Cloudbursts follow Lee bursts

Three little leaks followed by a downpour. At 8.54 pm local time, the umpires decided to call off the match.

Three little leaks followed by a downpour. At 8.54 pm local time, the umpires decided to call off the match. Unfortunately, just around the same time on Sunday night, the game reached interesting levels with Sreesanth and Ishant Sharma providing the spark. Team India skipper, with a sheet of printed paper in his pocket, marched in with Australia struggling at 51/3 in 7.2 overs, requiring 141 in 26 overs under the twice-revised (D/L method) target .

It could have gone either way from here, but a patient cricket fan under an umbrella would agree that it was sort of the period when a no-result was the best result — it would have been unfair had the verdict gone against Australia who dominated the majority of play in the first match of the tri-series. Two points each, and they all go back home satisfied, though the Indians will stay awake late with some concern.

India’s batting card was wobbly in the absence of a steady, experienced hand to guide it properly, and there were enough symptoms to warrant a serious introspection. India lost four quick wickets in the middle overs to lose the plot, the boundaries not coming for 112 balls at a stretch during that period and a sub-200 was always the most realistic effort emerging. India were all out, making 194 in 45 overs of the reduced innings.

With conditions overcast, India didn’t start well after calling to bat, losing both their experienced and aggressive bats in a mixture of callousness and sheer bad luck. Virender Sehwag tried to cut one down swinging in to him and managed to play it on to his stumps and, three overs later, Sachin Tendulkar, batting well inside the crease to counter the bounce and short-stuff from the Australians, went too far back and across to a Brett Lee delivery to disturb the stumps in an unusual dismissal. 2/26 and Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma put their heads down to stem the rot.

And they managed it quite well with Gambhir beginning to open with a lovely cover-drive against Lee and then flaying one-change seam-up bowling of debutant Ashley Noffke square off the wicket twice. Rohit also responded from the other end after seven dot balls to open his account with a copybook drive in the V, and took Noffke for two boundaries in his second over as India’s 50 came up in 10.4 overs. The ball was still hissing a bit sideways and Gambhir, on 24, survived two chances in three legitimate balls in the slip cordon against Mitchell Johnson — first Michael Hussey put down a straightforward chance at second slip and then Ricky Ponting leapt high and got his fingertips at first slip.

After that hiccup, Gambhir looked well settled to play the sheet anchor role, getting the scoreboard to tick constantly with Rohit as India looked in control of the semi-new ball situation. But soon after Johnson trapped Gambhir plumb in front as he looked to play across the line and the return of Lee from the Vulture end saw Rohit and debutant Manoj Tiwary back in the hut in a flash. Lee ended with five scalps for just 27 runs. Noffke came for his second spell to prise out Robin Uthappa. Dhoni and Pathan patted the ball till the 36th over when the first rain-break left them with only nine overs on return after reduction to swing their bat around. Pathan smacked a six but was run out soon but Harbhajan Singh, walking in with all-around boos, hit a run-a-minute 27 to make a crucial contribution.

The rain interruption at the break meant meant Australia had a revised 192 to get from 43 overs as Adam Gilchrist and make-shift opener James Hopes went about in a blazing fashion. Hopes smacked Irfan Pathan for four boundaries in an over as Australia kept the possible changing patterns of the game in mind. Sreesanth, bowling from the other end, bowled a short-pitched one that Gilchrist tried to hook and only manged to glove it. Umpire Steve Davis had his doubts, but the Australian opener walked off, keeping his usual honesty standards. And the skies opened yet again and Ricky Ponting and Hopes had to start it all over again with 141 in 26 overs.

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That was when Ishant Sharma was introduced and he immediately struck with a lovely in-swing to castle Hopes while Sreesanth, bowling with great speed, got Ponting to edge to slips with a beauty and the Australian skipper was gone for no score. From 33/1 it became 38/2 and then 39/3 with India sniffing a chance. Sreesanth was charging in against Andrew Symonds. A few quiet words were exchanged in the middle, and then the rain brought them all back inside to chill out the matters.

From the series’ point of view, two points for India would work out just fine, especially that the young guns also got a game in difficult conditions here and they have a practice session to go before taking on Sri Lanka at the same venue on Tuesday.

Scoreboard

India: V Sehwag b Bracken 6, S Tendulkar hit wicket b Lee 10, G Gambhir lbw b Johnson 39, R Sharma c Gilchrist b Lee 29, M Tiwary b Lee 2, MS Dhoni c Ponting b Lee 37, R Uthappa c Clarke b Noffke 5, I Pathan run out 21, Harbhajan c Clarke b Lee 27, S Sreesanth run out 4, Ishant Sharma not out 1. Extras: (lb7, w4, nb2) 13. Total: (all out in 45 overs) 194.

Fall of wkts: 1-12, 2-26, 3-91, 4-93, 5-94, 6-102, 7-147, 8-189, 9-190. Bowling: Lee 9-2-27-5, Bracken 9-0-55-1, Noffke 9-0-46-1, Johnson 9-2-33-1, Hopes 6-0-17-0, Clarke 2-0-5-0, Symonds 1-0-4-0.

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Australia: A Gilchrist c Dhoni b Sreesanth 14, J Hopes b Sharma 17, R Ponting c Sehwag b Sreesanth 0, M Clarke not out 2, A Symonds not out 5. Extras: (b4, w4, nb-5) 13. Total: (for 3 wkts, 7.2 overs) 51.

Fall of wkts: 1-33, 2-38, 3-39. Bowling: Pathan 2-0-23-0, Sreesanth 3.2-0-17-2, Sharma 2-0-7-1