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Particularly, when one considers that the match seemed to be going England's way when India were reeling at 11/2 on the fourth evening. But India's senior pros- Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly - came to the party at the right time and ensured that India batted right through the final day to shut out all hopes of an English victory. Their classy batsmanship along with the efforts from the England batsmen as also Virender Sehwag in the Indian first innings meant that the spectators, who came to the match, were provided a rewarding experience. Coming to the final day, it did provide its share of excitement. Tendulkar looked set for his 30th Test ton when Michael Vaughan, bamboozled him with an off-spinner that would have done Prasanna proud. When he made his way back to the pavilion after a dazlling 92, India were still trailing by 86 runs and Nasser Hussain, the experienced captain that he is, must have sniffed a semblance of chance. But fortunately for India, the rest of the batsmen summoned the determination that was required to save the match. First, Dravid and Ganguly in an admirable display of disciplined batting stifled any hopes that might have sprung up in the English camp. On a belter of a track, they seemed in complete control of the situation. Not only did they apply themselves to the task of occupying the crease, but they also dismissed the bad deliveries to the boundary. Soon, Dravid was celebrating his 11th Test ton, also his first in England. Ganguly, though, was not as fortunate missing his third Test ton by the proverbial whisker. His application in both the innings, however, must give all Indian supporters a lot of heart, following as it did it his double failure in the first Test at Lords. The dismissal of the two stalwarts and also those of VVS Laxman, Ajit Agarkar, Harbhajan Singh, however, meant that India were in a precarious situation yet again in the latter half of the evening. They were 397 for 8 - a lead of just 137 with 30-odd overs still to be bowled. But probably inspired by his seniors, the gutsy and promising Parthiv Patel in the company of Zaheer Khan ensured that India saw off the day without losing any further wickets. It was a heartening show by the 17-year-old debutant who was also impressive behind the wickets. Their successful fight back, then, should leave the team in a positive frame of mind ahead of the third Test. I, for one, continue to believe that with a good gameplan and strategy, India can bounce back and surprise England in the two remaining Test matches. © CricInfo |
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