Zaheer Khan produced a fine spell of fast bowling, after solid knocks by the batsmen, to enable India take control of the second Test against Bangladesh at the end of Day 2, at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium in Mirpur, Dhaka, on Saturday.
Replying to India's mammoth total of 610 for 3 declared, Bangladesh were reduced to 58 for 5 in 16 overs in their first innings.
Zaheer claimed three wickets in the space of nine deliveries as Bangladesh's top order faltered on a pitch that saw India's first four batsmen score centuries, the first instance in Test cricket.
Sachin Tendulkar, who was unbeaten on 122, was the fourth centurion in India's first innings after Wasim Jaffer (138), Dinesh Karthik (129) and Rahul Dravid (129) reached the milestone earlier.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni smashed 51 from 50 deliveries, inclusive of three boundaries and four sixes, as India surged past the 600-run mark.
Morning session: (27 overs, 116 runs, 1 wicket)
Dravid, unbeaten on 88 overnight, faced no real problems as he cruised to his 24th Test century. The Indian captain got a single through the cover region off Mashrafe Mortaza to reach the milestone off 144 deliveries, hitting 12 boundaries and a six.
Tendulkar also looked to get going as the two batsmen seemed intent on scoring quick runs. They used their experience to the fullest, making sure that they got as many singles as possible, with the odd boundary in between.
Bangladesh captain Habibul Bashar resorted to damage control mode, getting more fielders on the boundary in a bid to stop the flow of runs.
The partnership between these senior batsmen resembled the middle overs of a one-day match, when the batsmen try to maintain the tempo with quick singles and twos, with the field spread out.
Tendulkar was pacing his innings nicely and gradually started to open out as the temperature also started to rise. He brought up India's 400 in style when he danced down the wicket and dispatched left-arm spinner Mohammad Rafique for a huge six over long-off.
Finally, the breakthrough came for Bangladesh in the form of Dravid's wicket. The right-hander tried to loft Rafique through the off-side, but could only hit it straight to Javed Omar at point. He scored 129, hitting 15 boundaries and a six in his 176-ball knock. His partnership with Tendulkar yielded 127 runs in 31.2 overs.
The joy for Bangladesh was obvious, as finally they managed to get a wicket after a long wait of 108.2 overs, a total of 650 deliveries with the score 408.
Dinesh Karthik, who had retired on 82 due to cramps, came out on the middle after the fall of Dravid's wicket.
The 21-year-old Chennai batsman showed no signs of the cramps that had struck him yesterday as he got off with the scoring nicely. He completed his maiden Test century with a single through the off-side off the last ball before lunch.
Playing in his 13th Test, Karthik took 180 balls to reach the landmark, hitting 13 boundaries.
At lunch, India were 442 for the loss of one wicket, with Tendulkar unbeaten on 63 from 122 deliveries. The ace batsman dealt in singles for the most of his innings, hitting just three boundaries and a six.
Once again the Bangladesh bowlers failed to make an impression, although they can take pride from the fact that they finally got a breakthrough.
India will now be looking to further accelerate the run rate in the post-lunch session so that they can get some time in the last session to put Bangladesh in for a few overs.
Post-Lunch session: (25 overs, 86 runs, 2 wickets)
India's plan after lunch was clear: get quick runs.
Karthik was the one who went for the shots, while at the other end Tendulkar got the singles and twos.
Karthik got lucky again when, on 126, he edged the ball behind off Mortaza but wicketkeeper Khaled Mashud dropped the easy offering in the 128th over.
He, however, could not survive long as he fell for 129. Trying to play the pull shot, he could only top edge it to Bashar off Mortaza.
Karthik hit 16 boundaries in his 212-ball knock spread over two days. His wicket slowed down the tempo.
Tendulkar, it seemed, was content collecting the singles along with new man Sourav Ganguly at the other end.
The two batsmen struggled to lift the scoring rate. They added 32 runs off 62 deliveries before Ganguly was dismissed.
With Tendulkar, at the other end, quite close to his century, it was Ganguly who went after the runs. He, however, could score only 15 before he was caught behind off Rafique.
Tendulkar then completed his 37th Test century, his second straight, with a gentle push on the leg side. The right-hander took 200 deliveries to reach the mark, hitting six boundaries and a six.
It was also the first instance in Test cricket that the top four batsmen of a team scored centuries.
Even though Tendulkar was the fourth centurion of the innings, his hundred was, by far, the most boring. He was content playing the role of a sheet anchor and, at times, it seemed he was more bothered about completing a century rather than lifting the run rate.
After crossing the half-century mark he took another 92 deliveries to reach his century, hitting just four boundaries in the process.
At tea, India were 528 for 3 in 142 overs, with Mahendra Singh Dhoni not out on 1 from eight deliveries.
Just 86 runs came in the session in 25 overs for the loss of two wickets, when the need of the hour was quick runs.
Indian fans must have expected some big shots, but, unfortunately, they were witness to a painful century from one of the greatest batsmen in the history of the game.
In fact, all the previous centurions - Jaffer, Dravid and Karthik - played aggressively and never let the Bangladesh bowlers take control. It seemed as if India had just let the foot off the pedal in the session.
Post-Tea session: (27 overs, 140 runs, 5 wickets)
Dhoni infused much-needed life in the Indian innings after the tea session. He slammed left-arm spinner Rafique for three sixes in an over to signal India's intentions. His innings was a welcome change, both for the team and management, after the struggle in the post-lunch session.
The Indian wicketkeeper kept trying to hit big shots even as Tendulkar continued looking for the singles at the other end.
It would have been perfect had both batsmen gone for the shots, but, somehow, it gave an impression that one of them was trying his best to protect his wicket.
Dhoni, in his usual swashbuckling style, brought up his half-century, his fourth in Tests, with a smashing six over extra cover off pacer Mohammad Sharif.
He took just 50 deliveries to complete his fifty, hitting three boundaries and four sixes to give India the much-required push after the tea break.
With Dhoni completing his fifty, India declared their innings at 610 for 3 in 153 overs.
Tendulkar finished unbeaten on 122 after a near six-hour vigil at the wicket, facing 226 balls, hitting eight boundaries and a six.
In the end there was nothing much to write about his innings, except that he stuck out in the middle in difficult conditions on a pitch where other inexperienced batsmen scored more freely than him.
Dravid surely must have wanted the runs scored at a quicker pace to have more time to get the hosts out twice, though he still has loads at his disposal. 610 is a big score and with Anil Kumble in the ranks, India need not worry. The only concern is whether his bowlers will be able to bowl at their best twice in such hot conditions if the follow-on is enforced.
For Bangladesh, there was nothing much to show as far as their bowling was concerned. Rafique finished the most successful, claiming two wickets for 181 in 45 overs, while Mortaza strived hard but could only pick one for 100 in 31.4 overs.
Bangladesh first innings:
If the Bangladesh bowlers took 108.2 overs to get the first Indian wicket, the Indian bowlers struck with the first ball of the innings.
Zaheer produced a top-class delivery first up; it pitched on off-stump, leaving the right-hander. All Javed Omar could do was edge it to Dinesh Karthik at third slip.
The second wicket also didn't take long to come. Habibul Bashar failed once again as Rudra Pratap Singh got the Bangladesh captain caught behind off a delivery that bounced and gave him no chance at all.
There was more misery to follow though as Zaheer reduced the Bangladesh batting to pieces with a double strike in the third over of the innings.
The left-arm pacer first dismissed Shahriar Nafees for 2, bowling the left-hander with an unbelievable delivery that pitched on off-stump and swung in.
He followed it up with the wicket of Bangladesh's best batsmen Mohammad Ashraful off the very next ball. The right-hander was trapped leg before wicket with a delivery that swung in, trapping him right in front of the wickets.
If Bangladesh thought the wicket was a batsman's paradise, it must have been a rude shock being reduced to 7 for 4 in the third over.
It could have been even worse had Dinesh Karthik in the slips not dropped Saqibul Hasan and Rajin Saleh in two overs. Some luck for Bangladesh finally in this ill-fated Test match as far as they are concerned.
Rajin Saleh tried to dig out Bangladesh with a few crispy hits to the fence, but Anil Kumble soon showed him the way to the pavilion when he dismissed him in his first over.
Saleh, who scored 20 inclusive of four boundaries, was caught at short fine leg by Jaffer as Bangladesh were reduced to 40 for 5 in the 11th over.
There could not have been a perfect setting for debutant pacer Ishant Sharma to set sail in international cricket. The opposition was down and grounded and the 18-year-old Delhi fast bowler just needed stick to the basics as the batsmen were intent on playing with caution.
He got off to an inauspicious start as his first delivery in international cricket was a no-ball. But thereafter he settled into a nice rhythm and consistently bowled at the off-stump at a good pace, around the 135kph mark, and occasionally touching the 140kph mark.
Bangladesh avoided any further casualties as they reached 58 for 5 in 16 overs, with Saqibul Hasan looking solid on 30, inclusive of four boundaries.
In sum, it was a perfect day for India as the pacers, led by Zaheer's wonderful opening spell, left Bangladesh shell-shocked. Even they may never have envisaged dreamed that after conceding 600 runs they would lose half their side within half an hour of the start of their innings.
Zaheer finished the day with 3 for 20 in his five overs, with R P Singh and Anil Kumble claiming 1 for 19 and 1 for 13 respectively.
The major difference between the Indian pacers and their Bangladeshi counterparts was the pace at which they bowled at. While the Indian pacers constantly strived to bowl in the high 130s (kph), the Bangladeshi bowlers were content just bowling below the 130s and trying to maintain a tight line.
