The Report by ANIL GAHLAWAT
November 25, 2011
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Tea India 482 (Ashwin 103, Tendulkar 94, Dravid 82) trail West Indies 590 by 108 runs
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball details
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Related Links
Players/Officials:
Ravichandran Ashwin
| Virat Kohli
Matches:
India v West Indies at Mumbai
Series/Tournaments:
West Indies tour of India
| West Indies tour of India
Teams:
India
| West Indies
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There was a century at the Wankhede Stadium, but not the one the
sell-out crowd came to see. Sachin Tendulkar missed his historic ton by
six runs, but the fans at least had the consolation of watching R Ashwin
conjure an energetic hundred to become the first Indian since 1962 to
take five wickets and score a century in the same innings.
When Ashwin walked out, India were facing the possibility of a
humiliating follow-on on the flattest of tracks after the West Indies'
quicks struck three times with the second new ball, but with the help of
Virat Kohli, he sliced the deficit to a far more comfortable 108.
West Indies' fast bowlers began the day with intent - Ravi Rampaul
starting with a bouncer to Tendulkar and Fidel Edwards striking with his
first delivery of the day, getting VVS Laxman to edge to gully.
It was all about Tendulkar for the next half an hour though, as he
galloped to the nineties with a series of sumptuous strokes. The classic
straight drive, an effortless punch past cover, an audacious upper cut
over third man for six all suggested Tendulkar was in top form, turning
the Wankhede into a buzzing cauldron of noise. Ravi Rampaul switched the
mute-button on though, by getting a short-of-length ball to jump at
Tendulkar, who top-edged it to Darren Sammy at second slip. The
seemingly interminable wait continues.
The crowd was at its most dejected then, and their mood didn't improve
when MS Dhoni was bowled by Sammy soon after. With only the
inexperienced Kohli and the bowlers to come, and India needing 60 more
to force West Indies to bat again, the follow-on looked a distinct
possibility.
All the hoopla may have been around Tendulkar, but it was a far more
important day for Kohli, who finally got the chance to show his
credentials for the No. 6 spot. He responded well, with an array of
wristy flicks, guiding India ever closer to the crucial 391-run mark.
Barring a caught-behind chance on 43, Kohli was barely troubled by the
bowling either side of lunch, and his partnership with Ashwin not only
avoided the follow-on but swelled towards triple-figures. Kohli
progressed to his maiden Test half-century but couldn't carry on,
gifting his wicket away while attempting to clear mid-on. There was a
scream of disappointment from Kohli, but he has seemingly done enough to
at least book a place for the Australia tour.
Another youngster whose tickets for Australia can be confirmed is
Ashwin, who continued to find Test cricket easy in his debut series. He
used to be an opener at the Under-19 level, and that was reflected
during his century, which wasn't a tailender's swing-at-everything
effort but a more controlled one.
The early boundaries came through measured drives and flicks, as he
outscored Kohli in their partnership. After lunch, two streaky edged
fours were bookended by murderous hits over mid-on for six off Bishoo.
There were late cuts for four off Edwards and Marlon Samuels, audacious
paddles to fine leg after jumping across the stumps, and an air of
level-headedness even as he started to run out of partners.
He started to decline the singles towards the end, and the crowd
thoroughly enjoyed the tension of seeing whether Ashwin could make it to
the hundred with last man Pragyan Ojha for company. The No. 11 survived
14 deliveries, including a testing over from Edwards, before Ashwin
stabbed the ball past gully in the next over to bring up the century.
His effort has virtually extinguished West Indies' chances of a victory
and, barring some serious drama, a dull draw is the likeliest result.
© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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