replacement is to be young leg-spinner Piyush Chawla, off whose bowling the shot had been struck by a rampaging Sehwag. Chawla had first been put on standby for Harbhajan Singh. For Delhi, there was some disappointment, as Ishant Sharma was ruled out due to injury while Gautam Gambhir, the star of India’s ODI campaign in Australia, was ignored. Ishant Sharma was asked by the Board to take rest for another week as a precautionary measure before undergoing another assessment, following the fitness test on Sunday. Should he have recovered enough by then, there is every chance that he will be added on as the 15th member for the second Test at Ahmedabad, BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah informed. The meeting was also attended by skipper Anil Kumble and new coach Gary Kirsten, who revealed later that he thoroughly enjoyed his first experience as part of a selection meeting. “It’s going to be a learning curve. At the end of the day, you have got a whole lot of people that have got certain ideas and opinions about things. And there are times when you are going to have a difference of opinion,” he said. Kirsten, as also Kumble, didn’t have a vote at the meeting but wasn’t too perturbed about that. Along with the 14-man squad — picked for the first two Tests of the three-Test series — the selectors also named two standbys in wicketkeeper/batsman Dinesh Karthik and spinner Piyush Chawla and asked ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and offie Harbhajan Singh to report at the NCA here for a fitness test on March 21, five days before the first Test at Chennai on March 26. Now that Chawla is already in, the wise men will have to come up with another name in case Harbhajan is ruled out. As it stands, the squad consists of seven batsmen, one wicketkeeper batsman, three spinners and three new ball operators. Whatever discussion took place behind closed doors, apart from the focus on who was injured, who was not and whose fitness was yet to be tested, only two names — that of opener Wasim Jaffer and Yuvraj Singh — had any contestants. Having delivered in the last home series against Pakistan, Jaffer was rightly retained, the contenders for his spot Gautam Gambhir and Akash Chopra losing out in the process. As for Yuvraj, his four abject failures in the first two Tests in Australia notwithstanding, the sheer talent that the stylish left-hander possesses just could not be ignored. With regard to the fast men, it was decided that three pacers would do — for sure only two will play in any one home Test. Thus, there was no looking beyond the fit again RP Singh and S Sree Santh, with utility man Irfan Pathan joining them. The only question that was left unanswered was that of the support staff for Kirsten. “That hasn’t been finalised,” revealed the coach, adding that it was likely that bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad and fielding coach Robin Singh were likely to be retained. “At this stage it looks likely, so hopefully that will happen,” said Kirsten.

The Squad: Anil Kumble (captain), Mahendra Singh Dhoni (vice-captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Virendra Sehwag, Wasim Jaffer, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh, Irfan Pathan, RP Singh, S Sreeshant, Harbhajan Singh and Piyush Chawla. Coach: Gary Kirsten.