Full marks to Laxman

After having to bowl for the better part of yesterday and all of today, I must say that the wicket has flattened out and is a good batting wicket at this stage. However, the Indian batsmen did not seem to enjoy their time in the middle and full marks to VVS Laxman for holding the innings together and scoring around 150 runs during the day. He played exceptionally well and did not give a single chance during his stay at the wicket.

Our team has a great deal of regard for Laxman, especially after the big hundred he got in Sydney last year. Although the series was not special for him before that, his knock showed us how well he could bat even in Australian conditions.

Perhaps that is why we did not assume that the innings was over once we got Tendulkar out cheaply in the second innings too. Seeing how important Tendulkar is to the Indian batting line-up, I guess you could get a little relaxed if you get him out cheaply. However, that did not happen today.

There was a time during the Ganguly-Laxman partnership when I was feeling a little bit flat. At such a stage I say something to the batsmen more to get a little pumped up rather than to unsettle the batsman. If the batsman loses concentration it obviously is a bonus. To my credit, the ball was reversing a little bit, and I did bowl a good delivery to get Ganguly out when he was set and nearing a fifty.

The pitch has got better as time has gone by and the first session tomorrow morning is crucial. We definitely are in control considering the Indians are minus 20 for four. From the Australian side, if anyone is responsible for the comfortable situation we are in, it’s got to be Steve. He was 29 when Jason Gillespie joined him in the middle. To score a century from there was a huge effort. Credit must go to Gillespie too, because he held up one end superbly. I was in the middle with Steve when he finally got to three figures. He was uncharacteristically pumped up. After hitting a six to reach 99, I knew he would be looking for a single. We took off as soon as the ball was hit a little wide of Raju. As we crossed I heard Steve anxiously say: “Run, run,” because he suddenly thought I would get run out. However, I had it well under control and was happy to help the captain to a century. This is the fifth or sixth time I have helped Steve reach a century or a double century. However, I must admit it was not too difficult on this pitch. My scoring 21 here stands testimony to the fact that this is an extremely good batting track. I was just thinking of a Test 50 when Steve got out, just one of those things I guess!

The second day was one of the best days of Test cricket I have been involved in because we not only wiped out the advantage Harbhajan had given the Indians with his tremendous spell, we maintained the advantage even when India came in to bat on this ideal batting wicket. Steve’s inspirational century had a lot to do with this, and we were all pretty pumped up when we took the field. It was to our credit that we kept the momentum right through the day, and never let them get back into contention.

The first session of the fourth day is going to be pretty crucial. We will be trying to get one of these guys out before the deficit is wiped out and if that happens only Nayan Mongia stands between us and the long tail. From the Indian point of view, it’s up to Laxman and Dravid to build up a big partnership. This is not an impossibility considering this remains a good batting strip, and you have two class batsmen in the middle. They will decide whether this match will go into the fifth day or end tomorrow itself.

(Gameplan)

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