BANGALORE, 26 March 2005 — The first two days play in the decisive third and final Test at the Chinaswamy Stadium could be a delight for the statisticians but for the Indian bowlers it was rough as they toiled almost all day once again on the second day as Pakistan racked up 570 runs before being out after tea.
India in reply had scored rapidly to end the day at 55 without loss in the last 10 overs of the day. To avoid the follow on India will have to bat as well and as effectively as the Pakistan batsmen have done. The wicket is placid and full of runs and with India packed with batsmen of reputation it may not be that difficult to make 371 runs to avoid being asked to bat again.
Pakistan bowling is timid and lacks punch and if Virendar Sehwag’s onslaught on them, when India batted at the fag end of the day, is any indication then the Pakistani fielders too could toil in the field for a couple of days before forcing a situation from where they could hope to level the series. The pitch as it is will be the key and only the courageous will venture to predict an outcome at this stage.
The second day’s play was also dominated by the Pakistani batsmen. Pakistan had resumed their first innings at 323 for 2 with Inzamam-ul Haq on 184 and Younis Khan on 127. But after only eight runs added to the score the record stand of 316 was ended. In only the second over of the day Inzamam facing his first delivery of the day from Laxmipathy Balaji was leg before without adding to his overnight score.
Younis Khan, however, maintained his poise to progress serenely to 150 with the help of 16 fours and one six. Not much later he passed his best of 153 against the West Indies at Sharjah made in 2001-02 and with Yousuf Youhana took Pakistan past the 400 mark.
With Youhana he shared 84 runs for the fourth wicket in 123 deliveries before Youhana perished before lunch having made 37. He was caught at the wicket by Dinesh Karthik while trying to cut Harbhajan Singh.
The only blunder Younis made was when at 179 he snicked one from Balaji to the slips and the catch just eluded V. V. S. Laxman. Pakistan added 96 more runs in the second session losing three more wickets, that of Asim Kamal 4, Abdul Razzaq for 5 and Kamran Akmal for 28.
All the three wickets were picked up by off-spinner Harbhajan who finished the day with six for 152. Harbhajan used the drift and the slower delivery in the air to good effect.
Kamal swept Harbhajan and was caught at short fine leg, Razzaq played into the hands of the bowler and Kamran played on to his wicket having put on 58 with Younis for the seventh wicket. Despite these dismissals Younis, batting with heaps of confidence, reached his double century — his first in Tests having struck 24 boundaries and a six in 396 balls that he had faced.
At tea, Younis was 225 and Pakistan 504 for 7. Younis put on another stand of over fifty runs with Mohammad Sami for the eighth wicket. The two shared 61 runs. He took Pakistan past their best total in India made at Mohali in the first Test when the score sailed past 496.
Not only that he also in the process became the highest individual run maker in an innings by a visiting batsman in India when he went past 256 made by Rohan Kanhai of the West Indies. Kanhai had made that in Calcutta in 1956. This was of course also the highest individual innings by a Pakistan batsman in India.
His innings finally ended at 267 when he went after Harbhajan and mistimed a drive to be caught at cover by Irfan Pathan. He struck 32 fours and a six in a marathon 690 minutes innings. India in ten over at the end had wiped out 55 in brisk time.
Younis said yesterday his failure in the previous innings spurred him on to this epic effort. “I was very angry with myself after failing in the second innings of the second Test at Calcutta,” said Younis.
“I wanted to make amends and I’m happy I did exactly that,” Younis said, referring to his first-ball dismissal on the fifth and final day of the Calcutta Test when Pakistan were chasing a huge 422-run target.
“Failures make you more responsible. Our defeat in the second Test made me realize that as a senior player I have a duty to perform,” said Younis.
