If India had to change the manner in which the Delhi Test was petering to a draw, they had to make most of the opportunities that came their way.
Michael Clarke was the highlight of another day the Feroze Shah Kotla where the batsmen dominated. But the significance of the fourth day’s play at tea is giving further indications that even if one of the team goes onto to pushing for a few heroics, draw seems the only probable result and one that will not necessarily go against the home team even though the visitors will feel more reason to be relieved before both teams head to Nagpur.
Clarke’s century run partnership with Cameron White was another deal sealing effort for the Australians after the previous efforts of the openers and Ricky Ponting on earlier days. Even as Virender Sehwag was continually being rewarded for raising his hand in a time of near crisis for India, India have had a moments in the field when they would have wanted to kick themselves.
A couple of such moments came when Clarke was in his nineties. On both occasions, Sehwag was the bowler to suffer. V.V.S. Laxman’s drop catch was in the next over followed by that of Amit Mishra. Sehwag had perhaps thought he had enough and decided to complete the job himself. White departed and left Australia with a much easier task to do. It also gave Sehwag his fifth wicket of the innings, his first five wicket haul in Test cricket, and a deserving reward for turning his arm over for a considerable time of forty overs to compensate of Anil Kumble’s injury and Harbhajan Singh’s absence in the Test.
Clarke has worked hard for his century but even knows he was fortuitous to survive two rash shots so close to a century. For Australia, it was not a case dissimilar. Faced with the enormity of the task when India completed their first innings, Australia, after two days of batting, will feel that they have pulled one back on India and done themselves a resounding pat of confidence.
At 549 for seven, even a marginal lead will not prove to be much of a psychological advantage other than keeping the team with the lead interested. Another intriguing grind becomes monotonous on the rather lifeless pitch that has become, in hindsight, a batsmen’s paradise and a tiring, lengthy workout for the bowlers.
