CALCUTTA, 21 March 2005 — Pakistan batting failed to muscle in and capitulated without much of a fight on the final day of the second Test against India at the Eden Gardens and the visitors lost by a huge margin of 195 runs. They had three sessions on the fifth and final day to survive but as wickets fell at regular intervals pressure kept on mounting and in the end it was just a matter of time before they succumbed.
At the start of the day chasing 422 runs to win Pakistanis had resumed at 95 for one hoping that if all went well they may if not able to get to the target would at least earn a respectable draw. But it was not to be as they lost a wicket on the first ball of the day to spinner Anil Kumble as Younis Khan was stumped smartly on the leg side by Dinesh Karthik without scoring. For the rest of the day it was Kumble all over as he finished the day bowling Pakistan out for 226, only 35 minutes after tea to finish with a haul of 7 wickets for 63 runs to add to three in the first innings. For the seventh time Kumble had performed this feat of 10 wickets or over in Test matches. This was Kumble’s fourth five wicket tally against Pakistan and 29th overall as he finished with a bag of 10 for 161 in the match and that too on a wicket which did not really offer much assistance to the spinners or the medium-pacers. Pakistan though down and out have this one last hope to try and force a win in the decisive third and final Test to be played at Bangalore from March 24 to level the series. Whether they will be able to achieve that will much depend on their batting which does not have that kind of depth as the Indians have. And the Indian bowling of course has much more variety.
Pakistan’s early setback with Younis Khan’s dismissal was followed by Inzamam ul-Haq and the opener Taufiq Umar who both fell in successive overs at 115. Inzamam, defending a Kumble’s delivery, failed to stop the ball which rolled on to his wicket when he was 13 and Taufiq edged Laxmipathy Balaji into the slips to Virendar Sehwag when 35.
From then on it was rough sailing though Yousuf Youhana and Asim Kamal together at lunch with Pakistan on 174 for 4 did put on 59 for the fifth wicket to steady the innings. Kamal was dropped at slip by Rahul Dravid when 33 immediately after lunch off Harbhajan Singh and he stayed to make a half century.
His partner Youhana, however, was out off Kumble as he groped forward and offered a bat and pad catch to Gautum Gambhir at short leg after he made 22. With Asim Kamal he had added 63 runs for the fifth wicket. This was Kumble’s 50th Test wicket against Pakistan.
Abdul Razzaq hit a six off Kumble and that is all he could make as he Kumble foxed him with a faster ball to pick up his fifth wicket. Kamran Akmal the wicketkeeper made 7 before being bowled off Harbhjan with a straighter delivery. Kamal calm and steady reached his second fifty of the series with the help of nine fours not much later but it was all in vain. His 181 minutes fighting innings was ended by Kumble as Kamal pushed one straight in the hands of substitute Mohammad Kaif at short leg without adding to his fifty.
Pakistan had scored only 49 runs in the second session losing four wickets and the writing was on the wall when after tea Kumble and Harbhajan picked a wicket each to take one up in the series.
