Missed chances cost England dear

England were left to rue two crucial missed chances on the opening day of the Third and final Test against India, allowing the tourists to maintain a hold on the series and to remain on course for their first series win in the country since 1986. Despite receiving the benefit of two favourable Umpiring decisions, the hosts could not force regular breakthroughs on a sunny day and a wicket that was hard, devoid of cracks and with an even covering of brown grass.

With this in mind, Rahul Dravid had had little hesitation in batting first upon winning the toss, despite thoughts from several quarters that England would perhaps benefit from starting in the field. Indeed, Ryan Sidebottom and James Anderson, as they have throughout the series, found swing with the new-ball. While Sidebottom’s line was excellent, testing Dinesh Karthik to the full, Anderson first failed to make Wasim Jaffer play, then allowed him to play very easily through both off and leg. This helped Jaffer to a flying start, reaching at one point 29 off 28 balls. Vaughan brought Chris Tremlett on to replace Anderson swiftly, but could not find the lines he has throughout the series. When Jaffer was slowed, Karthik sped-up, and shortly after the drinks-break, in the 15th over (after 3 maidens to start), the score had raced to 62.

However, Jaffer tried one stroke too many that over, attempting an uppish cut off a short, wide delivery from Anderson, and hitting it straight to Kevin Pietersen at short-third-man. The batsman had played a similar stroke over the third-man boundary earlier on, but it was foolish to attempt with a third-man in place. However, with Rahul Dravid coming to the crease on the back of a sublime 67* against Sri Lanka A and on a surface that was becoming more benign by the delivery, the signs for England remained ominous.

As much was apparent when, after a flying start to the second-wicket partnership, Monty Panesar was brought into the attack as early as the 20th over. He managed to put some sort of check on the rate, but India still reached 117 for 1 from 28 overs at lunch, Karthik having just completed his 50, and would have been very happy indeed with the position.

The batsmen started positively after lunch too, 9 coming from Sidebottom’s first over. In Panesar’s second, however, Karthik drove in the air to short-extra-cover. Strauss, despite getting good hands on the ball, could not hang on and what would have been a desperately needed wicket was thrown away. With the pitch continuing to play very easily indeed, missed chances were always liable to be hugely costly. Karthik, who had looked solid in attack and defence before then, did not look like repeating the error any time soon, and Dravid managed to avoid the searing deliveries he has received several times in the series, despite slowing from his start which had seen him reach 25 off just 29 balls.

None of the bowlers could keep a lid on the scoring for very long, even though Tremlett and Sidebottom pulled back their expensive starts to an extent. Panesar, however, could not extract any significant turn from either around or over the wicket, and was struck over the top powerfully by Karthik in the 44th over to take the batsman into the 80s. Dravid, meanwhile, finally reached his first half-century of the series – and, indeed, remarkably, his first Test half-century against serious opposition for well over a year – without any serious alarms.

Eventually, however, Anderson and Sidebottom returned, and managed to swing the 45-over-old ball in far better areas than the new one, and finally the batsmen were subjected to a severe examination. After several quiet overs, Anderson produced an absolute pearler, as good as any delivery in his Test career, which was aimed at Dravid’s leg-stump on Yorker length, but swung away late, leaving the batsman no realistic chance of hitting it, merely looking back in dismay as it crashed into the middle-stump. After top-edging a Sidebottom bouncer to fine-leg to enter the 90s for the first time as an opener against serious Test opposition, Karthik wafted at a wide ball in the following over, seemed to miss it by a fair margin, but was given out by Ian Howell after a universal but nonetheless fractionally belated appeal from the England players. Karthik took the decision remarkably well, though Sidebottom was deserving of the wicket after once again bowling with no luck at all. Ganguly flashed his 2nd delivery just past third-slip but otherwise he and Tendulkar suffered few problems reaching tea, Tendulkar very watchful on 2* off 23 balls. England had enjoyed a better session but the tourists retained the upper-hand in the game and series, at 211 for 3.

Aside from one Anderson over that went for 11, England kept things tight immediately after tea, just 12 runs coming off 7 others. Just after breaking the shackles, however, Tendulkar edged a flat-footed flay at an inswinger from Sidebottom. Matthew Prior’s footwork was even worse than the batsman’s, and he got barely half a glove on what should have been a relatively straightforward opportunity. Sidebottom did not allow his frustrations to boil over, but his misfortune was continuing and it would have been easy to forgive an angry response.

With the exception of the odd big stroke – once each Tendulkar and Ganguly shimmied down the wicket to plant Panesar straight down the ground – the bowlers continued to keep the experienced pair (244 Tests between them) quiet. Nonetheless, Ganguly looked, as he has all series, in imperious touch. Just before the new-ball was available, Paul Collingwood was given a couple of overs, and with the 5th ball of the 79th over got one to curve back into Ganguly’s pads. Despite a clear inside-edge, there was a huge appeal and Umpire Howell once again lifted the finger. Ganguly, who had reacted furiously when incorrectly given out at Trent Bridge, this time walked off with a rueful smile. He has scored 192 runs so far this series, but with better luck that could easily have been twice the number.

England did not use the new-ball well, allowing Tendulkar and Laxman to leave too many deliveries, while bowling enough bad deliveries to allow Laxman to move to 20. India closed on 316 for 4, and with Tendulkar and Laxman still in occupation plus Mahendra Dhoni to come no total is out of the question.

India 316 for 4
Dinesh Karthik 91, Rahul Dravid 55, Sachin Tendulkar 48*
James Anderson 2-83, Paul Collingwood 1-4, Ryan Sidebottom 1-75