This third Test match, which at the end of Day 3 with India well positioned at 150 for 2, stoutly responding to West Indies’ 581 all out, seemed to be heading for a tame draw, twisted and turned on an intriguing fourth day at the Warner Park here in beautiful Basseterre, St. Kitts. On a day that saw this picturesque ground bathed in brilliant sunshine that glistened off the blue Caribbean sea in the backdrop, the only interruption to the day’s proceedings came in the late afternoon, not from a seasonal shower of rain but from a piercing cacophonic siren somewhere in the roof of the stands.
It was much like the disturbing alarms that are reserved for a fire drill in an office complex, or for warning of a real fire or some impending danger. Play was halted briefly as it went on for a few minutes that seemed more like hours. As it turned out there was no harm done to patrons or players. But what was really alarming to the local fans that attended in larger numbers today, were the three soft dismissals offered up by the West Indies top order as skipper Brian Lara having eschewed the follow-on with a lead of 219 batted in the 2nd innings.
The Windies scored at a good clip, knocking up 113 in the final session but losing Chris Gayle who seemed somewhat out of sorts, perhaps not mentally prepared to bat at this time, and Ramnaresh Sarwan who after a few text book cover drives and pulls flailed at a harmless delivery outside the off stump from Sreesanth and gave Dravid an easy catch in the slips. Then there was Lara himself, who appeared to be in fine form as he lofted Anil Kumble majestically straight out of the ground, and then dispatched the same bowler imperiously over the ropes at extra cover.
It was sheer vintage Lara, but Kumble had the last laugh as the West Indies captain premeditatedly charged down the pitch only to be left stranded as wicketkeeper Dhoni completed the housekeeping. It was a suicidal dismissal that would have irked the skipper immensely had it been perpetrated by anyone of his charges. There was yet another self-destructive move in the dying moments of today’s play as Shivnarine Chanderpaul drove a low return catch to Kumble to leave the homesters at 113 for 4, an overall lead of 332.
Needless to say this was an exasperating display by skilled batsmen that mirrored the frustration of the Windies attack that allowed India’s last pair of Harbhajan Singh and Munaf Patel to put on 47 valuable runs, occupy precious time in the middle, and in fact add injury to insult as left arm seamer Pedro Collins limped off the field in mid-over with cramp or a groin problem. The Windies attack performed admirably early in the day as Jerome Taylor provided the breakthrough with 3 quick wickets, leaving only VVS Laxman with a typically classic 100 and a defiant Kumble to steer India to a score of over 300. Harbhajan’s effort of 38 not out which included 4 successive hard hit 4’s off Taylor, and his occupation of one hour and a half at the crease were commendable.
Once again in this absorbing series between these age-old rivals, we are left to ponder which way the pendulum will swing on the last day. In the 1st innings for the first time in this Test series, the West Indies were in the ascendancy with prolific scoring from the killer Gs - Gayle and Ganga, as well as the birthday boy Sarwan. It is now left to be seen whether Chanderpaul and Samuels in retrospect, wasted too much time in their partnership after the Windies were set on the launching pad for an early declaration with a score of 650 or so to put India under pressure.
Should Lara declare after an hour’s brisk batting on Monday morning, leaving India to chase something of 400 or so for victory on a reasonably good pitch, will the pugnacious Virender Sehwag, 1st innings centurion VVS Laxman, and a possibly promoted hit man Mahendra Singh Dhoni take up the challenge and go after a Windies attack depleted by the absence of an injured Pedro Collins to secure a coveted Test win? Stay tuned for yet another hair-raising finish.
