Transcript of the Commentary - Australian Innings

Prem: And with that, folks, it's over from here, we willbe back live toimorrow, when pakistan and the west indies go head to head to decide who faces india in the semifinal. till which point, have a good night all, bye.

Prem: 45 off 12, last over of tenudlkar's over and typically, he finishes it off first ball, on off, a huge hoik, the ball flares up and dravid holds at mid on and tendulkar finishes with a four wicket haul, young the last man out and india winning by a mile and a half.

Prem: 45 from 13, and srinath for the last time, to fleming, yorker length again and the defneisve push, no run. 45 needed still, with two overs to go, and it's all but over here for australia.

Prem: 46 from 14, now, with two left in the over, yyoung down the track, srinath pulls it down short, young plays out to long on, single.

Prem: 47 from 15, srinath to fleming, again the yorker length, fleming gets it away for a single.

Prem: 47 still from 16. and the next ball is a yorker, fleming pushes to mid off, no run.

Prem: bang on off and young kind of had an optimisitic heave, didnt get near the ball with anything at all, no run. all two, srinath, young down the crease, to cover, gets the single.

Anandam (anandamm@cisunix.unh.edu) Hello Prem! It isn't worthwile contemplating what could have happened to India without Tendulkar. I bet it would be something like India's freedom movement without Gandhi! Prem: 48 from 18, and it is young on strike to the bowling of javagal srinath.

Prem: tendulkar, with two balls left,pitches right up, the yorker, the batsman pushes abck down the track, no run, 49 now off 19. last ball, hit through midwkcet, single, 48 off 18.

Prem: tendulkar now with 50 needed to aus off 21, young to cover, single. 49 off 20.

Prem: tendulkar now to fleming, on middle, played back, the ask becoming pretty irrelevant here, the next ball is wung to long on, single.

Prem: now one wicket left, that of damien fleming, 51 needed off 23.

Prem: tendulkar being continued, here, into his 9th over and he will be bowling to kapra, ball one is on off, swung around, but kapra not getting any wood on it at all, ball lobs to midwicket, the batsmen were running with the shot, no problem for the fielder to relay the ball to scahin, with kapra about halfway down the track when the bails are taken off, that was dravid with the fielding.

Prem: viraj:: because the world and his uncle are logging on. Kumble meanwhile bowls the flipper, pushing it through, keeps kapra quiet, 52 needd off 25 now. last ball, pyushed to point, single to end the over, aus still need 51 off 24.

Prem: kumble, and a beauty, that one was the genuine leg break, squared kapra up and forced the defensive push, ball lobbing in the air but just short of the bowler on the follow through. ball four, kapra swings, up in the air and over long on, six for taht, a huge hit. 256/8.

Prem: kumble, and this one is hit to the cover region, single. 250/8. 58 off 28 balls more needed.

Prem: kumble to continue, young the man on strike, steps across, paddles, two down to sachin tendulkar at fine leg running around.

Prem: lull in play, as kapra appears to have damaged his bat, getting some running repairs to it just now.

Prem: India in 45 overs, 279/3. Australia at the same stage, 247/8.

Prem: kapra drives at tendulakr, in the air and inches short of azhar at mid off, no run. sachin at the end of the over has figures of 8-0-35-3.

Prem: tendulkar continues, to kapra who cuts and finds point.

Prem: If, in post mortem, australia were to pin down a moment when they lost the game, they could think of the two wild shots by ponting and mark waugh, both at joshi, both played at a time when australia was dominating the game, and two batsmen who were well set threw it away and gave the game on a plate to the Indians.

Prem: 247/8 the score, with only kapra and fleming to follow, into the 45th over here.

Prem: tedulkar again, this time, he steps away, clubs on the off side and straight to point, so that is the next wicket, sachin's 3rd.

Prem: tendulkar looks really angry at that, srinath reacting late, couldnt stop the shot. next ball, the batsman, martyin, sweeps and misses.

Prem: tendulkar continuing, a gentle chicp to tthird man, beats the fielder at short third amn and runs down to the fence for four.

Prem: India in 45 were 279/3, so australia at this point really lagging behind and further and further out of the game here.

Prem: kumble bowling the 44th here, 7 in the over thus far, one ball left, they need at least fouur more here to keep with athe ask rate, martyin sweeps but just the one. end of the over.

Prem: 239/7 australia, and young plays to point, no run.

Prem: kumble to young, who this time hits through cover, two to the sweeper.

Prem: kumble now coming back on, and it is young on strike, cuts and just gets the ball past the diving jadeja at point, four for that, too much of width on that one.

Prem: last ball, ince sweep, gets two to the sweeper but again, a very very good over from sachin, making the ask harder and harder for the aussies.

Prem: martyn on strike, steps awya, swings tendulkar out on the fof but straight to cover, no run.

Prem: ballk four, sachin to young, pitches short and faster, pulled around but again, just one.

Prem: ball two, tendulkar to martyn, the off break, held back, the swipe gets the top edge, lobs in the air but drops short of ganguly running in from the fence at backward square, single. next ball, young pushes to point, wants one, sent back.

Prem: tendulkar continues, young off drives, gets one more.

Prem: Last ball, agarkar forces the defensive push to short midwicet, no run. end of the 42nd, aus 230/7, aus needing 78 off 48 now.

Prem: 2 runs in three balls, which wont cut it for australia here, they need at least two, three boundaries per over here and that one is hit nicely by martyn, picking it up on the half volley, up and over midwicket, four.

Prem: 2 runs in three balls, which wont cut it for australia here, they need at least two, three boundaries per over here and that one is hit nicely by martyn, picking it up on the half volley, up and over midwicket, four.

Prem: nextg ball, martyin swings again, gets good wood on that one, again wide of long on and four more, that means 10 runs in this over with one ball left.

Prem: agarkar again, to young, on leg, turned round to backwqard square, single.

Prem: agarkar now to young, on off cutting in, cramps the batsman, no run, another dot ball.

Prem: Sorry, guys, our scoreboard frame is sticking so you will have to depend on this one to bring you all the news from here on in. 220/7 \aus, in 41 overs, and agarkar continues, bowls to martynm who plays to backward point, gets one. 9.84 the ask, 87 off 53 needed.

Prem: tendulkar with two runs in this over, thus ffar, one ball to go, this one is swung around by martyn, gets it to midwicekt, just the single.

Prem: next ball, played to the leg side, they run the single, want two, good throw coming in but mongia fractionally late to turn and the batsman manages to make it back into his crease.

Prem: sachin now with a yorker, which young defends.

Prem: the off break, brad young was attempting toc ut, saw the ball dart in at him, the cut almost pulling the ball onto th stumps. 90/57 now the ask

Prem: te dulkar for now continues, martyin pushes to point, quick single. brad young the new man in.

Prem: the big question though is, what does india do if sachin is for some reason unavailable?

Prem: With that, really into the tail here so an aussie win from here would qualify as the cricketing equivalent of walking on water. man of the match should take the adjudicators about a second to decide -- there's been only one player, really, so this will give sachin his third back to back century, and third man of the match, against aus in recent times.

Prem: 91 from 61 now, agarkar gets him on the pad, that one was gone, lehmann trying to play across, again, the ball was on a very full length, and there goes lehmann playing all over it and rapped bang in front, hit low on the pad in front of middle.

Looks like it's curtains for Aus. 98 runs in 11 overs (a fraction under 9 an over) is gonna be hard at this stage if not impossible.: Muralidhar Rangaswamy (murali@arcon.com) Prem: agarkar, round the wicekt to lehmann who tries to run it down, that one was too close to him, angled in as well, beats the shot and just past the stumps.

Prem: Shantanu:: link is fine, just reload your browswer, the accesses now are real heavy. martyn, ball four, plays to deep backward point, single.

Prem: agarkar, ball three, two runs off two thus far, to the right handed martyn, short on off and played to point, no run and the crowd cheers.

Prem: outside off, lehmann punches through point, single.

Prem: agarkar the bowler, damien martyn the new man in but it is lehmann on strike, aus needing 8.67 per over, or 94 off 65 from here, outside off and lehmann swings and misses, but that is a wide.

Prem: 220/3 india at this stage. aus needs to go at 8.81, so all the indians have to do is keep their heads and bowl tight. that ball, though, with overthrows to the left and right giving three where there was only one, is NOT what they need.

Prem: This is the second time sachin is maing a mess of australia's happiness with his bowling, the first being when he came up with a five wicket haul in cochin to win a rare man of the match award for his bowling.

Prem: PC:: no such thing, remember the first three games?

Prem: that one, sachin went veryy wide of the crease, then bowled into the off and middle on a very full length, denying room for the shot, bevan had to get runs, went to drive on the on, and ended up playing over the ball.

Prem: sachin to begvan and he's gone -- full length, bowled wide of the crease, and bevan trying to play to midwicket, plays all over it and tendulkar has almost singlehandedly done it for india here.

Prem: tendulkar to lehmann, full length on off, turned round, finds thrid man, that is jadeja, just the one, great work from jadeja, the release was very quick, forced lehmann to rethink the second.

Prem: Abhijeet:: against either pakistan or windies, whoever wins tomorrow. tendulkar to lehmann, cut, finds point and a very risky run as azhar fields and throws in but misses the stumps.

Prem: two for srinath, two for agarkar, three for joshi, tendulkar continues, with aus finally falling behind india in the runs scored at this point. ball one, bevan drives, sachin fields. ball two, short, bevan on his knee, works it through wide mid on, two for it.

Prem: India headed into the 41st over with 225/3 in 40, then smashed 54 in the next five overs to be 279/3 in 45, this is where the pressure will mount even further on the australians given some good bowling by the indians in the slog

Prem: 2 runs off five balls, and australia now will feel the pressure mounting, as the overs tick past. bevan flicks, single to square leg, three in the over, the 38th of the innings, with twelve more to go.

Prem: agarkar again, just one in the over thus far, lehmann drives, gets the edgbe but again, just one, with third man in place.

Prem: agarkar, three dot balls, now into the fourth ball, to bevan and again, the yorker, bevan can only work the single to point, this is a good second spell by agarkar, makes you wonder why he doesn't do this the first spell.

Prem: agarkar, two dot balls, third one, to bevan, wide of teh crease and angled in to off, bevan pushes back, agarkar very fast on the follow through and panics bevan into racing back into his crease, very well done.

Prem: agarkar continues, round the wicket now to both left handers, that was lehmann on strike and now it is bevan, beten outside off by a slower ball, bevan had to check the intended ddrive, lovely ball.

Prem: 8.15 needed, that is, 106 more to get and agarkar round the wicket, to bevan who swings him round through midwicket but again, only one.

Prem: ball four, with just one off the first three, on off and a superb delivery, tendulkar bwoled that like a medium pacer, pushed it through fast. 108/80 now, at 8.10, bevan pulls the next one on his knee for the shot but again, just the one, tendulkar has really pulled the team out off the fire here in the fifth bowler's slot. last ball, paddled around but only one, to fine leg, ends another superb over by sachin.

Prem: Cheeku>> no, all this sun has blazed the outfield completely dry and very fast. tendulkar with his off spin continues, pitches off, turns it away and turns it quite a lot too, beats the cut from lehmann, aus now need at 7.87. ball two, played to point, no run, 109 off 82 now and the crowd is now roaring the dot balls on. ball three, outside off, pulled round, but just one to the sweeper, that was a cross bat hit, the pressure showing now on the batsman.

The key will be Agarkar now. If he can bowl well in the second spell, India will win. It will be a good idea to bowl him 2-3 overs now and the last overs could be bowled by Srinath and Kumble.: arvind Prem: puneet:: about 5.9.

Prem: agarkar now with three runs off five balls, to bevan, last ball, on off, palyed to mid off but robin very quickly in from cover to field, no run, that is a very good over for india, just three in it.

Prem: lehmann on strike, agarkar again, and this one on driven, ganguly fields at long on, single.

Prem: agarkar to began, onto the front foot and cover driving, wants two but tendulkar very quick there, on the line at sweeper cover, keeps it down to one.

Prem: agarkar again, this time to bevan. round the wicket, bowling wide of the crease, full length, played to mid on and now the noise in the stadium as the crowd cheers every dot ball will add to the pressure.

Prem: so for bevan and lehmann, the trick here would be to keep the singles ticking over. meanwhile, agarkar being brought back into the attack, bowling round the wicket to lehmann who plays a one handed shot at the econd ball, gets enough bat to just clear cover, not a clever shot that, single.

Prem: this pair really have to come good for australia, damien martyn is rted a good hitter but he is not the dependable sort, and after that, it is down to young, kapra and fleming -- all of whom can swing the bat around but are not the kind of batsmen you want chasing say 60 odd runs at the very end.

The key will be Agarkar now. If he can bowl well in the second spell, India will win. It will be a good idea to bowl him 2-3 overs now and the last overs could be bowled by Srinath and Kumble.: Arvind Prem: te ndulkar with two left handers at the wicket decides to shift to off spin here, good thinking. this is proving a very good over, and some very good cricket from sachin yet again. on off, keeping this one flat and no run as lehmann pushes to mid off. 2 runs and a wicket, and one ball left in this one. to lehmann, who cuts, finds the sweeper, just the single.

Prem: tendulkar now to bevan, who tries to ploay on on, gets it to the on side and gets the single.

Azhar-ji is in the process of helping his counterpart to settle down by bowling Robin at this juncture. Keep it up Azzu-ji. We need more captains like you. Why don't you try Ganguly? I agree with you that he is a poor fielder. But he is a decent bowler. Somebody has to try Ganguly at the STate level, then only Azzu will start using him I believe. : Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem: sachin now to steve waugh, on off and that is the blunder -- sachin just held that one back, steve waugh spotted it too lte, couldn't check his drive, and pops it right back to the bowler who is so relieved, he actually laughs loud by wya of appeal, sort of like Kaluwitharana does when he pulls off a stumping, and that wicket coudlnt have come at a better moment for the fielding side.

Prem: Australia needing 7.18 from here, 115 off 96 balls which qualifies as gettable, itt is all down to how tight the indian bowling and fielding can be. sachin being brought back. agarkar has 4, srinath has 2, kumble has 3, joshi has 2, singh has gone for 24 off 3 so he is proving the dangerous link, they need to squeeze in five more overs by the non regulars, and that is why the continued absence of gnaguly is mystifying. lehmann punches through point off the back foot, single.

Australia has two new batsmen at the crease with the asking rate at 7.23. A quick wicket here will put India on top.: Muralidhar Rangaswamy (murali@arcon.com) Prem: 6 in 5 thus far from robin, last ball, t lehmann who again cover drives, this time, just the one.

Prem: robin to lehmann, driven through the covers, the fielder there too slow coming in off the line, two for it.

Prem: robin to lehmann, round the wicket, that one was very close to off, lehmann trying a risky cut, misses, ball flashing dangerously close to the stumps.

Prem, Aza should take off Srinath as the last few overs will need him the most.:Potdar (mvpotdar@hotmail.com) Prem: robin now to lehmann, into the 34th over, here, 12/16 lehmann, that one was a full pitch, flicked well through long on, two more to the batsman before the fielder can chase it down.

Prem: Okay, back live and lehmann on strike. robin being brought back, again the vulnerable fifth bowler's slot posing the problem. 7.18 the ask. lehmann gets one through point, first ball. steve waugh on drives, gets one more.

Prem: thhis is the big plus for the fielding side in the latter stages -- every good over pushes the run rate up noticeably, unlike earlier in the innings when it only goes up by a fraction. meanwhile bit of a problem with the sightscreen, lull in play.

Prem: 5 in 5 balls in this innings, kumble to steve waugh who stemps back and forces on the on side, good fielding though, no run, so just the five in the over and that should push the ask rate up a bit further.

Guys, remember Aussies have only lost three wickets (leave out the pinch hitter). They have got a bonus (20 runs) also. Beven is yet to come. So the game is still in favour of them only.: krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem: kumble to lehmann, slower ball, well picked and pushed to point, single.

Prem: kumble to steve waugh who square drives off the back foot, one more.

Prem: steve waugh off the back foot, tries to hit on the off, gets the thick edge, ball down to mid on, playing the shot too early steve waugh, gets the single there though. now australia's ask rate up to 7.05. single to lehmann, late cutting to third man.

Prem: Houseful crowd having a ball hre, cheering both teams on though india seems to have the greater support, kumble meanwhile continues.

Prem: last ball of the over, three in it thus far, lehmann on strike and srinath from wiide of teh crease into off stump line, lehmann drives, one to sweeper cover, four in the over and that makes it a good one for india, problem being he is now down to just two left of his allotted ten.

Prem: srinath again, to lehmann batting 7/10, short and lifting, the extra bounce defeating the attempt to punch off the back foot, lehmann plays agian to point, no run.

Prem: lehmann on strike, srinath round the wicket, angling it in to off, the batsman forces to point, finds jadeja, no run.

INdia needs a couple of tight overs right now. A couple of wickets would help too!!: Sid (vedula@emirates.net.ae) Prem: waugh again on strike, srinath the bowler, waugh clubs it to mid on, single as he runs with the shot.

Time to chip in some overs from Tendu, Ganguly and 1-2 from Agarkar.: Arvind Prem: so at this point, i would call the game dead even -- another wicket between now and over number 35, 36, and the odds should swing towards india. let this pair settle, though, and even if the ask goes to around 7, 7.5 in the final ten, the presence of bevan backing them should make the aus favoured to win from there. srinath continues, bowls to steve waugh, this is his 8th over so just two more left for him to bowl. 6.95 the ask, and a misfield at midwicket by robin not having his best day in the field gives the batsman two, where there was no run.

Prem: The trouble with askig rates is that they depend on the position of the game. 6.6 at this point looks very good, but india needs to push it way beyond that mark before the game moves into the death -- i mean, 6.6 to get in the last ten overs aint exactly the most daunting task in the world.

Good move(bringing Srinath in) by Aza. Great fielding by Dravid. Now game has swinged in India favor.: arvind Prem: and that is drinks, folks, taking a breather here myself.

Prem: kumble again, to lehmann this time, he goes back and tries to play off his pads, finds the fielder, just the one in that over so that is a very good one for the indians, buiklding the pressure on the two new batsmen.

Prem: ball three, the flipper again on off -- bowling a tight line just outside off is a good idea for steve waugh, who likes to cut and often plays close to his body and chops it on to the stumps. this one, the off drive, single.

Prem: 6.66 the ask from here as steve waugh faces his first delivery, on off, played to mid off, fielded, no run. kumble, to waugh, the on drive finds the fielder again.

Prem: srinath to lehmann, bowling wide of the crease and angling it right in cramps the batsman on the shot, forces the defensive push, good bowling this far in this over, one ball left in the 30th, india at this point were 164/3. last ball, lehmann blocks, wants the run, comes haflway down the track, steve waugh sends him back, he was hopelessly stranded, but robin at midwicket late on the pick up and return, lets the batsman scramble back into his crease.

Prem: srinath, round tthe wicket, to lehmann who plays this one out to point, no run.

Prem: Uh oh, the batsmen crossed over and next up, yorker attempted by srinath, but a shade too short, ends up as a long hop, lehmann drives fluently through mid off, that's four.

Prem: srinath now to julien, bangs this one in short, julien swings it round, dravid backpeddaling very well at long on, judges well and holds a very good one. so srinath doing what he needed to, taking out the pinch hitter, and now opening the game right up.

Prem: also, with two new batsmen in, it would be a good time to squeeze in a few overs by ganguly, who could given his accuracy concentrate on choking the runs down. lehmann drives to mid off, again the risky single, obviously trying to give julien the strike, just makes his ground.

We saw a nice century from Tendulkar, nice knock from Jadeja, Nice total, better we stop here, no more nice things tonight. Oh this is the problem with our guys. When we loose hope and about to shut the door, they come up with a bright piece. I don't see Mark Waugh (Thanks Prem) in the score card: Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem: Intoo the 30th over now, india at the end of it were 164/3, so australia ahead at this point -- but still needing 6.5 per over from here on and now it is javagal srinath being brought back. if srinath can fire in the yorker length deliveries to the pinch hitter, we could be in for an interesting time. however, srinath only hs four overs left, having bowled 6-0-24-1, so the more he bowls here, the less options azhar has to use him at the death.

Prem: lehmann back on strike, two balls left in the over, field well spread and the batsman pushes between point and cover and gets one more. this would be the time to tighten the field, make the singles hard to get, force the pinch hitter to take even more risks -- another wicket, even of the non-regular julien, at this point and australia will begin to feel the squeeze.

Prem: Julien plays to point, lehmann quickly across for the single, beating jadeja's throw by a fraction.

Prem: kumble ove the wicket to the left handed lehmann, who plays it off his hips -- i would think given the fizz kumble gets on the flipper, a fielder at short square would be in order for the new batsman, lehmann, who is not too good on the wristy flicks, that ball was in the air, but he gets a single, the fielder there too deep.

If I remember correct, Imran was the first one to use this "pinch hitter" tactics. He sent Wasim Akram against India at Sharjah once. Azhar always tries the ideas (never a new idea) after it is well tested at International, National, State and District levels. What a nice captain we have.: krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem: kumble coming back for tendulkar but bowling in the tendulkar style, a full toss on off and julien strokes the single to mid off.

Prem: aus have a wonderful finisher in michael bevan who does for them what jadeja does for india -- will be up to lehmann and steve waugh, who will probably come in next, to bring aus into the home stretch with the target still in sight. meanwhile, on the replay of the mark waugh dismissal, that stroke was really ugly, a bad end to a smooth innings.

The pressure of having to score at 6.69 for the next 23 overs will eventually make the batsmen take risks and pay the price. All India needs now is a couple of tight overs.: Muralidhar Rangaswamy (murali@arcon.com) If India loses this one, the blame should rest squarely on Azhar. This is a guy who has no leadership qualities to speak of, no vision, no charasma, no real understading of the game, and a striking unwillingness to experiment.: Shekawat (shekawat@msn.com) Prem: darren lehmann coming in ahead of steve waugh, joshi the bwoler and forces the defensive push to end the 28th over, julien took him for 13 but the wicket of mark waugh more than compensates for that.

Prem: zia:: yes, on the line is out but the third umpire thought not, or gave the benefit, or whatever.

Wonder if anybody has used the strategy of pressurising the pinch hitter.Blocking him up and making things really diffy for the team!Brendon could be a nice target. . .badly need an off spinner here!: Pratik (pratique@ccmb.ap.nic.in) Prem: Now that was downright stupid -- Julien is there to loft the ball around, so there was no need for mark waugh to go dancing a long way down and try a cross bat shot to leg, he misses completely, the arm ball from joshi going through straight, and mongia takes the bails off, that could be a crucial mistake for the aussies.

Prem: Joshi now to julien, ball four, flater and faster, yorker length, on driven, one more.

Prem: two balls, two hits, and julien justifying his promotion, that is what steve waugh probably wanted. ball three is wwept, ganguly the fielder there, they run for his throw which is off target anyway, so that is two more and 12 in three balls thus far.

Prem: 6.69 the ask, and julien strikes, gets under one from joshi, lofts him over long off, six -- made room for himself on that one, stepping to leg as he came down the track, nice clean hit. next ball, down thet rack again, a blazing cover drive, four.

Prem: when england toured the windies last, there was a similar moment -- lara beaten on a forward push, stewart held, waited till lara's foot crossed the line and then took the bails off. here, mongia tries the same, the foot is on the lie there, the third umpire rules in.

Azhar must try an "Indian" fast (medium pace in the International standard) to get rid of the pinch hitter: Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem: sachin to julien, attempting to swing him round as the ball goes down the leg side, sachin aiming to bring it back off the rough. julien sweeps and misses, mongia takes the bails off and appeals, be interesting to see what the third umpire makes of that one.

Prem: sachin overpitching again, mark waugh swings him around, again the single to the sweeper.

Mark Waugh's is the crucial wicket.If india can get his wicket in another three overs the day is Indian's.: Guru (gurusankar@hotmail.com) Prem: Oopps, mark waugh played short of square leg and took off, the direct hit would have had him running still, bound for the pavilion, but agian, the shy and the miss. juline drives, on the on, ganguly misfields, one more.

Prem: sachin pitches one full, julien swings him round, gets one to the sweeper at midwicekt.

Prem: For India, tight, one-side-of-the-wicket bowling the key and sachin, ball one, being on driven by mark waugh, single. now the fun can begin, pinch hitter against sachin, so either way, things could get interesting here.

I think with the kind of batting to come and the kind of bowling in progress, Aussies have won it unless the sixth bowler produces a few good overs. I really hate to see India lose time again even after being in such good position. This time it will be courtesy to some fine mess-ups at the ends during India innings( we should have had another 20 runs if Azza would have sent in Mongia at his slot. He has lately been captaining strangely, stupidly, crazily,...): Qasim (ssskasim@yahoo.com) Prem: here, he is nice and easy, forward in defense to the last two balls of the over, probably trying to get set before he tries to launch himself, mark waugh at the otehr end looking solid as ever and now back on strike.

Prem: joshi to julien, who is forward, defending. four matches, 13 runs, 6.5 average so whatever his abilities, julien hasn't really hit any big ones thus far, his highest score being 11.

The pich hitter thoery might backfire on Australia, but India have to take a wicket here to make that happpen.If these 2 bat to a position of comfort, then they will send in a regular batsman: Puneet (pbajpai@hotmail.com) Prem: 5.7 the going rate, 6.6 the ask, 163 needed off 148 balls and julien paddles the first ball, gets it on the pad, huge appeal but that was off the edge, two more to fine leg.

India needs to focus now.A few tight overs and good fielding.With Bevan and Waugh II to come in India has to tighten up!: Pratik (pratique@ccmb.ap.nic.in) Prem: yeah, it's julien coming out to bat, so steve waugh does opt for the pinch hitter ploy, now to see if it works.

Prem: that was a calculated attempt to bring down the asking rate, an attempt that didn't quite work out. thegood bit for aussies though is the depth of their batting, be interesting to see who steve waugh sends in now. i would go for an expendable pinch hitter, one, two good strikes brings the ask down a bit, if he fails, the rest can get back to the regular mode of play.

Maybe they should get Srinath in, for a couple of overs. A little change or pace. Tendulkar from one end, Srinath from the other.: Shekawat (Shekawat@msn.com) Prem: but that was adrenalin rush with a vengeance, ponting trying the same agin, on his knee and swinging for the lines, joshi bowled this one fuller, the ball went through the shot, too full in length for that kind of on the knee pull, and there goes the wicket, ponting bowled joshi.

Prem: joshi, and this time, ponting on his knee and throws everything including the kitchen sink at it, the four through long on, one bounce over the ropes, takes away some of the pressure created by the previous over.

Prem: oops, that one musta slipped- nicely in the air and wide of the off stump, into the keper's gloves. next ball, though, is a leg break that would have done shane warne proud, ponting guides it to point, no run. last ball, driven through extra cover, single to the sweeper, pretty decent over first up from sachin, there.

Prem: ball four, bad line, on leg, pulled around but the sweeper there gets into the act, single.

Prem: ball thre, well flighted, mark waugh defends on line of off.

Prem: ball two,ponting gets the fuller length ball, swings it round to long on, one more.

Prem: tendulkar supposedly bowling leg breaks here -- that one was outside off turning further away, mark waugh cuts and gets one.

India needs somebody to bowl like Mark Waugh now. He bowled so well for Australia.: ramji (ramji@idcindia.com) India needs somebody to bowl like Mark Waugh now. He bowled so well for Australia.: Arvid Prem: watching brendan julien sitting padded up inside, i would think steve waugh plans to send him in next, for a few hard blows, bring the ask rate down a bit before reverting to a more normal mode of play. meanwhile, sachin tendulkar into the attack, with aus needing 6.61 at this point.

Prem: zia:: sure, pal, have it your way, no skin off my nose whether a particular player is in the side or no. single ends the over and australia, increasingly, batting itself into a winning track here.

Prem: To answer that question, I would think the odds, like I wrote ahead of this game, are heavily with Aus to win. into the 24th over here, joshi, and neither batsman taking risks, just working him around for singles, which is all they need really.

Prem: alexander:: kambli remains on the injured list. meanwhile, singles to both players to end the over and robin, in his two overs thus far, not really impressive. is the problem with him, on slow pitches he can bowl tight but on btting tracks, his bowling skills are hugely overrated, at his gentle pace, batsmen can pretty much play him where they chose. aus still needing 175 at 6.48 but the longer they go with wickets in hand, the better their chances. joshi again, and mark waugh swings one, flat batted, from wide of off stump to mid on, no need for that really, but gets the single.

I think we Azhar should get his 6th bowler some over (Ganguly or Sachin). and finish 5th bowler quota fast.: Tushar (Tushar_Ashar@hotmail.com) Prem: ponting's turn to on drive, single.

Harbhajan is not there.. Kudos to Doller-Miyan ( Dalmia): ssp (ssp99@email.com) Prem: nice easy play now by both batsmen, there is no sign of panic, they are concentrating on the singles and this time, robin strays to leg off his second ball and mark waugh takes full toll, flicking off his hips through the vacant backward square leg region, four more. robin at his pace cant afford to stray to leg, he will be murdered. and with it will go india's chances. mark waugh swings the next one round, gets one more to midwicket.

Now azhar have to bring sachin in bcoz now India needs to break this partnership.: neeraj (jainneeraj@hotmail.com) Prem: zia:: how come your messages weren't being posted before? cool it, 'kay?

Robin should bowl his tight line and not try too hard; Also, this is a good time to bring in Saurav. This is going to be the crucial phase of the match. If we can tighten things up between 20-30 overs, we can fancy our chances.: Prabhu (prabhu@lucent.com) Azhar will have to use Robi, Ganguly and Tendu well. They should ball about 15 overs. Agarkar might prove expensive towards the end.: Arvind Prem: zia:: sure. and ponting didn't have to come in at 7/2. besides, he knows the quality of the batsmen still to come in. cant say the same for the indian lineup, can you, pal?

Pointing's inning is a good example of how a sheet anchor should play. Dravid was way too slow.: Suresh (suresh_abraham@hotmail.com) Prem: that was a very well planned shot, playing it late, running it off the open bat face and four more, this time to third man.

Prem: joshi being continued, floats one in to ponting who on drives, sachin quick there at midon. no run. ball two, onto his knee, sweeps and places it beautifully, splits the two boundary riders on the on side for four, that was very well hit.

this is a slow wicket. Azhar should be bowling tendulkar's dollies now!!: Zia Prem: ~S:: *L* Put it another way, this page aint for the 42s. :-) Yeah, noticed that in the Cnn weather update. menwhile, here we go with the ball losing colour, rather ahead of schedule in this innings so while they are trying for replacements, taking a quick break here, follks

I believe Azahar needs to try something which is totally unexpected, like giving a bowl to Jadeja or take an over himself. How many times have we seen set batsmen loosing their wickets to these irregular bowlers. We need a wicket now. Even if the Australians have to chase 8 an over in the last 20, they will do it in case they have 9 wickets in their hand.: Rajiv (rsabharwal@biospherics.com) Prem: robin to ponting, who this time is onto the front foot, over wide long on, saw the gap there, it was a no ball what's more, so ponting taking full toll, four for it plus the extra so that is five runs, with a ball to bowl. robin, and ponting finds midwicket with the edged drive, no run. ends the over.

Prem: robin now to ponting, who is forward, again to off and playing on the leg side, finds the fielder at midwicket, no run.

guyz.. I believe it's still premature to say who is winning... In my opinion all this is decided by which side has more determination and thrust to win... I'm sure of one thing though, it is leaing to a very exciting finish.. : pankaj (pankaj_pande@hotmail.com) Prem: ponting has been anchoring the innings pretty well, letting mark waugh do the striking, concentrating on rotating the strike, doing for aus what dravid did for india, ths is turning into a nice partnership here, and robin this time being worked off his hips behind square by waugh, two more. ball four, single, again off the pads, through square leg.

Prem: robin's best bet would be to bowl well within himself, keep it off and outside off, with a packed field on that side. that gives neither the room, nor the pace, for strokeplay.

Prem: Here we go, probably the key to the enditer match. \Auis need to go at 6.73, and robin singh comes on in place of kumble. if the aussies can go after him, then half the battle is over. if on the other hand robin can hold a tight line, then the problems will begin for the aus batsmen, since the other bowlers havent given much leeway thus far. first ball, on off, ponting on drives, gets one.

I think this what the Indians need to do. keep that run rate around about 5.5 and just watch the RR go up, the pressure will build up and wickets will come. BUT they must bowl well : chaitanya (yaar@hotmail.com) robin should be given a couple of overs.keep rotating the bowlers, when batsmen r on top. : mash Prem: qasim>> if it is only figures you need, cricinfo i thought provides those p[retty welll, we plan on concentrating on the commentary. Ponting meanwhile off driving, gets the single. on the plus side, the bowlers havent given the auis batsmen too manhy free hits for fours thus far. 106/1 in 20, India were `107/2 at this point.

I hope those last 5 overs of our innings dont cost us this tournament!!!!!!!! We should have made those 25 more runs there!: Mahesh (mrp6@hotmail.com) Prem: mark waugh now on driving, getting nicely to the pitch, single.

Prem: joshi continues, ponting sets himself to swing this one around, doesnt really hit too well, top hand rather cramped on the shot, finds just the one through midwicket. next ball, mark waugh rocking back, letting it come on and cutting, with the turn, through point, two.

Kumar is right...the 5th bowler will be very crucial...and I PRAY that Azhar brings Saurav on....Saurav is like Mudassar Nazar...need a wicket...bring him on... Also, <<>> I am guessing this one's being played under f-lights...what is the largest scored that was chased successfully under lights..just curious...because like Kumar says, there will tremendous pressure even if the asking rate is just around 6.5, in the last 20 overs.... that'd be a nice statistic to know... :bharath Prem: Sujata:: *s* can see your posts, thanks, doing good, meant to email you when i read of the typhoon in yhour part of the world, then figured not, didnt want to intrude, hope you are doing okay. Aus meanwhile needs to go at 6.67, so that run rate just went up another notch.

think Joshi is going to give us the break-through here. We need to get a wicket now and Joshi needs to keep attacking : Balaji (balaji@acsu.buffalo.edu) Prem: ponting this time onto the front foot flicking, finds mid on though, no run, 49 run partnership thus far off 63 balls, and next ball, last of the 19th, played behind square on the off side, gets the single.

Prem: kumble continues, bowling here to ponting, concentrating on line of off with a dominant off side field, there is a short and wide third man, point, cover, mid off, this one though is middle and leg and turned through midwicekt, ponting very quick between wickets, gets two.

to drop harbhajan singh is like a slap to all the young budding cricketers. this episode just shows that these young lads have no backing from the board - who as usual just suck up to the powers that be. : murthy (mg2@acsu.buffalo.edu) Prem: saurav ganguly bowling with a predominantly offsdie field would be a good option here, azhar will need to keep some overs of his premier bowlers in hand for the end, gnaguly keeps it one side of the wicket, doesn't drifft to leg, and gets movement off the seam both ways, so would make a nice option to try around this point, keep the runs down and push the run rate up.

India needs to build up the pressure which is not happening right now You have to make things happen, not just wait for them to happen : Amit (amit.shaligram@csfb.com) We Indians start crying too early. Cheer when we score and unable to take when the opposition scores. It all a game. : Santosh (cgivlad@com2com.ru) Prem: last ball of the 18th, ponting forward, finds the bowler on the follow through, no run.

What we need a few tight overs from someone, then the run rate climbs a bit and we just might be in business. : Dilip (diliprv@hotmail.com) Prem: joshi to ponting, who is down on his knee sweeping, single behind square, that time he checked the shot pretty well, aus going at 5.4, needing to go at 6.5 from here on. mark waugh down the track, making room to leg to hit with the turn over cover, but joshi spots it, bangs it down short, good thinking, cramps the batsman, n run. next ball, the on drive gets one more.

guyz...it doesn't really matter right now....it all depends after the 25th over.....if we can tie the aussues down a bit...they will lose wickets trying to get the runs coz a total of 300+ is always on the mind of the opposition...so keep it cool and have a pepsi :-) : dev (dev_50) Prem: joshi continues, draws ponting froward, driving to mid on, single. lots of flight again, here, from joshi, but thus far, not much turn. flighted, mark waugh down the track, off drives, one to the fielder in the deep.

It's look like How Robin/Sachin/Ganguly balls on this track. Agarkar needs to bowl restricting line not attacking line in second spell. : Tushar (tushar_ashar@hotmail.com) The Indians should not allow easy singles and twos.They have to maintain that RR over 6 so that the Aussies panic and suffer a middle order collapse : Puneet (pbajpai@hotmail.com) Prem: this time, though, the waugh flick on the on not well conceived, that was the leg break outside off, the turn getting the edge, rolling out to midwicket, finds the fielder. next ball, mark waugh cutting, very close to the stumps, not enough room for th e shot, only plays it to point, no run.

Prem: kumble to mark waugh who, this time, goes right back onto the stumps, lets it come on, plays it into the gap at midwicket, gets two more and that is his 50, 51 coming off 48 so he is doing for the aussies what sachin did for india.

Prem, a word about you. We, in Japan, can in no way see cricket in TV. We see cricket through you and cricinfo. We are really very grateful to you Prem. Please keep it up. Back to the game, I agree completely with Bharath. Many of the ordinary players have come out with flying colour playing against India.: Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem: 6.44 the ask, still 218 to get with nine in hand, ponting on strike to kumble, on middle, played off the pads, single to the sweeper, ganguly.

How Azar shares the 10 overs for th 5th bowler and Agarkars 2nd spell could be a deciding factor. If the Game gets close . Then the Team which can cope with pressure will be through. : Kumar (un_kumar@hotmail.com) Prem: kumble to mark waugh, bowling too much of a middle and leg line, mark gently pushing to mid on, single.

Prem: johsi to mark waugh, who hops onto the back foot, works it square on the on off his pads, one more to end the over. this is the crucial phase, the aussies can keep the target in sight with this kind of batting, working the singles, and planning to go after the fifth bowler(s). India needs to tighten its fielding, deny these singles and force mistakes here.

Prem> Baiju should never have been dropped just because Dalmia tells so.I think the whites want all our best spinners to be suspect.: rang (subanna@hotmail.com) Unless we bowl some overs with less than 6 hours, Aussies will get a grip.: adi (adi@hotmail.com) Prem: joshi, despite being hit in the previous over for two fours, bowling an attacking length and line here, lots of flight and loop, get ponting down the track, on driving, the shut bat face takes it through midwicekt, to the sweeper, two for it.

If the Indians mantain a good standard of fielding, bowl as well as is possible for them, and have their captain encouraging them then there is almost no chance of Aus winning. They have a nervous tail-end like ours: Sujata (ariesujata@hotmail.com) Prem: joshi continues after the break, bowling to mark waugh, floating it up on off and middle, ball two driven through the on side, gets one more.

If this is rediff's attitude towards its customers, this site chat wont last for long. Why should I waste my time here when none of my msgs are getting posted. : Zia Guys, aussies are very much in the game. They can bat till #10. All of them are big hitters too. As of now, my money is on Australia : Zia Rahul: I disagree with you on that :-). The Mark Waugh's, Shane Warne's, Brian Lara's, Younis's of the world never scare us...:-) It is the Mansoor Elahi's, Jimmy Adams', M. Bevan's that take games away from us (Role Players!!)... If we can keep our head in the game, and be patient, we'll win...no matter what...308 is a HUGE score...and trust me...Mark won't be around that long... Be patient, and play smart.....: bharath Prem: drinks on the field, taking a breather here, folks

Prem: ponting again well forward, to kumble, defending to the top spinner on off and middle. last ball of the 15th, again the defesive push, aus 84/1 and india, at this point, were 84/2.

Aussies 's Running betwwen the wicket is very sound.. Indian fielders have to be very smart after 15th over , when filelding is scattered. : ssp (ssp99@email.com) Prem: that one was pushed through faster, beating the shot, the next is the flipper on off, played through point, single.

India has always been surviving due to individual brilliance like Sachin (some times Jadeja, Azhar etc). Unfortunately our captain is of medicore variety. Never tries anything new. : Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem: ball three, to mark waugh this time from kumble, wauigh batting 45 off 41, short outsdie off and curling awya, waugh cuts and misses.

I agree with Bharath earlier. Considering the situation we were in, Dravid's innings was a good one....The need of the hour then was to keep one end in tact and that is exactly what he did : Satish (sati_sh@yahoo.com) Prem: kumble continues, ponting forward, again rapped on the pad but well forward, so no problem. ball two of the 15th, cover driven, one more.

Prem: nice ball, on off turning away from waugh, lots of flight, draws the batsman forward pushing to cover, no run. next ball, though, mark waugh's fluent footwork in play again, gets inside the ball, lifts over mid on, four more.

Prem: 6.41 the asking rate, which has been going up all the time but it wont really bother the aussies as long as they have wickets in hand. waugh using his feet to the next ball, gets to the pitch, hitting cleanly against the spin, overmidiwcket and four for that, again, pure class in that shot.

Prem: joshi to mark wuagh, played on the off with very gentle hands, running with the push gets him the single. mark waugh coming off the century he hit against pakistan in the third test, just the other day, and looking in very good touch here. ponting meanwhile on drives, gets one more.

Prem: joshi to ponting, lone of leg, ponting swings it around, gets the single to the sweeper. joshi wont mind that, i would think, that wasn't exactly the right shot, ponting just pulling it off but it had a chancy air to it.

Mark Waugh is looking in ominous form, time we got him. He can take the game away- Rahul Prem: Satish:: we tried every which way, but nothing really worked, so we are using this and will stick with it here on in. cant seem to guarantee good behaviour, so i am afraid we aren't chancing any more nonsense. joshi meanwhile replaces agarkar, so spin at both ends now and this could be a crucial phase in the innings.

I think the idea now is fo india to go on a full attack. The aussies have too many wickets in hand to handle. Some runs will be given but that is the risk to take. Time for some solid attacking bowling. : Watcher Prem: kumble to ponting, on middle, slower ball, flicked square on the on, single. runs off every ball in the kumble over, thus far, and the last ball, to mark waugh, played gently to point but this time, the fielder in quickly, no run.

Prem: kumble to mark waugh, nice easy shot, onto the front foot, leaving forward, playing it through midwicket, long chase for sachin, three more to the batsman.

Prem: ball three, ponting onto the bck foot, plays square off the hips, one more.

Prem: kumble now to ponting, who opens the bat face, runs it through to the cover region, quickly fielded there, no run.

Prem: Kumble to Mark waugh, who is onto the front foot, on driving, gets the single first ball.

Prem: agarakar to pointing, again, the huge flick attempted, coming right across the stumps and again, rapped on the pads, again, bucknor not really interested. this last one was touch and go, really. ponting really vulnerable on this habit of going way across to off and playing to leg. viv richards used to do that brilliantly, but good as ponting is, he is not in the viv richards class, this shot providing him lots of risk. kumble meanwhile being brought on, in srinath's place, with aus needing 6.39 runs per over now.

We need a slower bowler now, not Kumble. Maybe sachin or Joshi can be tried out : Zia Prem: Hi, Alps, Tendulkar was in that zone of his today. As to winning -- good chance, but |I think our weakness in the field could let us down, not been isnpirational so far. agakar with a good slower ball this time, foxes ponting on the drive again, finds the fielder at mid on.

Prem: 6.31 the ask and mark waugh tries to guide the third ball down to third man, finds the keeper in the wya, no run. POTDAR>> not sure about bringing spin in here, two good hits and the ask rate will come right down, you rather use the spinners once the field can be set for the big hits.

I for one can't understand why they felt the need to change the no-ball rule... poor bowlers!! Azza always makes the mistake of over-bowling his opening bowlers.. time for a change.. : satish (sati_sh@yahoo.com) There will hopefully be no criticism of Dravid today. I have always believed that whenever India plays a "world class" opposition, sadly but truely, Sachin has to play big time. Else, we lose. And when he is on song, all we need is someone to hold the other end. I for one think that Dravid should be played in One-dayers too, every team has a sheet-anchor. Folks, we will definitely win this one!! : bharath (bharath@cadence.com) Prem: agarkar though will need to keep to the full line and off side length, given the field set for him. ball two, he strays to leg again, ponting the batsman helps it along to backward suqare, one more.

Tony Grieg just said that Raj Singh Dungarpur is a nice man, and that is the precisely the problem with the BCCI. Too nice to stick by their own players. They should have just played Bhajju here!! what do u think people?? : chaitanya (yaar@hotmail.com) Prem: Bit of a lull in play, here, with bucknor unhappy about something or the other in the field. all set now and agarkar resumes, down the leg side but that was off the pad so no wide called.

Azhar needs to bring Kumble ASAP, and get waugh on the hook... : Ashish (ashish_sharma@hotmail.com) Prem: last ball of the 11th, on off, ponting plays to on, finds the fielder, no run.

Prem: down the leg side, that should be called wide, srinath seems to be tiring in the heat, straying in this over after bowling his first five very well. aus need to go at 6.25 per over, still. pointing plays square, but finds the fielder, no run.

Agarkar was chosen over Prasad for his ability to strike early. Hope he does so in his first spell!! Preferable Mark Waugh!!: Krish We need to find rythm ... we need to get consistent bowlers on... + we have to be sharp in fielding inorder to win d game : Dhruv Prakash (druv_11@yahoo.com) Prem: no ball from srinath, trying a bit too hard there, and mark waugh plays it down to third man and gets one more, so that is two runs for that delivery.

Prem: typically, one of the big mistakes india makes in the field is to push tghe fielders back once the 15 over mark is past -- that way, they end up giving singles away too easily, here they will need to keep the singles down through the middle overs to pressure the australina batsmen into making mistakes. ponting meanwhile on drives, gets one.

Prem: 250 still needed by Aus with nine wickets in hand, ponting off drives, kumble quick to come in and field, no run.

Prem: ponting onto the front foot, drives, finds srinath on the follow through, no run.

Prem: srinath to continue, mark wauigh chips, not really getting hold of it but the ball lobbing into the vacant region to long on, three before it can be chased down.

Prem: vajpayee>> yes, there is, it is received here, screened and then reposted.

what the indians have to understand is that runs are going to come but if they can keep the RR up above 6 then they will win. What do u think people and PREM?? : chaitanya (yaar@hotmail.com) Prem: agarkar now to mark waugh, into the last ball of the 10th over, onto leg stump, flicked square on the on side, single, ending the over on 55/1. india, if you recall, were 42/2 at this point in the game.

Prem: zia:: anything to do with the game, provided it is expressed in acceptable language, will be posted. we aren't sitting in judgement over people's ability to analyse the game, here. ricky ponting meanwhie cover drives, gets the thick innner edge, ball going out to mid on, single taken.

Prem: Agarkar continues, into the 10th over here andponting the man on strike, the first two balls much fulle in length and when he does this, he looks a considerably better b bowler. has ponting in trouble trying to play straight, squaring him up here. ball three, pitching off and again, ponting too far across flicking, misses, hit on the pad again. appeal, turned down, probably because he was well on the front foot and the ball was cutting back off the seam. wide, fourth ball.

Prem: dev: considering the kind of abuse some idiot with an anonymous handle feels free to distract me with when I am trying to bring the game to you live, I dont think I need any qualms on that score.

Prem: mark waugh looks in wonderful touch here, his wrists working very well indeed -- could be teh wicket india needs very badly, if this is the form he is in.

yes yes yes yes!!! GO INDIA. GO SRINATH!!! at last..... Come on now agarkar you gotta bowl well. COME BOYS field well now : chaitanya (yaar@hotmail.com) Prem: srinath this time brings one back in with the seam, waugh tries the wristy flick and misses, hit on the pad, but agian, the ball doing too much off the seam to cause any damage.

Prem: Srinath to continue, into the 9th over and ricky ponting the man on strike, goes too far across, first up, trying to flick, gets it on the pad. this is how he tends to get out, going too far over to off, this time just the leg bye as that ball was angling across and could be missing leg stump.

Prem: zia:: from bombay in india

Prem: Anand:: *grin* pretty frustrating that your bad behaviour can't be seen by others, right? good, that is why we changed the format -- too many juvenile delinquents out there. :-)

Prem: srinath agian, to gilchrist, round the wicket, the batsman has a huge swing, that ball was very full in length, bad choice of shot and back goes the off stump.

Prem: this time, mark wuagh down the track to srinath who drops it short, mark waugh changes his shot, cuts, ajay jadeja dives and stops at point, just the single, good cricket all round.

Time to replace Agarkar, with Robin or Ganguly...Would be real interesting to see the way Joshi and Kumble bowl here... those r going to be the key 20 overs.. : Satish (sati_sh@yahoo.com) Prem: srinath now to mark waugh, bangs this one in slightly shorter, m ark waugh plays to point, no run.

Prem: Mark waugh this time off drives and a misfield by kumble converts a tight single into an easy one. thus far, the indian fielding not exactly inspirational, they will need to do loads better if they aren't to give the game away.

Prem: That was pure class in that shot, and agarkar again, to waugh, this one again off the hips, but thhrough midwicket this time, brings in the sweeper, two more.

Wickets are going to be the key here... we need a quick breakthru... : Satish (sati_sh@yahoo.com) Prem: Lovely touch, mark waugh is in, that was on off, just short, climbing and he is silkily onto his front foot, letting it come on, a whippy stroke off the hips and four down to backward square leg.

Prem: 289/4 against New Zealand in the World Cup quarterfinal ranks, thus far, as \australia's highest successful chase. so, to win here, they will have to score more than they have ever done before in an ODI batting second. Agarkar meanwhile switching now to round the wicket, to gilchrist, angling it in nicely to off, good line to bowl, cramps the abtsman on the first two balls, keeping a full length, ball three is driven, finds the single to mid off.

Prem: faster ball on off, mark waugh was aiming the punch off the back foot, the extra pace on the ball beats the shot, to end the over.

Prem: srinath to mark waugh, rising on line of off, the batsman plays it down to point, no run.

Ganguly could be the key here. Kumble may be too fast to have an effect :) : sundar (indusvalley@hotmail.com) Prem: Srinath round the wicket, angling in to gilchrist, again, the cut played to a shot where there wasn't enugh room, hit hard into the ground but the single is still on.

Prem: next ball, again the wristy play, this time squarer on the on, gets mark waugh the single.

Prem: ball two, lovely stroke that from mark waugh, that ball was a fuller length, easily onto the front foot and through mid on, flowing shot, all grace and timing and four all the way.

Prem: Srinath again, to mark waugh, close to off, waugh cuts, the ball not wide enough for the shot, finds point, no run.

Prem: Anand:: Kinda juvenile, ain't you? If this is your standard, a *shrug* covers it. You do realise that no post will go through without our approval, so if you feel like making a fool of yourself, go right ahead.

looks like we will miss bhajju.slow bowlers might turn the tables by the way aussies have started with a +ve attitude.Now it is upto our bowlers to do the job : Nitin (nkulkarn@gssec.bt.co.uk) Prem: azhar coming in for a chat with his bowler, who really has to bowl a full line on the stumps, he is giving too much room for players to keep swinging through the line.

Prem: gilchrist, twice let off thus far, on strike and again, down the track, this time lifting it over midwicekt, and again, though the timing wasn't good, enough wood on it to take it to the fence once it cleared the infield.

Prem: ball four, played square on the off by gilchrist, no run, to point.

Prem: Agarkar continues, bowling to mark waugh who off drives, gets one more. gilchrist now on strike, outside off, a flat hit by the batsman, cross bat, agarkar quick to get down and field on the follow through, the ball hitting his hand on the full and bouncing away -- technically that was a catch, but that kind don't stick, barring the odd miracle. next ball, gilchrist down the track, hits over mid off and four, second bounce, nice clean hit there.

The Indian fielding as usual is not upto the mark. : MadhuSR Prem: Aus 25/0 in 5, India at this point were 19/2 thanks to that disastrous start.

Prem: Steven:: For now, mind if I just stick to the commentary, pal? that is hard enough without going off at tangents. :-) srinath to mark waugh, push to cover, mistimed, but they run the single since the ball wasn't really travelling on that one.

Prem: Gilchrist again cuts, this one close tothe stumps, gets it down to third man, single.

prem, what i personally feel is that our robin and saurav hold the key becoz. they'll have to force these bowlers for runs, whether guys like srinath and agarkar would sooner or later give bothe the aussies that leverage to capitalise the advantage of field restrictions in the first 15 overs. For a chnage let Kumble come down as the third bowler after 5 or 6 ? what do you say prem ???: steven kapoor (stkapoor@hotmail.com) Prem: Meanwhile, guys, the idea of your field is for you to give us youer evaluation, not to ask me questions -- if I have to answer all these,w hen do I do ball by ball? Mark waugh meanwhile gently pushing one past midwicket, another single, has looked in very good touch thus far.

Prem: Srinath to mark waugh, outside off and the batsman cuts and misses, no run, into the 5th over.

Prem: Srinath, and Gilchrist cuts, down to backward point, single.

Prem: Srinath around the wicekt to gilchrist, he's been consistently bowling this line from the start of the innings. SSP:: Yeah, some very good fielding, and in a couple of instances, also bad calling.

Prem: Srianth to continue, bowling to Mark, aus going at 5 and over and the first ball is played gently off the hips from line of middle and off, to backward square, nice use of the wrists, single.

Prem: agarkar to gilchrist, overpitched, the halfvolley in fact and driven through midoff, nice and easy, four all the way. agarkar either over or underpitching here, which will make it a shade difficult to set a field to him.

Prem: Single this time to gilchrist, playing square on the off. ARUN:: Could you mind your language, please, I am not cluttering up the commentary page with that kind of thing. Overpitched, mark waugh this time off his pads, through midwicket, long chase for robin who hauls it back just inside the line, three more to the batsman, that was a fluent shot.

Prem: Agarkar apparently frustrated there, bangs one in, to mark waugh who had crossed over, single again as he plays it off his pads.

Prem: agarkar again, to gilchrist, now no slip in place and yet again, gilchrist pushes on the up, ball in the air and this time, it is dravid who just fails to hang on, this is the second time in two overs that gilchrist has been let off, both were hard chances but both deserved to be held.

Prem: rahul:: yes, i can see your posts, what is your problem with mine? outside off meanwhile, ball one, gilchrist drives, mistimes, finds mid off, no run.

Prem: agarkar to continue and hopefully, azhar would have in the interim asked him to pitch the ball up. the last thing he needs is to let the batsmen settle down.

Prem: srinath again, to mark waugh, on off, played off his hips to midwicket, finds the fielder, no run. good couple of overs here from srinath, hasn't erred from the required line.

High time somebody gave Agarkar an earful on length bowling. Amazing that Azar has not done so and just keeps cribbing that his bowlers do not bowl well. It's the skippers job to tell them off if they goof. : Dave (dave@rediffmail.com) Prem: Gilchrist on strike to srinath, azhar very close at a wide gully, srinath around the wicket, brings it in sharply, gilchrist tries to swing it around, misses, hit high on the thigh pad, leg bye results.

Prem: Murtaza:: I dont think sachin should be bowling this early, no matter what. Dhirendra:: none, frankly. Mark waugh runs the fourth ball down to third man, gets the single. srinath the bowler, two balls left in the 3rd.

Prem: srinath agian, to mark waugh and there was a run out missed -- gilchrist backing up too far, mid off was in close, there was no run there, but the fielder missing with the direct throw and, in the process, giving overthrows. Kumble, in fact, was in line with the crease when he threw, that was bad cricket.

Prem: Srinath to mark waugh, on off and rising, played to point, no run.

Prem: gilchrist, last ball of the 2nd, off drives, finds the fielder at mid off, no run.

Prem: agarkar thus far in this over has been pitching on the short side, which could be incredibly dangerous here.

Prem: Meanwhle, agarkar pitching that short line, giving gilchrist too much room to free his arms and he slams it through cover point for four.

Continued