By Daniel Brettig
October 4th 2008 @ 1:06am
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Another humbling day for tourists
As Australian tour warm-up matches go, this one has been worryingly humbling. A day after the bowlers were clouted to all parts of the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad by the tyros of the Indian Board President’s XI, Australia’s batsmen were rendered shotless and a little clueless by the legspin of 19-year-old Piyush Chawla.
By stumps on day two of the four-day match the Australians were battling at 4-191, well short of the 455 compiled by the Board XI and still needing another 115 runs to avoid the embarrassment of following on.
Captain Ricky Ponting’s fluent innings of 41 was terminated on the stroke of tea by a perfectly-pitched Chawla googly, which turned between bat and pad to pluck out middle stump.
Chawla (2-46) followed up by deceiving Michael Clarke in flight and line to win a front-foot lbw verdict, and last recognised batsmen Mike Hussey (54no) and Brad Haddin (34no) required all of their wiles to be there at the end of play.
Openers Matthew Hayden (20) and Simon Katich (15) both fell cheaply earlier, Hayden’s departure for 20 leaving him with only one possible innings left to find touch before the first Test against India in Bangalore next week.
Australia’s attack had made hard work of wrapping up the Board XI tail.
Resuming at 6-371 this morning, the locals were eventually bowled out shortly before lunch, wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel (62) and left-arm quick Irfan Pathan (56) compiling half centuries as Ponting delayed taking the second new ball until the 106th over.
When he did, Stuart Clark (3-68) and Mitchell Johnson (4-74) were able to bring a rapid finish to the innings.
Hayden and Katich saw off two overs before lunch, but it was not long after the resumption when Hayden drove loosely at an Irfan Pathan outswinger and edged behind.
Katich is in the team for this match and next week’s first Test at least partly because of his renowned expertise against spin.
That reputation meant little to left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha (1-44), who induced a bat/pad catch at short leg as Katich pushed uncertainly.
Ponting was far more decisive, twice advancing to drive Ojha for six over long on.
He appeared set for a long innings until Chawla intervened.
Judged by India’s selectors to be only the third best wrist spinner in the land behind Test skipper Anil Kumble and Bangalore squad inclusion Amit Mishra, Chawla did not take too long to figure out Clarke, and the wicket of the Australian vice captain duly arrived an hour before the close.
The Australian selectors must wish they had a slow bowler of similar guile to call on as a replacement for injured leggie Bryce McGain.
Australian quick Mitchell Johnson said two days of hard cricket had given the team generally and him in particular plenty of advance warning about the toughness of the Tests to come.
“Yep, it’s definitely good to come out here and play four-day cricket here and get a bit under the belt before the Tests,” he said.
“It was nice to bowl 20 overs in a day, I bowled a few long spells so that was good for myself, and the other bowlers did the same, so everyone’s feeling pretty good.
“We stuck together out there as a bowling and fielding group.
“It would’ve been nice to get a few more runs at the top of the order but it didn’t happen that way and now Brad Haddin and Mike Hussey have started a good partnership.”
Chawla said his side was now in a very strong position, needing only one more wicket to open up the tail.
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