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Day 3 of 1st Test in the Border-Gavaskar trophy started with the attention completely on one man – Sachin Tendulkar. He lasted a little over 10 overs in the morning, but the huge Chennai crowd would have been entertained to the hilt after the end of the day. Here are some stand-out moments from an enthralling day’s play at Chepauk:
Tendulkar had added another 10 runs to his overnight score when Nathan Lyon produced a delivery, which despite the thrashing he received later in the day, would give him some much needed confidence. Pitched on the footmarks outside the off-stump, the delivery dipped on Tendulkar, who failed to reach to the pitch of it, despite a good stride forward. All Tendulkar saw was a puff of dust and broken stumps on turning back. Lyon was ecstatic in celebrations; the crowd, stunned in silence.
The image of a swearing and lost in his monk-like concentration Kohli is so common that it was a surprise to see him smiling at Pattinson who had just beaten him, taking the edge of his bat. Kohli appreciated the ball from Pattinson, even as the latter continued to glare at him after the delivery. Test cricket, as Ravi Shastri pointed out on air, was best enjoyed while relishing the challenge on offer. Kohli’s serene side was on display even when he reached his century. No swearing, no pumping of the fists, no extravagant jump; just plain taking off of the helmet and a smile on the face while thanking the heavens.
The day started with Sachin being the talk of the town. After his dismissal, Kohli and Dhoni took over the game and by the time the day ended, Dhoni’s was the name being chanted around the stadium. The Indian captain looked in supreme confidence, which was reflected in his approach towards any new pacer who was brought into the attack.
When on 56, he walked down the pitch and lifted Moises Henriques’ first ball of a new spell over long off for a massive six. Batting on 98, he walked down again, swatting the first ball from Siddle’s new spell over square leg for four, bringing up his 6th Test ton with utter nonchalance. A pattern was emerging but maybe Clarke was too dumbstruck by the counterattack to have noticed it. On 145, Pattinson’s first ball of a new spell was dispatched with the same audacity over mid-off. Not timed as exquisitely though, it only fetched a four for the captain. Attacking a new bowler when they were at their most vulnerable, Dhoni gave a display of how much thinking goes behind constructing an innings.
When Dhoni reached his century, Mohandas Menon, the quintessential Sachin Tendulkar of cricket’s statistics, came out with yet another gem. This was only the 2nd instance when both the captains had scored a century in an India vs Australia Test match. The first time it happened in 1986, when Allan Border and Kapil Dev reached the 3-figure mark. That match ended in a tie, only the 2nd time in the history of Test cricket. Though after Dhoni’s knock today, the possibility of the same result seems quite unlikely.
Indians haven’t seen an Australian captain like Michael Clarke. On the 2nd day, his antics on the field kept the crowd entertained. Used to seeing their team get snide remarks from the opposing skipper, Clarke’s demeanour has been a fresh change from the ‘usual’ norm. When Dhoni got to his century, Clarke walked up to him and gave him a pat on the back. The good guy Clarke would have won many Indian hearts with that small sporting gesture.
Dhoni is applauded for his ‘coolness’ on the field but that rare intense anger, which is reflected in his stare, was on display again today. It takes a real brain freeze at the other end of the pitch to bring out such emotions from the captain and Harbhajan Singh did just that. Dhoni needed a stable partner to build on India’s lead and Harbhajan had had enough of that after facing 30 deliveries. He stepped out to Henriques and tried to hoick him out of Chennai. The ball found the timber behind him and if looks could kill, Dhoni’s gaze would have forced Bhajji to take shelter behind Duncan Fletcher. Harbhajan walked past his captain, with Dhoni looking straight ahead, avoiding any words or eye contact between the two.
