India hit back to slow Australia’s victory bid

BANGALORE, Oct 12: Australian captain Ricky Ponting faced a tricky decision on a likely target for India after the hosts clawed their way back into the first cricket Test on Sunday.

The tourists will start the final day’s play on Monday with an overall lead of 263 with five wickets in hand on a deteriorating wicket that is making batting difficult.

Ponting, whose team closed the fourth day at 193-5 in their second knock, has three sessions left in the match to force a result by giving his bowlers enough time to dismiss India again.

The highest fourth innings total at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium is only 239, but Australia could be handicapped by an elbow injury to seamer Stuart Clark that prevented him from bowling on Sunday.

India not only prolonged their first innings to 360 to narrow Australia’s lead to 70 runs, but slowed their rivals’ bid for quick runs by grabbing wickets at regular intervals.

Zaheer Khan led India’s fightback with an unbeaten 57, his team’s top score, and then removed the dangerous Matthew Hayden for 13 when the Australians batted a second time.

Australia were just 198 ahead when the fifth wicket fell, Hussey bowled by a Harbhajan ‘doosra’ – the ball that turned into the left-hander instead of going away from him.

Shane Watson (32) and Brad Haddin (28), however, kept the tourists on target by adding 65 for the unbroken sixth wicket.

“We went into the partnership aggressively,” said Watson, playing only his fourth Test. “We knew that was probably the best way to get ourselves out of a little bit of a hole.

“We did get a bit of luck, but I suppose you need that in cricket and you’ve got to run with it.”

Asked if he thought the wicket had broken up enough to be entirely in favour of the bowlers, Watson said: “No. There is a bit in it, it keeps low at times, but I won’t say one can’t bat on it.”

India were hampered in the field by a shoulder injury to captain and spin spearhead Anil Kumble, who was unable to bowl till the 54th over of the innings.

India, who started the day at 313-8, batted till 30 minutes before lunch, before last man Sharma was bowled by part-time spinner Michael Clarke for six.

Zaheer had on Saturday put on 80 runs for the eighth wicket with fellow tailender Harbhajan, who launched the home team’s late charge with a stroke-filled 54.

India’s last five wickets added a valuable 205 runs after the top five had been dismissed with just 155 on the board.

Zaheer batted for three hours to compile his second Test fifty with the help of seven boundaries.

India’s total was helped along by a whopping 52 extras conceded by the Australians, including 23 byes by wicket-keeper Brad Haddin on the unpredictable pitch.

They were the highest number of extras given away by an Australian team against India in an innings, surpassing the 45 Allan Border’s tourists conceded in Mumbai during the 1986 series.

Watson finished with 3-45, while left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson failed to add to Saturday’s tally of four wickets.

Scoreboard

AUSTRALIA (1st Innings) 430 (M.E.K. Hussey 146, R.T. Ponting 123, S.M. Katich, 66; Zaheer Khan 5-91, I. Sharma 4-77).

INDIA (1st Innings, overnight 313-8):

G. Gambhir lbw b Lee 21

V. Sehwag c Hayden b Johnson 45

R. Dravid lbw b Watson 51

S.R. Tendulkar c White b Johnson 13

V.V.S. Laxman c Haddin b Johnson 0

S.C. Ganguly lbw b Johnson 47

M.S. Dhoni b Clarke 9

Harbhajan Singh c Haddin b Watson 54