Fire starter
Ganguly does what no other Indian has done on this tour... weather the early storm to not only score 83 himself, but open the match for the players that followed. From 69 for five, India finished the day at 316-7, with Pathan on 111
Sunandan Lele in Potchefstroom
Cometh the half hour, cometh the man. This is story of a player who has had to sit out for the last 10 months because the Indian selectors thought he had nothing more to offer to the Indian team.
Sourav Ganguly came to Pochefstroom with eyebrows being raised all around. Can he actually deliver at the highest level? Does he have what it takes to play on fast, bouncy wickets — where even his more illustrious colleagues are being bullied?
The early signs were good: Soon after landing in South Africa, he headed for the practice session and played a good net with his team mates. There was a spring in his stride, hope and hunger in his eyes. Forty-eight hours later, yesterday, Ganguly played innings of 83 that can raise the morale of the entire team.
In Pakistan, Sourav had been dropped because he had got runs in the 30s. Yesterday, he batted like champion against a hostile Rest of South Africa attack led by Nantie Haywards and Morne Morkel, who were making life difficult for the rest of the batsmen.
Wasim Jaffer was gone in the first over, Virender Sehwag’s dismissal made it two for one and soon — after Sachin Tendulkar’s dismissal for 10 — it was 37 for three in just over 30 minutes. That’s when Sourav stepped in.
Lot of heart
The former India captain played with a lot of heart. Short stuff was hurled at him right away, he even got a blow to his head, but the left-hander didn’t flinch. During most of his stay at the wicket, he was behind the line every time.
A flick behind square, a couple of off-side drives, and he was on his way. When Sourav reached his half century, all the team members — including coach Greg Chappell — stood up and clapped with chants of “Well played Dadi, Well played Dadi” echoing in the dressing room. With Irfan Pathan for company, he had launched the Indian rescue act. Ganguly fell for 83, caught behind off Friedel de Wet, but Pathan — growing in confidence with every passing minute — went on to score the first century for India on this tour, and his own maiden first-class hundred.
When contacted over the phone, selection committee chairman Dilip Vegsarkar was happy about the Indian recovery. “We always had faith in Sourav. We thought that his experience could make a difference. Today’s knock will not only boost Sourav and Irfan’s confidence but will have a positive effect on the team,” he said.
“Though all of us know that this was practice match and a test match environment is different, the performance will help the team’s morale.”
Dada in numbers
Runs: 83
Balls: 141
Minutes: 224
Fours: 13
Strike rate: 58.86
Partnerships
with Laxman: 22 runs
with Dhoni: 10 runs
with Pathan: 139
Came in at 37 for three in 10 overs
Got out at 208 for six in 59.1 overs
Inspired Pathan slams first ton
Who would have thought it? India’s first century on this disastrous South African tour didn’t come off the blade of Sachin Tendulkar or Rahul Dravid or Virender Sehwag, or the explosive Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Almost one month into the series, it was Irfan Pathan who was raising his bat at Sedgars Park after reaching the magical three-figure milestone.
Pathan has had a tough time in the ODI series, which India lost 4-0. He had hung on only by a hair’s whisker in the test team, and there was tremendous pressure to perform. Unfortunately for Irfan, the bowler, the ball has stopped swinging. But the Baroda player has proven time and again that his all-round skills can be useful for the Team India. This time too, his knock was controlled in the beginning while Ganguly handled most of the pressure, and then had some blistering strokes when he was set.
Mental barrier
When Pathan got his century with a huge six off Paul Adams, a mental barrier had been broken. From 69 for five, India finished the day at 316 for seven with Pathan on 111 (off 175 balls with 15 fours and a six). Who know where his, and former skipper Sourav Ganguly’s, performance can take the side from here.
“The innings were not only good for Sourav and Irfan individually, but also for the team,” said captain Rahul Dravid later. “They have shown that once you see off 20-25 overs of the Kookaburra ball, you can bat for long.” — Sunandan Lele
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