Ganguly fails but Sreesanth knocks hard

The runs had dried up long ago. But Sourav Ganguly8217;s performance in the Challenger match on Tuesday...

The runs had dried up long ago. But Sourav Ganguly8217;s performance in the Challenger match on Tuesday put the lid on even the sliver of hope that he would stage a comeback into the Indian team some time soon.

Ganguly8217;s walk back to the pavilion 8212; after losing his wicket off the inside edge to Sreesanth for three runs 8212; was a lonely journey to the dressing room from where he never came out again.

His team had no chance, either, as they were dismissed for 278 in 48.4 overs, chasing India Red8217;s 317, despite brave efforts from Parthiv Patel 67 and Piyush Chawla 55.

Earlier in the day, India Red elected to bat, as has been the tradition on this typically flat wicket. And, riding on an aggressive 164-run opening partnership between Gautam Gambhir and Robin Utthapa, they went on to accumulate a huge total with a blitzkrieg from wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Kaarthick 85 runs off 68 balls coming in handy at the end.

If India Green had bowled badly the other day against Blue, their attack on Tuesday looked more listless than ever. The duo of Ashish Nehra and Laxmipathy Balaji were thrashed for almost seven runs an over, giving away 132 runs between themselves, including a total of 10 extras. Nehra8217;s line was never right and Balaji gave the batsmen enough width and more to go for their strokes.

Among the Green bowlers, it was only Ganguly who managed to retain some control. The former captain gave away 4.70 runs an over, which was the best his team could come up with. Ganguly8217;s performance, it can be said, was only bettered by Sreesanth and Ramesh Powar, who was as stingy as possible, in the later part of the day.

When India Green walked out for the chase, it was also Ganguly8217;s last chance to restore his dignity. The left-hander faced nine balls, with Zaheer and Sreesanth testing him with deliveries that were close to the bat and the pad. Sreesanth, in particular, struck an excellent rhythm, going on to bowl a shorter one that Ganguly could have let go but chose to swish at.

Story continues below this ad

In the end, it was a pity to watch Sreesanth bowl so effectively on this flat track and then realise he will not be part of the Champions Trophy. He generated good pace and extracted enough bounce to walk away with figures of 8-1-34-2. Zaheer impressed with his line and length, but luck deserted him as he gave away runs at almost 6.7 per over.

India Red will now take on India Blue in the final tomorrow.

Scoreboard

India Red

A Uthappa c Kaif b Balaji 92

G Gambhir c Raina b Chawla 74

K Karthik c Patel b Balaji 85

R Sharma c Manhas b Kumar 26

T P Singh not out 3

R Powar not out 9

Extras lb6, w19, nb3: 28

Total 4 wickets; 50 overs: 317

Fall of wickets: 1-177, 2-254, 3-303, 4-306

Bowling: A Nehra 10-0-64-0, P Kumar 10-0-65-1, L Balaji 10-0-68-2, S C Ganguly 9-0 -43-0, Piyush Chawla 10-0-67-1, H Badani 1-0-4-0

INDIA GREEN

W Jaffer c Karthik b Sreesanth 23

S Ganguly b Sreesanth 3

P Patel c Sharma b Powar 69

P Kumar c Kartik b VRV Singh 9

M Kaif b Powar 34

S Raina c Sharma b Kartik 1

H Badani c Sharma b Powar 18

M Manhas c Kartik b VRV Singh 34

Piyush Chawla not out 55

L Balaji c Sreesanth b VRV Singh 9

A Nehra b VRV Singh 0

Extras lb1, w12, nb10: 23

Total all out; 48.4 overs: 278

Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-53, 3-69, 4-138, 5-139, 6-165, 7-178, 8-249, 9-278

Story continues below this ad

Bowling: Zaheer Khan 10-0-67-0, S Sreesanth 8-1-34-2, VRV Singh 7.4-0-54-4, Ramesh Powar 10-0-36-3, Murali Kartik 10-0-52-1, Venugopal Rao 1-0-10-0, TP Singh 1-0-10-0, Rohit Sharma 1-0-14-0