The final one-dayer at the Fatodra Stadium in Goa was a fitting finale even though the Australians romped home comfortably in the end thanks to Michael Bevan. He gave a superb exhibition of what batting is all about in the shorter version of the game. The visitors needed a good start on what was a crumbling pitch at a venue, which hosts a lot of soccer matches. Adam Gilchrist and that man Hayden got the Aussies off to a flier realising that it was imperative to get as many runs as possible when the ball was new and hard. Gilchrist was the aggressive of the two and he played some scintillating shots on the off side. It is now evident that Gilchrist is more suited to opening the innings in as much as Ganguly is. Hayden and Gilchrist pummeled Agarkar in his first spell and the century partnership for the first wicket came in very good time.

Javagal Srinath revived the flagging spirit of the Indians by removing both Hayden and Ponting in quick succession. The Indians were short of a spinner and it was left to that little champion Tendulkar to fill in the role of a spinner. The committed cricketer that he is, he did not fail either his team or his captain by returning with the best figures in the Indian line up. He picked up three wickets and in the process took his tally past the 100-wicket mark in the one-dayers. Yuvraj Singh, back in the side after a while took a superb catch to get rid of Lehmann and at this stage the game hung in balance as Harvey joined Bevan at the crease. Ganguly ran out of options the moment Tendulkar finished his quota of overs and he had to bank on Srinath and Harbhajan Singh to get the most important wicket of Bevan. But the left hander kept his cool and played with his customary common sense, which the cricketing world is quite accustomed to. Harvey provided the ideal support for Bevan and the pair guided their side home with enough deliveries to spare.

Ganguly won the toss and walked out with Tendulkar to open aware that he was desperately in need of some runs. Tendulkar was dismissed cheaply but Ganguly played himself in and his footwork was decisive which suggested that he was in a clear frame of mind. He must have been pleased with his effort but unfortunately his return to form has come in the last game of the series. Laxman kept up his silken touch as also his timing on a pitch where the ball was stopping on the batsmen. The classy batsman from Hyderabad has played brilliantly throughout the series in both versions of the game and this augurs well for the future. The partnership between Ganguly and Laxman was the most productive one and it was a pleasure watching the two stylish performers in tandem. Laxman went on to complete his century while it must be disappointing to Ganguly that he could not reach the coveted figure.

Overall, the Indians have done themselves proud though they would have liked to end up with the one-day trophy. The remarkable aspect has been the change in the attitude of the Indians, which was subject to criticism over the years. The youngsters under Ganguly have tried very hard without throwing in the towel too soon and it was refreshing to see the Indians throw themselves around on the field at Goa till the end. The biggest gain in the last months has been the self-belief shown by some of the individuals, which has made a tremendous impact on the team as a whole. Gone are the days hopefully when the fortunes of the team were dependent on Tendulkar alone. He would be the happiest person to see that the others are coming good as that would relieve a lot of burden from his shoulders.

© Woorkheri Raman