Safs rebuild after India collapse |
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Thursday January 4, 02:40 AM
Under the bright Cape Town sun, on the final stretch of a glittering career, Shaun Pollock sped past one milestone after another - his 405th Test wicket to equal Curtly Ambrose, his 50th against India, his 50th on this ground. But, while triggering a dramatic Indian collapse, he also took one wrong turn.
Probably frustrated by the barren first day, stung by the edges and near catches that flew past his fielders or fell just short today, Pollock bent down and, quite uncharacteristically, pumped that right fist up and down at Anil Kumble's face. Kumble, who had just been declared lbw, paused on his way back, and turned to give Pollock, a long, hard glare.
Who, in his right mind, would want to provoke Kumble now? And that too, on a wicket that has already made the South African fans froth over those four wickets from left-arm debutant Paul Harris as if he was their Monty Panesar?
Chasing a first innings score of 414 in the series decider, South Africa fighting back with their own top-order revival led brilliantly from the edge by skipper Graeme Smith, the fallout of that Pollock farewell will surely be felt over the next three days.
At least, Team India will desperately hope so after one ball from Kumble in the fading moments of the day, leapt at Smith's throat, forcing the big man to scramble for cover - even if the keyed-up 'assassin' rushed through his 12 overs, eyeing that grey spot outside the off, but struggling to hit it often enough.
Because, another good session for South Africa tomorrow morning, and the decider will head towards a result which India are not too keen about - not now.
It will also depend, of course, on how Smith, batting on 76, can keep fending them away. At 144/1 on Day 2, it could also be Amla, finding his big glory moment of this series today with an unbeaten 50, after being ridiculed and poked at for his 0, 17, 1, 0.
In fact, it could depend on Munaf Patel, too, coming back from injury, and straightaway showing the world with those sharp in-cutters what India had missed so far on this tour - from 126 kmph to a final flourish of 141 kmph.
And yes, coach Greg Chappell is hoping it could be Sehwag, who will now have to live up to the official tag of second spinner.
You could still call it advantage India, 270 runs ahead, three days to go, and huge question marks popping up from that widening spot on the good length area at the southern end. But the unbeaten 130-run third-wicket stand between Smith and Amla did cruelly expose the fact that India finally fell far short of where it could have reached. Despite another teaser from Sachin Tendulkar, despite a far more critical 66 from Sourav Ganguly, who ended up saving his side from considerable embarrassment.
Last five wickets for just 19 runs? Not quite what Chappell had hoped for in the morning while revealing that 400 was the "minimum." Forget Chappell, all those millions of fans glued to the TV sets would have been eyeing the 500-peak, too, at 337/4this morning, and again at 395/5.
But 414 it was, with Ganguly, virtually playing from memory, summoning up all the skills accumulated over the last 10 eventful years, to prop up the Indian middle. And Sehwag barely passing the big test at No. 7 with a 50-ball 40.
If only Sachin Tendulkar hadn't helped Harris enroll in that strange club of left-arm spinners who have knocked him over from nowhere over the years - Monty Panesar, Ashley Giles, and the Zimbabwean Ray Price.
More so, when the ageing superstar was looking good for his first hundred on this tour, setting it up by scoring just seven in the first hour, then changing gears to magnificently straight drive Makhaya Ntini, the flick him - both in one over. But then, as it happened in the first innings of the Durban Test, came that momentary blip in concentration, a jab at the ball that hit the rough, and the anti-climax: Tendulkar c Kallis (2nd slip) b Harris 64.
With VVS Laxman having been shown the door long ago by Dale Steyn, who sent the off-stump flying spectacularly with one that straightened, who did Team India turn to? Dada.
Greeted with a first-ball bouncer by Pollock, slammed above the right ear by a Steyn special three balls later, Ganguly went on to hold the Indian innings from crumbling completely. He farmed the strike, killed the spin of Harris, and kept Ntini and friends from getting on top with some magic off-side play - remove that 66 from India's second half, and you will know what this one was worth.
Sehwag? Maybe, this one sequence in a Pollock over, the third after lunch, would tell the story better. Struggling to get his footwork going, he barely survived an lbw shout, managing to get in a tickle before the ball crashed onto his pads. Then, relying completely on those famous instincts, he went for that patent on-the-up cover drive, connected. A couple of balls later, the confidence was shining through as he leaned back and late cut the South African veteran between slips and gully.
But minutes later, he gifted his wicket to 28-year-old Harris, who bowled today with what could be called considerable discipline, if not much guile or loop. It was far from Sehwag at his best. Although, for a man fighting to save his career, it was probably the best it could be.
Still, five wickets for 19, three between 395 and 398? When you had the Durban destroyer Ntini, for the first time in his career, ending wicketless while conceding over 100 in an innings? Well, you can always blame it on Pollock.
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