By Qaiser Mohammad Ali, IANS
Bangalore : India, after gaining an 89 runs first-innings lead, were 131 for two in the second at stumps on the fourth day of the third and final Test against Pakistan at the Chinnaswamy Stadium Tuesday.
India go into the fifth and final day with an overall lead of 220 runs with Sourav Ganguly on 63 (111 minutes, 89 balls, 9x4s, 1×6) and Rahul Dravid 35 (141 minutes, 76 balls, 5x4s).
Earlier, Pakistan were all out in their first innings for 537 in reply to India’s 626. Misbah-ul-Haq remained unbeaten on 133 and Ishant Sharma claimed his first fifer in Tests. India also set a world record of most ‘extras’ conceded in an innings – 76.
Misbah, who notched up his second consecutive century in the series, guided Pakistan to a match-saving position. His overnight partner Kamran Akmal made 65 (174 minutes, 114 balls, 12x4s), which was his eighth half-century in 38th match.
Akmal was the first to depart, after Pakistan resumed at 369 for five, stumped by Dinesh Karthik off Harbhajan Singh. The sixth wicket partnership between Misbah and Akmal yielded 144 runs off 236 balls that helped Pakistan easily avert the follow-on when they got to 427.
Misbah, looking calm and composed, continued the resurrection act in the company of Yasir Arafat (44). The pair added 93 for the seventh wicket and just when they looked like taking Pakistan closer to India’s 626, Arafat played on to Sharma.
Arafat’s dismissal started a late order collapse as the lanky Sharma claimed four wickets in successive overs. His victims were Mohammed Sami, Shoaib Akhtar and Danish Kaneria, besides Arafat.
SCOREBOARD
Day IV, Third Test, India vs. Pakistan, M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
India (1st innings): 626
Pakistan (1st innings, overnight 369/5):
Salman Butt c Karthik b Ganguly 68
Yasir Hameed lbw b Kumble 19
Younis Khan b Harbhajan 80
Mohammad Yousuf c Yuvraj b Pathan 24
Misbah-ul-Haq not out 133
Faisal Iqbal c Gambhir b Sharma 22
Kamran Akmal st Karthik b Harbhajan 65
Yasir Arafat b Sharma 44
Mohammad Sami b Sharma 1
Shoaib Akhtar c Gambhir b Sharma 1
Danish Kaneria c & b Sharma 4
Extras: (byes 35, leg byes 26, no balls 15) 76
Total: (all out in 168.1 overs) 537
Fall of wickets: 1-59 (Hameed, 16.3 overs), 2-149 (Butt, 46.2), 3-221 (Younis, 69.1), 4-227 (Yousuf, 70.6), 5-288 (Iqbal, 96.1), 432-6 (Akmal, 135.2), 7-525 (Arafat, 162.4), 8-527 (Sami, 164.4), 9-529 (Akhtar, 166.2)
Bowling:
Irfan Pathan 37 14 80 1
Ishant Sharma 33.1 10 118 5 (9nb)
Anil Kumble 44 12 116 1
Sourav Ganguly 10 2 20 1 (1nb)
Harbhajan Singh 38 7 131 2
Yuvraj Singh 6 2 11 0 (1nb)
India (2nd innings):
Wasim Jaffer lbw Arafat 18
Gautam Gambhir b Shoaib Akhtar 3
Rahul Dravid batting 35
Sourav Ganguly batting 63
Extras: (b 4, lb 6, nb 2) 12
Total: (for two wickets in 37 overs) 131
Fall of wickets: 1-17 (Gambhir, 6.4 overs), 2-26 (Jaffer, 12.5)
Bowling:
Shoaib Akhtar 9 3 21 1
Mohammad Sami 11 1 36 0 (1nb)
Yasir Arafat 9 2 38 1 (1nb)
Danish Kaneria 8 0 30 0
Umpires: Simon Taufel (Australia) and Rudi Koertzen
(South Africa)
Third umpire: G.A. Pratapkumar (India)
Fourth umpire: Suhas Phadkar (India)
Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka)