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 Displaying a total lack of batting application on a seamer-friendly track, India were bundled out for an embarrassing 161 in their first innings to put New Zealand in the driver’s seat on the opening day of the first Test here today. Vice-captain Rahul Dravid stood bravely amidst the ruins with a defiant 76 as the famed Indian batting line-up collapsed in just 58.4 overs after being put in to bat on a seaming Basin Reserve pitch in cold and windy conditions. The hosts were comfortably placed at 53 for one before play was called off due to the bad light with 8.1 overs still to be bowled.
Opener Mark Richardson was batting on 27 along with skipper Stephen Fleming on 11 with Lou Vincent (12) being the only casualty on an absorbing day of cricket. The Indians, who have not won a Test in this part of the world for close to three decades, paid a heavy price for some undisciplined batting and never really recovered from the early jolts. Though Dravid resisted the Kiwis bowling onslaught with characteristic grit, none of the other Indian batsmen could come to terms with the conditions while some of them perished to atrocious shots. The Indian batsmen came unstuck on a green-top wicket which offered plenty of movement but not so steep bounce.
New Zealand opened with Shane Bond and Darryl Tuffey and the two seamers immediately put the Indians on the back foot. Dashing opener Virender Sehwag (2) was the first to go clean bowled by Tuffey in the second over as the batsman attempted a loose shot leaving a big gap between bat and pad. Tuffey soon met with another success in his third over and this time it was the other opener Sanjay Bangar (1) who was given out by Sri Lankan umpire Asoka D’Silva when a lifting delivery appeared to have hit his arm-guard on way to Scott Styris in third slip. De Silva soon gave another debatable decision when he adjudged star batsman Sachin Tendulkar (8) leg before wicket when the batsman offered no shot to a delivery from Jacob Oram which was still rising when it hit him on the front foot.
Tendulkar, after taking almost half an hour to open his account, had essayed two ferocious strokes against Oram in the 12th over - a square cut and a thumping off-drive - before the tall right-arm medium-pacer had the prized wicket as his first Test scalp on his debut. Tendulkar batted for 46 minutes and hit two fours off 26 balls before being done in by the harsh decision. Captain Sourav Ganguly was never convincing during his stay but made 17 with two pulled boundaries before falling to the last ball before lunch, gliding a catch to fourth slip off Bond after enjoying two 'lives' in the slip cordon. At the other end, Dravid was in brilliant touch and hit three fours off Bond, including a peach of a square cut against the fast bowler who bowled impressively on the first morning.
Resuming at their lunch score of 51 for 4, India quickly lost V V S Laxman with addition of just four more runs to the total. It was a superb ball by Bond and Laxman only managed to give a catch to wicketkeeper Robbie Hart to go out for nought. Young wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel then gave good support to Dravid as the duo added 37 runs for the sixth wicket before Patel (8) perished trying a late cut. He only managed to give a simple catch to Lou Vincent in the slip cordon off Oram. By now Dravid, sensing a collapse, was using every scoring opportunity and kept the score-board moving hitting boundaries.
Dravid played an innings of pure class and cut crisply and drove with elegance. He reached his half century when he cut Tuffey over slips for four having batted for 178 minutes and hit nine fours from 123 balls. When he was finally out bowled by Scott Styris, he had single handedly carried the Indian total to 147 with useful support coming from Zaheer Khan (19), the second highest scorer, and Ajit Agarkar (12).
Zaheer and Nehra (10) added a few valuable runs before Bond claimed his third wicket to end the Indian innings.
Dravid, who has scored 1,226 runs from 14 Tests this year with four centuries, again showed his class during his 235-minute vigil cracking 13 fours in 173 balls.
Patel was impressive as he batted for 56 minutes and faced 38 balls but his dismissal came at a wrong time for the Indians and the innings was now beyond repair. Agarkar slashed over the slip fielders and then smote Nathan Astle straight down the ground for a six before falling to Scott Styris in the slips after making 12. India, reeling at 118 for 7, lost another wicket off the very next ball when Harbhajan Singh, quite foolishly, hooked his first ball to deep backward square where two fielders were stationed for the shot.
For New Zealand, Styris (3/28) and Bond (3/66) were the leading wicket takers. Overall, it was a disciplined team work as Tuffey (2/25) and Oram (2/31) did an excellent job so much so that off-spinner Daniel Vettori did not get chance to bowl.
The Indians were left with 29 overs to make some early inroads into the New Zealand batting but failed to make any impact. After five overs each from the two left-arm seamers Zaheer and Nehra in which the two managed to beat the bat a few times without luck, Ganguly tossed the ball to Sanjay
Bangar.
The Railways player immediately provided the breakthrough as Vincent nicked a catch to ’keeper Patel. But that was the only moment of success for the Indians as Fleming and Richardson not only survived the remaining overs but also put on a few precious runs on the board. Harbhajan Singh got just one over before the umpires offered light to the batsmen with one more ball to go in Nehra’s eighth over.
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