India gets a grip

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"If I had won the toss, I'd have bowled first anyway," said skipper Sourav Ganguly, moments after Zimbabwe skipper Heath Streak won the toss and opted to bat first.

Streak opted to bat because he figured that though the wicket had a bit of green on it, it wouldn't do anything alarming. Ganguly for his part reckoned that there was just enough for his seam-centric attack. And, as it turned out -- though perhaps not quite how Ganguly would have expected -- the Indian seamers bundled Zimbabwe out for 173, inside of 59 overs, and immediately moved into a position of advantage in the first Test at Bulawayo.

The Indians sprang a surprise in team selection, resting Ajit Agarkar and opting to bring in left-arm seamer Ashish Nehra. More surprising was the fact that Nehra got the new ball ahead of Zaheer Khan. Then again, maybe it was no surprise -- at different times and in different ways, both Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar have indicated that they rate Nehra as the potential star.

As it turned out, the assessment of the two seniors seemed bang on. Nehra was the pick of the three seam bowlers, and, in fact, played assassin-in-chief -- getting the initial breakthrough, then coming back when the batting side seemed to be on a consolidation drive and opening Zimbabwe up again with two quick strikes.

Guy Whittall, who has been yo-yoing along in the batting order, went out to open -- but showed that the promotion hasn't really altered his thinking. In the 6th over, Nehra -- who right from the start was getting the ball to bend back a long way at speed -- bowled him one wide of off, Whittall flashed into an extravagant drive without taking the swing into consideration, and managed only to drag the ball back onto his leg stump.

At the other end, Dion Ebrahim, who comes with a rep at the 'A' level behind him, looked way out of depth -- his extended survival, till the 19th over, due more to the waywardness of first Srinath, then Zaheer, than to his own skills. And, as often happens, it was just about when he had managed to settle down that he was run out.

In Harbajan Singh's first over, Stuart Carlisle clubbed a drive back down the track, the offie did very well to get down in time and get his hand to the ball. The richochet hit the stumps at the non-striker's end, with Ebrahim out of his ground and Zimbabwe found themselves 46/2.

Wicket number three fell almost on the stroke of lunch. Stuart Carlisle, who seemed in a hurry to play his shots, got one from Zaheer that left him on the angle around off, pushed at it and got the thick edge through for Laxman at second slip to hold well, low in front of him.

Zimbabwe thus went in to lunch on 65/3, off 27 overs. Nehra was the pick of the bowlers, Srinath on the other hand disappointed, bowling too short too wide, too often. Zaheer was a bit pedestrian as well, while Harbhajan, with a newish ball on a track not really made for turn, settled into an immaculate line straight up.

Post lunch play initially revolved around Harbhajan and Alistair Campbell. The free-scoring left-hander seemed to be chafing under the restraint the offie put him in, and in a bid to hit him off line and length, Campbell went down on his knee, attempted the hoik over the on side, and managed only to top-edge the arm ball high in the air for Dighe to run around and hold with ease. 87/4 Zimbabwe, and one more batsman perishing to shots that had more of the one-day than the Test about it.

Worse followed. Srinath, who seemed in the post-lunch session to be even less in rhythm than in the morning, bowled one very wide of off. A nothing ball, and Grant Flower aimed an airy drive without moving his feet, to get the edge through to the keeper.

With five down for under 100, Zimbabwe needed a partnership. Skipper Heath Streak seemed prepared to do his bit, focussing on holding his end up while at the other end Andy Flower seemed to be settling in to another run-binge against the Indians, against whom he averages over 170. There was, however, less confidence and more desperation about this particular knock, as Flower uncharacteristically opted for a neck or nothing style of batsmanship totally unlike his usual self.

51 off 45 balls looked good on paper, but in context of the match situation, Andy Flower's innings seemed a touch too exuberant. Nehra, coming on for his first bowl after lunch, struck in his very first over when he sent down a late-swinging yorker. Andy Flower, playing the length, attempted to flick over mid on, got the leading edge, and perished with the ball flying high in the air and down the throat of cover. The wicket came at a time when first Srinath, then Zaheer, had been handled with ease. At the other end, Harbhajan was putting on pressure, but India needed one of its seamers to strike -- and Nehra, rested after a single morning spell of 7-1-14-1, stepped up.

Nehra followed up that first strike with another late-swinging ball of yorker length, beating Blignaut on the attempted flick, and hitting his boot in front of middle stump to earn the LBW and reduce Zimbabwe to 138/7.

Heath Streak had batted with exemplary patience, unlike the rest of his mates. For his part, Samir Dighe seemed a changed man behind the stumps, taking very cleanly, moving nicely and playing with the confidence that comes of the confidence his coach and captain have, publicly and loudly, reposed in him. In the last over before tea, Streak took one from Zahir on his pads, looked for one and Dighe, in a superb piece of opportunism, ran round the ball, whipped off his gloves, and threw the stumps down before Streak could recover his ground.

That was pretty much that for the home side. A slower ball from Zahir foxed Murphy into driving too ealry, for short cover to hold with ease. Olonga opted for the long handle, managed to keep an airborne hit out of mid on's reach, then clubbed one over the mid on fence for six, and finally paid the price when the offie pushed the next ball through quicker.

Olonga went to repeat the shot, and managed only to put it up in the air for Dighe to run around and hold.

Zimbabwe had folded, inside 59 overs, for a paltry 173. For India, Nehra and Harbhajan were the pick of the bowlers, the former using zip off the deck and prodigious movement in the air while Harbhajan, with not much turn on offer, used bounce, flight and loop to keep his end bottled up. Srinath was way off form throughout, while Zahir, after a bad start, settled in to a decent line and length late in the afternoon.

India's response began disastrously, with Ramesh falling in the second over. Watambwa, who bowls with good speed and zip off the deck, found the right line early, angling one in on middle stump, just the right length to bring the batsman forward. Ramesh played the push on the walk, was beaten for seam movement, and found the ball seaming away to clip off stump on its way through.

VVS Laxman looked a touch tentative early on, but quickly eased into prime form and opened out with shots on both sides of the wicket. Twice in his innings, he rocked back and pulled marginally short balls on line around off through wide mid on, using his wrists for impetus. Third time, though, proved fatal as Olonga put one in that slot, Laxman went for the shot, found the ball climb a touch quicker and higher, mishit the shot and gifted mid on with an easy take.

Shiv Sundar Das and Sachin Tendulkar seemed set to play out the rest of the day, when Streak in the dying moments came up with a bowling change. Leg spinner Bryan Murphy got the ball and first ball of his first over, brought Das forward in defense. Dion Ebrahim at silly point dived and held, the batsman seemed a touch unhappy and replays were inconclusive in establishing whether he had got a touch onto his pad or no. The suggestion was that the bat was tucked behind the pad and therefore could not have touched the ball -- but you can't really blame the umpire on that one, that late in the day, in fading light. India 81/3.

Javagal Srinath and Sachin Tendulkar saw India through the four remaining overs, taking India in at 83/3 after 29 overs and setting up an interesting second day where, with Tendulkar at the crease and Ganguly and Dravid still to come, the batting side will be pushing for a big score.

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