Sehwag scores a ton but misses the mark

It was so overwhelming that at the stroke of lunch, the buzz was all about whether Sehwag would become the first Indian, and only the fourth batsman in the world after Aussie greats Victor Trumper, CG McCartney, Don Bradman and Pakistani legend Majid Khan, to score a Test century before lunch on the first day.

Would he also beat the 74-ball Test century mark of Mohammed Azharuddin and Kapil Dev?

He fell short of the second record in the last over before lunch. But the more prestigious world mark was just minutes away when Corey Collymore rushed in to bowl the last ball—Sehwag on 98 off 74 balls.

A blinding drive saw the ball race straight to mid-off, only a single. No, wait, it’s an overthrow. But by now, Sehwag had hung his head in despair, too disappointed to grab that one, final chance.

It was a bit bizarre actually. Sehwag had just scored a scorcher, drilling 10 boundaries and two sixes to leave the West Indies stunned. And here he was, trudging back to the dressing room, waving his bat in frustration. All he needed to do was simply turn and watch the West Indians limping back behind him, having received the thrashing of their lives.

Pedro Collins? A cut past point in the third ball of the morning, a thundering cover drive in the fifth over, next please. Young Jerome Taylor stepped up and was demolished almost immediately. Three fours in his fourth over, who’s next?

Dwayne Bravo’s second over after Wasim Jaffer had turned the first ball for a single read: 6, 0, 4, 4, 6.

Even the ever-accurate Collymore got the treatment.

Consider this: Jaffer’s first four came in the 19th over, when Sehwag was on 89 off 60 balls and India on 116.

Yes, the century did come, his 12th, three balls after lunch. And Sehwag did break a record—his own. His 100 from 78 balls took him past the Lahore mark set in January, when he broke Sunil Gavaskar’s 23-year-old record of the fastest Test century by an Indian opener. Gavaskar, of course, ran Malcolm Marshal and Co. ragged at the Ferozeshah Kotla in 94 balls. Sehwag, in Lahore, had taken one ball less.

But at the end of it all, did it mean a great day for India in the second Test? Good, perhaps. But definitely not great. Jaffer couldn’t up the ante and was gone at 159—the first century stand from this new opening combination in five Tests.

And VVS Laxman fell cheaply again, this time for a duck, giving the Indian thinktank something to mull over.

But yes, skipper Rahul Dravid’s still in the middle, having stamped his class early on with a straight drive off Pedro Collins. And tea wouldn’t have tasted that bad at 230 for two.

For the West Indies, the only consolation came by late afternoon, from thousands of miles away, when news trickled in that Trinidad and Tobago managed to draw their opening World Cup game against Sweden in Germany.

Till then, they were cursing the groundstaff for “softening” the green-tinged pitch by “watering it heavily” on match eve, “instead of rolling it”.

“Idiots,” said Brian Camacho, an architect-turned-cricket photographer, who’s been tracking the game since 1959, “Look what they have done.”

Did he mean the pitch or Sehwag?

Scorebord

India 1st innings

• Jaffer c Bravo b Collins 43; V Sehwag not out 142; VVS Laxman c Ramdin b Collins 0; R Dravid not out 34

Extras: (lb5, w2, nb4) 11

Total: (2 wickets; 51 overs; at tea) 230

Fall of wickets: 1-159, 2-161

Bowling: PT Collins 14-2-55-2, JE Taylor 12-1-41-0, DJ Bravo 4-0-34-0, CD Collymore 11-0-51-0, IDR Bradshaw 8-1-36-0, RR Sarwan 2-0-8-0