On February 10,1952,when India had won their first Test match by beating Donald Carrs England by an innings and eight runs in Madras,the scenes at the finish, the Wisden Almanac says,were surprisingly subdued. Fifty-seven years later,in an era when emotions are rarely held back,the chanting from the packed stands seemed to make up for that as India completed a century of victories with an innings-and-144-run thumping of Sri Lanka. For once the dark,rough patches on both ends of the abandoned Green Park pitch could not capture the full story behind another Indian Test victory at home. Television crews examined them,reporters ran their hands over them,but the reasons this time were too simple for a detailed study of the soil,the dead grass,and the bowlers footmarks. There was only one way the Test couldve gone once Sreesanths inspired spell of fast bowling on the third day had broken the visiting teams back,compounding their misery after India won the toss and exploited the best batting conditions the game would offer. By the time debutant Pragyan Ojha took a simple return catch on the fourth afternoon to end Sri Lankas second innings on a breezy,futile 269,the match had long meandered into purposelessness. Friday began with the Lankans on 57 for four,356 behind with six sessions of cricket still to be played. There may have been an iota of motivation if they had to survive for one full day,or if rain was on the horizon. But with 180 overs left in bright winter sunshine,finding the will to hang on was always going to be difficult. Instead of waiting for the inevitable,they at least walked out determined to go down all guns blazing. There was a flurry of boundaries as the Indian bowlers themselves not at their sharpest because of how little they needed to do leaked runs in the first session. All-rounder Angelo Mathews struck a hat-trick of fours in an over from Zaheer Khan,and Muttiah Muralitharan slammed two fours and a six in one from Harbhajan Singh,but India scarcely minded. Wickets were needed,and they were falling regularly enough. Mathews got out while pulling Zaheer once too often,and Harbhajan momentarily found his loop to dismiss Prasanna Jayawardene and Rangana Herath in quick succession,making it 140 for six enough to sustain the Indians while Murali rode his luck for an 11-ball 29. Thilan Samaraweera,looking singularly resolute,did get some support from Ajantha Mendis in a 73-run stand for the ninth wicket,but the last two wickets fell almost together,leaving him stranded on 78 as the Indians started their routine of rushing to the middle to uproot souvenirs. It was perhaps fitting that the 100-win landmark was achieved at Green Park,a stadium that has survived the test of time,having hosted its first match in that same series against England in which India got their first victory. Things have changed. Now,Mahendra Singh Dhonis unbeaten run has extended to 11 matches. The team head to Mumbai 1-0 up in the series,and with the No 1 spot in the ICC Test rankings a new invention for a new generation of cricket watchers within grasp. Sri Lanka,also contenders before coming on this tour,will have to wait for a little while longer before they can stake their claim.
