After a riveting day of cricket that saw 247 runs being scored for the fall of 14 wickets, the Mohali Test hangs in fine balance, with India needing another 161 runs to win on the final day with six wickets in hand. After restricting Australia to 192 with a superb bowling performance, India are up against a tricky target of 216 for victory with Sachin Tendulkar (10*) and Zaheer Khan (5*) at the crease.
India’s chase began on a gloomy note when one of the many howlers by Billy Bowden cost them the wicket of Gautam Gambhir, who was adjudged lbw despite a thick inside edge. The Australian pacers bowled excellently as very soon Bollinger got Rahul Dravid (13) caught behind followed by Hilfenhaus’s another strike to dismiss Virender Sehwag (17) in a similar fashion. Hilfenhaus continued his fine display of swing bowling when he bounced Suresh Raina (0) out.
Earlier, Shane Watson got the visitors off to a flier with a 59-ball knock of 56, laced with seven boundaries and a six. He was toying with the Indian bowling attack and looked good for his fourth ton of this tour. That’s when MS Dhoni’s gut feeling took over and he brought his lanky pacer Ishant Sharma into the attack, who had struggled in the first innings with his line and overstepping.
The bowling change turned out to be the watershed moment of the match. Off the first ball of his new spell, Ishant got rid of Watson, who, in his attempt to pull a short and wide delivery just managed to play it on to the stumps. That wicket was just the kind of tonic the young fast bowler needed. The Australian skipper, Ricky Ponting, then held out to Suresh Raina at leg-gully, to his once most productive shot – the pull.
More drama unfolded in the fourth delivery, as Michael Clarke (4) flicked a full-length ball straight to the man at mid-wicket. The umpire, recalled the batsman soon after giving him the marching orders. Reason: he had a doubt that Ishant had overstepped for the 14th time in the match. His doubt was confirmed by the third umpire and that became Ishant’s second wicket off a no-ball in the match.
Clarke, however, failed to take the advantage of the lucky respite. In his next over, Ishant fired in a nasty bouncer. Clarke took his eyes off the ball as it kissed his glove and went up in the air. Dhoni held it with ease. In no time, Australia slumped to 96 for 3 from a formidable 87 for no loss.
The post-lunch session belonged to the Indian spin duo of Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha. They used the day-four Mohali pitch fantastically to trouble the Australian batsmen with sharp turn and flight.
The Katich-Hussey duo weathered the storm for a while as the Indian spinners began to turn it sharply. Harbhajan, in particular was immensely impressive as he gave the ball a lot of air along with spinning it away from the left-handers. Ojha, who toiled hard in the first innings too, got the purchase off the track. He struck when Katich’s luck finally ran out after a series of respites and a mildly turning delivery took the outside edge giving Dhoni a sharp catch.
Marcus North, the new man was put under immense pressure by the Indian captain, who crowded him with four fielders around his bat. There was a slip, leg-slip, forward shortleg and silly point in place for the left-hander as the tweakers spun the ball sharply. He got troubled by the turners and was also lucky to survive a very good lbw appeal by Harbhajan.
But the ‘Turbanator ‘got rewarded for his sensational spell of spin bowling with the quick wickets of Hussey and North. Hussey had the right to be disappointed after being given out as he tried sweeping the ball pitched well outside the leg-stump. North, who was having a torrid time out there in the middle, finally gave in to the pressure created all round him and edged a spinning delivery from Harbhajan straight to Dhoni.
Ojha then got rid of Tim Paine with the help of young uncapped substitute fielder Cheteshwar Pujara, who took a superb low reflex catch at silly point. Dhoni, then made another inspirational bowling change and replaced the left-arm spinner with Zaheer Khan. And the left-arm pacer, in the second delivery of the spell got Mitchell Johnson caught behind with an out-swinger.
Zaheer continued to trouble the tailenders with reverse swing and had a frustrating moment when the ball hit the stump after beating Nathan Hauritz but the bail didn’t come off. The Indian pacer made up for it by sending Hauritz’s off-stump cart wheeling just an over later. When Zaheer rearranged Hilfenhaus’s stumps with a stunning yorker, it not only spelled the end of the Australian innings but also gave him his 250th Test wicket.
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