July 30, 2010  Print Email | Tendulkar ton puts India in total charge
Now NZ coach Moles' concern is surviving two more days
Posted by Agencies at 10:10 AM GMT on Mar 20, 2009 | HAMILTON (AFP): An impressive knock by batsman Sachin Tendulkar, who scored 160 runs, and three wickets for India in New Zealand's second innings put the tourists in command on the third day of the first Test match today.
 At stumps the home side were 75-3, 166 runs short of wiping out an imposing 241-run deficit after India posted 520 in their first innings.
New Zealand made the worst possible start to their second knock when Tim McIntosh was given out after just three balls, caught at first slip by Tendulkar, in a questionable decision.
Martin Guptill and nightwatchman Kyle Mills were the other two wickets to fall, with Daniel Flynn on 24 not out.
Television replays were inconclusive as to whether the ball touched the ground after McIntosh had hit it but umpire Ian Gould was in no doubt and New Zealand were one down with no runs on the board.
New Zealand coach Andy Moles called the dismissal "disappointing" but his biggest concern is surviving two more days.
"For a start we've got to save the game. We haven't bowled well enough for long enough periods, we haven't batted well enough in pairs for long enough and in the field we've been sloppy. So not a very good advert for the Test team."
Tendulkar was confident the catch was legitimate, saying "otherwise I would not have appealed for it."
The star batsman took no further part in proceedings after bruising his left index finger grasping the ball at ground level, but there was no doubt it was his day.
During his innings he gave one chance on 13, dropped by Flynn, but from then on was rarely troubled as he stroked his way to a record 42nd Test century, driving off the front and back foot, and cutting anything short to the boundary.
But he felt it was not a fluent knock until the second new ball arrived.
"I started timing the ball much better and after that things were different," he said.
"I was prepared to wait for my chance to come and when I found the centre of the bat consistently I felt I was playing a different game."
Resuming the day on 70, he raced into the 90s, cracking 20 in the opening four overs, including four boundaries from the first 11 balls he faced.
He was eventually undone after 400 minutes at the crease when he flashed at an Iain O'Brien delivery that flew off the pitch and was well caught at first slip by Ross Taylor.
His 160, which included 26 boundaries, was the 14th highest score in the 35-year-old's illustrious 157-Test career.
India started the day at 278-4, one run behind New Zealand's first-innings total, and put on 106 in the morning session for the loss of only one wicket.
Chris Martin was the successful bowler when he went around the wicket and brought a ball back into Yuvraj Singh, who was bowled for 22.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Tendulkar added 115 for the sixth wicket before O'Brien removed the Indian captain for 47, caught behind by Brendon McCullum.
It was the start of a golden patch for O'Brien as he dismissed Tendulkar two overs later.
But Zaheer Khan rode his luck to flail away for an unbeaten 51 in a 46-ball cameo to take the score past 500.
Martin finished with figures of three for 98 while O'Brien took three for 103.
After New Zealand's faltering start to their second innings, Guptill and Flynn put on 68 for the second wicket before Harbhajan Singh tempted Guptill with a half-volley which was hit straight to Virender Sehwag.
Guptill, on his Test debut, was out for 48 and nightwatchman Mills followed on the last ball of the day, trapped leg before wicket by Munaf Patel.
|
|
| |
|