Cricket : India’s flying start in Eden Gardens against Pakistan - Dravid keeps the pressure on Pakistan
Agencies, Kolkata
Mar. 16, 2005

Vice-captain Rahul Dravid raised his 37th Test half-century as India reached 196 for two on the opening afternoon of the second Test.

Dravid was unbeaten on 61 with Sachin Tendulkar 10 not out.

India made an agressive start in the second session, making no secret of their intentions to add quick runs on a flat batting track but lost Virender Sehwag on the way.

Dravid played a superb cover drive for four off Shahid Afridi on the first ball of the session and Sehwag added two boundaries in the next over, glancing Mohammad Khalil fine and cutting him square.

Sehwag looked set for another century before he miscued a lofted drive off Afridi to be brilliantly caught by Inzamam-ul-Haq, running backwards at covers.

The dashing batsman faced 114 balls for his 81 runs and hammered 11 fours.

Pakistan would have hoped to curb the flow of runs after Sehwag's departure but Dravid, growing in confidence, freely picked boundaries through the off side to compensate for Tendulkar's watchful start.

Dravid welcomed Mohammad Sami back into the attack with a cracking drive for four. He reached his third half-ton, off 99 balls, against Pakistan in the same over with three runs to deep cover.

LUNCH

Virender Sehwag smashed an unbeaten 64 to give India a sound start in the second Test against Pakistan at the Eden Gardens on Wednesday.

India had raced to 126/1 by lunch on the opening day after choosing to bat on a good pitch. Rahul Dravid was unbeaten on 22 at the break.

Sehwag, who scored 173 in the drawn first Test at Mohali, continued to relish the inexperienced Pakistani attack. He reached his ninth half-century when he on-drove seamer Abdul Razzaq's no-ball for his eighth four.

Left-handed Gautam Gambhir and Sehwag helped India make a flying start on a pitch which had neither bounce nor pace even in the first session. They put on 80 for the opening wicket in 17.3 overs.

Pakistani skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq pressed leg-spinner Danish Kaneria into the attack in the 10th over after seamers Mohammad Sami and Mohammad Khalil failed to test the Indian openers in their opening spells.

Kaneria, who grabbed six wickets in the first Test, began unimpressively as he was cut and on-driven by Sehwag for two fours in an over.

But the leg-spinner provided the breakthrough in his fifth over by removing Gambhir, who was adjudged leg-before by West Indian umpire Steve Bucknor, standing in a record 100th Test.

Pakistan used five bowlers in the two-hour morning session, but none could trouble Sehwag who kept playing his strokes freely. The hard-hitting opener has so far hit nine fours in his 92-ball knock.

Pakistan made two changes from the side which played at Mohali, replacing injured Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and opener Salman Butt with Khalil and all-rounder Shahid Afridi.

India included off-spinner Harbhajan Singh in place of left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan.

India: Sourav Ganguly (captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Dinesh Karthik, Irfan Pathan, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Lakshmipathy Balaji.

Pakistan: Inzamam-ul-Haq (captain), Shahid Afridi, Taufeeq Umar, Younis Khan, Yousuf Youhana, Asim Kamal, Abdul Razzaq, Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Sami, Mohammad Khalil, Danish Kaneria.

Umpires: Steve Bucknor (WIS) and Darrell Hair (AUS).

TV umpire: AV Jayaprakash (IND).

Match-referee: Chris Broad (ENG).

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