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Posts Tagged ‘saurav ganguly’
Australia in India, 2008: 2nd Test, Day 4 - Leading from the front
If the first three days were anything to go by, this match was going to be won by one team only. But cricket and maths don’t go well together. There is always hope for the unexpected, a quick fire 50, a match-winning spell of bowling, a run-out against the run of play. There are so many things that could go wrong, or right depending on how things happen. The champions, however, do not let their opposition take control. And if Australia are champions, then they need some serious contemplation to do as India dominated their 4th consecutive day in this test match.
Resuming at 100/0 and already in front by 301, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir kept scoring at a belligerent pace regardless of what field placements Ricky Ponting could conjure up. Despite having 4 men at the boundary, he was unable to stem the flow of runs. Gambhir reached his 50 during the day, and the two now have become the most dangerous opening pair in the game. Both Gambhir and Sehwag score freely and have a wide array of shots. They can easily manufacture shots depending on the situation and it is their aggressive attitude to dominate the bowling that sets them apart from other opening pairs.
Sehwag, however, was the first to depart edging Peter Siddle to Brad Haddin. Siddle picked up his first wicket of the innings and so did Australia. Dhoni came in at one-down, a rather unusual position for him in tests, although he has played a few match-winning knocks at that position in the shorter format of the game. He was quickly into his stride as he saw Gambhir score just his second test century, which was also his first against Australia.
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Australia in India, 2008: 2nd Test, Day 2 - A parting gift
If yesterday was Sachin Tendulkar Day, then today surely belonged to three players - one about to end his cricket career, another just beginning, and finally a swashbuckling captain that just gets better with additional responsibility. Saurav Ganguly got his 16th century, his second against Australia and his first against Australia in India. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, leading the side for just the second time, took the attack to the Aussies and displayed to the world just how frail the bowling department has become for the once mighty Australians. And finally, Amit Mishra, bowling in his first match, picked up 2 key wickets to rattle the visitors on the second day of the match.
But first lets talk about Ganguly. He had declared before the start of the series that will quit from International cricket at the conclusion of the fourth match. This series belongs to him, more so than anyone else in the Indian cricket team. This is also a key moment in Indian cricket history as it marks the beginning of an end of the Fab 4 that have captured the minds and souls of cricket fans over the last decade.
Ganguly was never in control today, as much as he was on the first day. The pressure was definitely on him. India started the day with 5 wickets down. Batting on this pitch was still paradise. India only had Dhoni left after Ganguly. This was Ganguly’s time and the old fox did no disappoint his plethora of fans (some of who are adamant that he reconsider his retirement). Ganguly got to the magical 3 figure mark with a lot of grit and patience. And the moment was absolute bliss for a man who wanted to go out on his own terms. THIS will prove a point to all his past and current detractors and the old selection committee, who had been unfairly harsh on this legend.
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Australia in India, 2008: 2nd Test, Day 1 - A master stroke
A day to remember for an cricket fan. The man who had promised so much when he started at the age of 16, has finally lived up to all those promises after 19 years of playing. Sachin Tendulkar finally became the Greatest Ever Batsman in the history of the game as he reached the magical mark of 12000 runs in test cricket.
The second test had promised to be a cracker. The pitch at Mohali has deceived everyone by staying bone-dry on the first day. With Anil Kumble out due to shoulder problems, Amit Mishra gets to make his debut against the world’s No 1 test team. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, as skipper, won the toss and had no hesitation in batting first. If there is one shrewd customer, then it is MS. His analysis of the pitch was spot on. There was hardly any movement on day 1. The first session was unlike any ordinary test match session. This was a passage of play where India wanted to take the “bull by its horns”. And they did that in spectacular fashion. Going at almost a run a ball, Sehwag and Gambhir smashed Lee, Johnson and Siddle all over the place.
It wasn’t until Sehwag fell, quite a tame dismissal, that some sense of normalcy arrived in the batting. India, however, had made their point. They were going to make life extremely difficult for the Aussies. Gambhir reached his half century in the last over before lunch and was ably supported by Dravid, who himself was looking like his old self, aka The Wall.
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Australia in India, 2008, First Test: Day 5 - Tendulkar and Laxman Deny Oz
The final day was as thrilling as it could ever be. Ricky Ponting declared giving India a victory target of 299 on a crumbling Bangalore wicket. If India got a quick start depending on Sehwag, then it was game on from India. If Australia got Sehwag cheaply, then it was game on from Australia. As it happened, Sehwag got out early and Australia were right on top. Had it been any other Aussie pace attack, they would have won. Had it been any other Indian batting lineup, India would have lost.
Unfortunately for Australia, and fortunately for India, neither was true. The Aussies failed to get 10 wickets. India failed to lose 10 wickets. Two men stood there ground. The only two men who have done so over the last decade. VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar defied a spirited Australian pace attack and Australia’s best spin combination to deny the visitors a victory. Although Tendulkar fell 15 runs short of reaching the world record mark, he would have been pretty satisfied with his effort. VVS on the other hand desperately needed to get amongst the runs, especially after scoring a duck in the first innings.
Ganguly, in his last match at Bangalore, stood firm. His knocks in both the innings have been crucial. He is definitely looking set for a big score in his farewell to international cricket. One wonders, if the last of the 4 matches would have been at the Eden Gardens. The very mention of it being Ganguly’s last match would have ensured capacity crowds for all 5 days, regardless if India win or loose.
Watch Day 5 Highlights