Kanpur146;s sting in the tail

After four days of near-numbing boredom, even for fans of five-day cricket, the Kanpur Test exploded into life today. Ten wickets fell on th...

After four days of near-numbing boredom, even for fans of five-day cricket, the Kanpur Test exploded into life today. Ten wickets fell on the final day, as against 13 in the first four, but it was a case of too little, too late.

Ultimately India, who took their foot off the pedal last evening, must rue this as a missed opportunity to go to Kolkata with their heads held high and their noses in front of a resilient South African team.

As it is, this could have been a humdinger of a Test had the pitch woken up before. It was only this morning that the bowlers finally got some assistance, first South Africa8217;s seamers, followed by the Indian spin trio.

A few potentially absorbing classic contests were nipped in the bud: Makhaya Ntini and Shaun Pollock taking on VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid, Harbhajan Singh and Murali Kartik vs Andrew Hall and Graeme Smith. In both cases, the bowlers won the contest.

Dravid and Laxman, resuming overnight, wanted to step up the scoring with Sehwag8217;s innings still fresh in the mind, but it wasn8217;t easy. As Pollock kept things tight, Ntini struck, knocking over Laxman8217;s stumps with a brilliant in-swinger and having Dravid caught behind off a ball moving away.

After India suffered yet another batting collapse, the tourists were back to bat. The spinners, who were till yesterday shuddering at the sight of the 22 yards, came into their own, getting the turn and also the bounce. Harbhajan beat Hall with the turn and Kartik did Smith in with the bounce.

Indeed Kartik was in his element after his first innings disaster. Though again brought on last, he made an immediate impact. He had Martin Van Jaasrveld beaten by the armer and trapped lbw on the back foot while Smith couldn8217;t control the ball that climbed.

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With offie Harbhajan at the other end the post-tea session had the Safs in a bind. One devastating 12-over period at the end of second session saw Harbhajan return figures of 6-2-9-2 and Kartik 6-2-11-2. All they needed was time but that ran out.

And the blame for that must lie, at least in part, with the performance of India8217;s senior batsmen yesterday and today. Dravid took 179 balls for his 54, Laxman8217;s 9 came in 28 balls and even Ganguly8217;s 57 was off 111 balls. This, when the need was obviously to build on the foundation laid by Sehwag and Gambhir and play to a gameplan.

Indeed, it seems in retrospect that Sehwag was batting on a different pitch. Ganguly, when asked about this, disagreed. 8216;8216;He scored runs when the ball was new. Besides Dravid and I also got going when we faced the second new ball.8217;8217;

It was only India8217;s bowling this afternoon that prevented South Africa from taking a moral victory 8212; based on their first-innings lead 8212; to Kolkata. Given the hosts8217; world-class batting order, that8217;s not good enough. They now have five days at Eden Gardens to ensure that India win their first home series since end-2002.

SCOREBOARD

	nbsp;	South Africa 1st Innings: 510-9 decl. India 1st Innings: V Sehwag lbw Hall 164; G Gambhir c Tsolekile b Pollock 96; R Dravid c Tsolekile b Ntini 54; S Tendulkar b Hall 3; S Ganguly c Peterson b De Bruyn 57; VVS Laxman b Ntini 9; D Kaarthick lbw Pollock 1; A Kumble c Tsolekile b Ntini 9; Harbhajan Singh c Dippenaar b Peterson 17; Zaheer Khan b Hall 30; M Kartik not out 0 Extras b 10, lb 9, nb 7: 26 Total: 466 all out Fall of wickets: 1-218, 2-294, 3-298, 4-394, 5-407, 6-408, 7-419, 8-420, 9-456 Bowling: S Pollock 38-11-100-2, M Ntini 39-0-135-3, R Peterson 21-2-90-1, A Hall 25.4-7-93-3, Z De Bruyn 11-3-29-0 South Africa 2nd Innings: G Smith c Gambhir b Kartik 47; A Hall c Kaarthick b Harbhajan 26; M Van Jaarsveld lbw Kartik 13; J Kallis not out 28; J Rudolph c Kaarthick b Harbhajan 2; B Dippenaar not out 31 Extras b 12, lb 5, nb 5: 22 Total for 4 wkts: 169 Fall of wickets: 1-67, 2-100, 3-110, 4-115 Bowling: Zaheer 8-2-26-0, A Kumble 21-3-52-0, Harbhajan 16-5-39-2, M Kartik 14-6-17-2, S Tendulkar 5-0-18-0	nbsp;

Sandeep Dwivedi

Sandeep Dwivedi is the Sports Editor at The Indian Express. He is one of India's most prominent sports journalists, known for his deep analytical insights and storytelling that often goes beyond scores and statistics to explore the human and cultural side of sports. Professional Profile Role: As the Sports Editor, he leads the sports coverage for the newspaper and the website. Weekly Column: He writes "The Sports Column," a weekly feature where he provides sharp, narrative-driven perspectives on the biggest sporting news of the week. Podcast: He is a frequent contributor to the "Express Sports" podcast (Game Time), where he discusses evolving trends in cricket and other international sports. Areas of Expertise While Dwivedi covers the entire sporting spectrum, his work is particularly noted in the following areas: Cricket: He provides extensive coverage of the Indian National Team and the IPL. He frequently analyzes the leadership styles of figures like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Gautam Gambhir. He is known for tracking the transition phases of Indian cricket and the evolution of specific players like Kuldeep Yadav and Rishabh Pant. Athletics & Olympic Sports: He has written extensively on Neeraj Chopra’s rise in javelin, the nuances of Indian shooting, and tennis legends like Sania Mirza and Leander Paes. Human Interest Stories: A hallmark of his writing is his focus on the struggles and backgrounds of athletes, such as the sacrifices made by Shafali Verma’s father or the "silent battles" of veteran players like Cheteshwar Pujara. Notable Recent Work & Themes Leadership and Dynamics: Recently, he has written about the dynamic between Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma, arguing that personal friendship is not a prerequisite for team success. Sports & Culture: His articles often intersect with global culture, such as his deep dive into the 100-year legacy of the Harlem Globetrotters and their role as American soft power during the Cold War. The "Grey Areas" of Sport: He often addresses sensitive topics like the mental health of cricketers post-retirement, the "outrage industry" in sports broadcasting, and the impact of fan-wars on the game. Tenure and Experience Dwivedi has been with The Indian Express for over three decades. This experience allows him to provide historical context to modern sporting events, often comparing current crises or triumphs to those of previous generations. You can follow his latest work and columns on his official Indian Express Author Profile. ... Read More