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Kumble, Bajju pull it back for India

14 wickets fell on a day that -- for once -- saw the Indian bowlers dominate throughout an innings, not easing up on the pressure at any stage as they bundled Pakistan out for 172 to go 80 up on the first innings, a lead that on a track that is more unpredictable than Jayalalitha Jayaram, could prove crucial towards determining the result.

You do have to wonder, though, about the Test-worthiness of a track on which the best mode of defence seems to be to kneel down, and place your bat flat on the floor. With large patches showing and the surface crumbling like an overdone biscuit, it's anyone's guess what batting on the fourth or, assuming the game goes that far, the fifth day will be like.

The Indian innings, what there was left of it, didn't last too long this morning, a mere five runs being added to the overnight total. Strangely, given that this was not an ODI situation, there seemed an element of desperation in the scrambling between wickets indulged in by the Indian tail, and both the wickets to fall today fell to run outs, Mongia being the first victim and Harbajan the second, ending the Indian innings on 252 about ten minutes into play this morning.

For Pakistan, the man of the innings was, who else, Saqlain Mushtaq, his third straight five wicket haul producing some light moments as Akram held his players back at the edge of the field, waiting for Saqlain to lead them into the pavilion and the offie, suddenly bashful, doing an unwitting parody of a kid hiding behind his mother's skirts.

Mushtaq Ahmed bowled with equal brilliance but less luck, Akram was as ever unpredictable with his line, length and movement -- the only worry for Pakistan being Younis, who thus far has looked a shadow of the once feared 'Waqar the Wrecker'.

India got off to the best start possible, when Venkatesh Prasad took out Saeed Anwar in his opening over. The stylish left-hander had, before leaving Pakistan, spoken of wanting a Test triple hundred during this tour -- the way he has batted thus far produces the suspicion that he has perhaps put too much pressure on himself with such boastful words. Here, Prasad produced a leg cutter that cut in to the left hander, then pitched the next one in the identical spot, took it away off the seam and Anwar followed the line of the ball to feather the edge for Mongia.

Then followed a very good exhibition of controlled bowling, first by the two opening bowlers, then by Harbajan Singh and Kumble. The normally irrepressible Afridi found the going much tougher than he likes, and Azhar -- the point needs making, given that many including this columnist have criticised him for keeping his fielders too far deep and giving away singles -- kept the pressure up by bringing the fielders in and completely drying up the singles.

That was good captaincy, the kind that turns the screws on the batting side, and it was just a question of when things would break. Afridi, who seemed to be feeling the pinch of the shackles, went after Kumble in his first over, lofting the leggie twice over long off, the first hit coming off the first ball Kumble bowled in the innings. The opener apparently had figured that since Kumble doesn't turn the ball, going through with a full flourish of the bat on the swing to the ball outside off was doable, even on this dodgy track.

Bajju took him out, in the very next over, with a lovely ball that was flighted, with a huge loop, on a very full length. The flight and length produced the attempt by Afridi to hit against the turn to the untenanted leg side, the loop defeated the attempt and Afridi ended up playing all over it to lose his stump.

Ijaz Ahmed had been looking for shots from the outset. An over previously, Bajju had produced an arm ball that beat Ijaz, took the edge and flashed just past Dravid at silly point. Kumble however took him out with a flipper pitched in the rough around the right-hander's leg stump, Ijaz groped forward, and Dravid at short square held off the leading edge.

Inzamam and Yousuf Youhanna, the latter impressing yet again with a calm temperament and good technique out in the middle, took Pakistan through to lunch, at a dodgy 59/3.

That became a very untenuous 60/4 immediately after, when Kumble again landed the flipper in that patch around middle and leg. Youhanna, who was playing for the regular bounce, drove at it, the extra bounce got the bat higher up than intended and Kumble, lunging way to his left and sliding on one knee, took a superb return catch.

Then came the best partnership of the innings in terms of technique, as Inzamam and Salim Malik -- the latter being especially good against the turning ball -- coping with a superb spell by Harbajan in particular.

Initially, the youngster showed no sign of turning the ball, relying on flight, loop, and variations in the use of the crease. But once his confidence returned, every trick in the trade was in evidence -- the off spinner, the drifter, the arm ball, and on two occasions, the one spinning away from the right hander.

That ball -- which was shown time and again in slo-mo, actually put me in mind of a controversy I found myself in about a year ago. Writing of Saqlain in a particular match, I had mentioned his 'googly' -- using the term in its generic sense, to describe the wrong 'un, meaning a ball bowled with one action, by one kind of spinner, that goes the other way.

Both on a discussion group, and on email, I got suggestions that I quit writing about cricket. 'If you live to be a 100, you will never see an off spinner turning the ball to outside off, only leg spinners bowl googlies', I was informed quite firmly.

I am not much closer to that 100 -- but yesterday, I saw Saqlain produce a good half dozen 'leg breaks'... and today, it was Harbajan's turn (on the last occasion, Saqlain was at the non-striker's end, and Holding in the box made the point that Saqlain could watch his young counterpart emulate him).

Stranger things, Horatio...

What was most impressive about Harbajan's bowling during this spell of 10-4-10-1 was that he seemed to have completely cast aside the shadow of controversy that weighed him down in New Zealand, and had slipped right back into an attacking mould.

Harbhajan in fact could count himself unlucky on a dodgy decision. With the score 80/4, he floated one in at Malik, drawing him into the drive, beating him with the turn and getting inner edge onto boot for silly point to hold the richochet. Umpire Jayaprakash, however, figured that went off the ground, and Malik got a let off.

Inzamam, feeling the constriction of the bowling, appeared to make a deliberate decision to go after the spinner, and came waltzing down thrice in an over to slam him through mid on for fours, hitting very well with the turn.

But that bent of mind produced his downfall in the very next over, Kumble tossing a flipper up a bit more, onto a full length, the batsman played the length, launched into a lazy on drive and ended up playing all over it to see the ball sneak under his bat and make a mess of the timber.

Moin Khan was all bustle right from the outset -- without ever looking in control, however. Meanwhile, one bad over, the one in which he went for three fours, caused Harbhajan's banishment to the outfield, which I thought was a bit tough on the youngster.

Kumble, meanwhile, switched ends, Prasad came on for the offie, and immediately took out Malik who, at that point, was motoring along like a factory fresh Rolls. Off his very first ball, the medium pacer brought one in off the seam, Malik walked into a defensive push and got the pad onto bat for silly point to finish the job.

Moin, who seems a natural successor to Javed Miandad both in his temperament, style of play and on-field antics, then got an opportunity to try for the Oscar with Srinath coming into the attack and again of the first ball, pitching a very full length on middle and off. Moin, attempting to play across the line to leg, was beaten for pace and length, and rapped low down on the pad -- at which he quickly pushed his front foot outside line of off and looked outraged when Bucknor upheld the appeal. Nice try, but the jury didn't gift him the statuette on that one.

Wasim Akram was playing with quiet determination, and Mushtaq Ahmed, who is quite a handy customer with the bat, looked determined to keep him company. Immediately after tea, however, Azhar brought back Harbajan, and the fun and games began again.

A looping delivery that curled in with the arm had Mushie pushing forward, getting bat onto pad for Laxman at silly point to hold with ease. And just a run thereafter, the young offie struck another big blow through a bit of superb bowling. Going round the wicket to the left handed Wasim Akram, he floated one in on off on a full length, brought the batsman forward and spun it rapidly away from the bat. The next ball was of similar line and length, and Akram tentatively looked for the off break, only for the ball to straighten with the arm, shoot through and hit him just above the ankle on the back pad, bang in front of middle and off.

Kumble then produced a series of flippers, for Saqlain to survive two very good shouts for LBW before going back to the third one -- an error in judgement there as that ball was perhaps fuller in length than the other two. The ball shot through and caught him plumb, and Pakistan were all out for 172.

The most positive thing about the Indian performance with the ball was that only four bowlers needed to be used -- and they all chipped in with timely wickets, unlike recent outings when one or two bowlers had to do all the work. Equally to the point, none of them strayed in line and length, thus maintaining the pressure right through, in a much improved bowling display. Equally, Azharuddin appeared a lot more positive with his field placings, concentrating on stemming the flow of singles, challenging the batsmen to go over the top against two spinners who were bowling well on a helpful track.

India went in to its second innings 80 ahead on the first, and early on, Pakistan's job was made harder by Waqar Younis who, well below the best pace we have seen in the past from him, tended to stray to leg too often, permitting Laxman in particular to clip him for two superb boundaries off his pads.

At the other end, Ramesh read Akram particularly well, producing among other strokes an outstanding straight drive off an attempted yorker that he read very early and appeared to have tonnes of time to play.

Laxman, though, has had problems all along coping with Akram's angle, and he succumbed here in a fashion identical to his first innings dismissal, when the left arm quick bowled one slightly slower, pitching off and seaming back in, drawing Laxman forward and nipping smartly through the gate to take out his off stump in a classic dismissal.

Dravid, coming in next, was tested with that same delivery and survived, by playing late, with bat and pad very close together. The pair also stood up to the test of Saqlain and Mushtaq without undue alarums, to take India through to close on 46, a good 126 ahead on the first knock.

The pitch is deteriorating faster than you can type 'deterioration' -- a good gameplan for India to go with would be to focus on batting through tomorrow, not worrying about the pace of run-scoring as much on crease occupation. Runs will come if you are out there long enough -- but the longer you spend out there, the more the bowlers keep wandering onto those patches with their big boots, the more this pitch is going to go, and that makes Pakistan's job in the last innings all the harder.

In any case, the bowlers have done their bit this time -- it would be now up to the batsmen to take it home, put up the kind of total that will help square the series. In any case, it should make for a great third day.

Scoreboard

Commentary Transcript:
• Day 2: Last Hour, Fifth Hour, Fourth Hour, Third Hour, Second Hour, First Hour