Paceman Zaheer Khan has taunted “defensive” Australia and brazenly declared the tourists’ attack incapable of taking 20 Indian wickets in a Test.
More cricket
Ponting enthused by White’s ‘Kumble’ qualities
Zaheer’s allround contribution (5-91 and 57no) was probably the difference between an Australian victory in the first Test in Bangalore and the stalemate that eventuated yesterday on a final day interrupted by bad light.
Zaheer used his man of the match award moment to rub salt into Australia’s wounds over its inability to blast out the Indian first innings tail at 7-234 on the third evening before they went on to make 360.
And he questioned whether Australia had lost its feared attacking edge with the bat as the teams prepare for the second of four Tests starting Friday in Chandigarh.
“They talk about getting a run rate of four per over, and it is just all talk, talking like this.
They know that they cannot take our 20 wickets and they’re on the back foot – they couldn’t get me and Bhaji (Harbhajan Singh) out, what else do you want?” Zaheer said.
“So we are in with a big chance and they are under pressure, we know that, so we are just looking forward to the second game.
“They were very defensive.
“I mean I have never seen an Australian team play such defensive cricket, which is a good thing for us.”
Australian captain Ricky Ponting was unmoved, and in truth a little puzzled, by Zaheer’s “defensive” jibe.
“I don’t know what he means to tell you the truth, we were the only ones in the game trying to take the game forward, we played aggressive cricket,” Ponting said.
“He can have a little bit of a chuckle to himself on the inside about what he’s had to say there, I don’t think it means too much to us.”
Ponting said debutant spinner Cameron White had exceeded his expectations by bowling tightly in both innings and picking up the wicket of Sachin Tendulkar on the final afternoon, but where Ponting eyed potential, Zaheer saw impotence.
“Well this match plainly shows that, on a fifth day wicket their spinners couldn’t do us any harm, so that tells everyone what their spin attack is all about,” he said.
“Even the pacers, they didn’t look like getting a wicket at any stage today on the fifth day especially on a wicket like this, so I think we are in with a big chance, the pressure is on them to take 20 wickets.”
Though less outspoken than his fast bowler, Indian captain Anil Kumble took a similar tack, feeling his side claimed a moral victory by preventing the world’s No.1 team from rumbling over them despite having the best of the conditions.
“We’d have loved to have won the game but the way things went after losing the toss on a pitch which certainly cracked up as the game progressed, I thought we fought back really hard thanks to Zaheer and Harbhajan’s partnership in the first innings,” he said.
“Overall for the first match of the series I’m pretty satisfied.”
Kumble said he sensed a genuine opportunity for victory when the Australians were 5-128 on the fourth evening, leading by 198 and without any experienced batsmen left.
“They had to make a game out of it, we were in with a chance yesterday when (Shane) Watson and (Brad) Haddin were in,” he said.
“If we’d got a wicket then we were certainly looking to finish things off and win the game, that was the aim, (but) we were unable to break that partnership.”
Despite widespread rumours to the contrary, Kumble gave no indication that he was thinking of retirement, but planned to test his injured shoulder before ruling himself fit for the second match at Mohali.
Build your own fantasy cricket team and put it to the test with Draftstars daily fantasy competitions. Pick your match, pick your team and watch the points roll in to take out cash prizes on each match. What are you really gambling with? Set a deposit limit.
RCB were initially questioned after bringing Maxi on with the new rock. It worked a treat as he dismissed Ruturaj Gaikwad first ball.
Faf du Plessis took one of the catches of the tournament as Royal Challengers Bengaluru qualified for the IPL playoffs with a 27-run win.…
Jonny Bairstow wants to never mention it again and Alex Carey got sick of hearing about it but the firestorm surrounding their dramatic incident…
Arjun Tendulkar fell victim to the humidity as he cramped up, but he wished he had taken himself off as he delivered two gifts…
New Zealand took 28 years to win a Test match, finally triumphing in 1956. There were plenty of skilled individuals before that but not a complete team.
In just under three weeks, the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup will commence in Texas as the United States face off against Canada in…
