Indian bowlers responded marvelously to their captain’s initiative in inserting Pakistan to bat first after winning the toss, though they must be also a bit disappointed that they were not able to deliver the latter blow to get the Pakistanis out for less than 200. In conditions where the ball swung in the air and moved off the pitch, batting was not easy and the bowlers showed their appreciation of the conditions by making the ball talk. Remember, this is a relatively inexperienced attack and so understandably there was the odd ball sprayed around, as the control was lost in search of a bit more pace. At no stage did the Pakistani batsmen look settled and there were plenty of close calls for leg-before wicket, which if upheld may have got the Indians in to bat much before they eventually did.
Balaji was the pick of the bowlers, though Pathan and Nehra were not too far behind. Just a couple of years ago, the tall seamer was banished from the scene after a forgettable game against the West Indies on a flat pitch, while the team favorite with equally bad figures was kept in the squad. To his credit, Balaji worked hard, practiced purposefully, got fitter and kept on delivering in the domestic championship to force his way back in the team and has continued to impress with the progress he has made and the whole-hearted effort he makes in every game. His success as well as that of Pathan has shown that there is enough bench-strength in Indian cricket and all that is needed is, for them to be given the same chances that the team favorites keep getting even though the favorites are not producing the results.
Some of the Pakistani batsmen have themselves to blame for their low scores and the manner in which Yasir Hameed got out was shocking. It was the second time he has chased a wide delivery to be out behind the wicket and it shows that he has not learnt from his earlier mistake. The way Pathan looked back at his captain, Ganguly at mid-on, on getting Hameed out suggested that it was a planned dismissal. Inzamam too prodded at a delivery he could have left alone after surviving an incredibly close lbw shout. Full credit to Ashish Nehra for dwelling upon the denial of that appeal and bowling the ball that left the Pakistani captain poking at it.
Youhanna, another experienced batsman, tried to steer a ball to third-man in spite of a packed slip cordon and played on to his stumps, which again was a waste of a wicket and it seemed as if the pitch was playing tricks on the minds of the batsmen, just as it seemed to have done on the Indian players when batting first at Lahore. The absence of a genuine quickie meant that the ninth-wicket pair were able to survive and put on valuable runs that added to the Indian disappointment of not being able to dismiss Pakistan under 200.
Anil Kumble was brought on a bit late, for he can get the tail-enders quickly with the pace he generates off the pitch with his flipper. When he did break through, the total had gone past 200.
Still having dismissed Pakistan on the first day itself, India will feel that they are in control of the game and if their batting lives upto its potential and they take a big lead then they are in with a real chance to win the Test and the series. Parthiv Patel in spite of not having the best of days behind the stumps has manfully taken the responsibility of opening the batting and he has with Dravid thwarted Pakistan’s efforts to get the breakthrough. It’s this kind of application that India need to put the match beyond Pakistan.
