Big boys finally flex their muscles

The Irani Trophy concluded with a batting display that augurs well for Team India. Showing no signs of any rustiness, Rahul Dravid (121) and...

The Irani Trophy concluded with a batting display that augurs well for Team India. Showing no signs of any rustiness, Rahul Dravid (121) and VVS Laxman (99) paraded their skills in an emphatic manner that made the daunting task at hand look like a walk in the park. It is a different matter that Rest of India’s mini-collapse seemed all so typically ‘Indian’ as they huffed and puffed to a three-wicket win over Mumbai.

While Dravid compiled his knock, spread over nearly seven hours, with loads of patience, Laxman overcame his trademark jitters by unleashing a flourishing essay. Memories of the Kolkata Classic against Steve Waugh’s Australia were revived as they toyed with Mumbai’s limited, but spirited, attack. The Sunday crowd at the MA Chidambaram were kept in good humour by the duo as they dished out 26 boundaries and five sixes betwen them.

	THE TEAMS
Mumbai (1st innings): 297 Rest of India (1st innings): 202 Mumbai (2nd innings): 244 Rest of India (2nd innings): S Bangar lbw b Agarkar 1 (7m, 9b); V Sehwag c Powar b Morris 36 (69m, 36b); R Dravid c Samant b Bahutule 121 (411m, 251b); L Balaji c Agarkar b Powar 26 (144m, 126b); VVS Laxman c Mane b Bahutule 99 (182m, 125b); S Ganguly not out 27 (57m, 37b); Yuvraj Singh c Agarkar b Powar 5 (4m, 4b); P Patel c Mane b Bahutule 0 (4m, 1b); A Kumble not out 11 (25m, 23b) Extras: (b-3, lb-1, w-2, nb-8) 14 Total: 340 for 7 wickets Fall of wickets: 1-1 (Bangar, 1.5 ov), 2-55 (Sehwag, 13.4 ov), 3-123 (Balaji, 50.5 ov), 4-291 (Laxman, 89.4 ov), 5-305 (Dravid, 93.1 ov), 6-312 (Yuvraj Singh, 94.2 ov), 7-312 (Patel, 95.1 ov). Bowling: Salvi 16-6-44-0; Agarkar 19-6-68-1 (1nb, 1w); Morris 12-3-39-1 (1w); Powar 20.4-3-104-2; Tendulkar 7-4-16-0 (3nb); Shetty 2-0-4-0; Bahutule 24-4-61-3 (4nb) Story continues below this ad

Overall, it was a heartwarming excercise for Team India. It’s premier batsmen Sachin Tendulkar, Dravid and Laxman spent quality time on a tough terrain under trying circumstances, pace spearhead Zaheer Khan showed energy in abundance and off-spinner Harbhajan Singh claimed to have warmed up nicely for the conquests ahead. John Wright made an apt summation of the proceedings. ‘‘It was a very tough and competitive match…just what we needed.’’

The Indian coach said that his involvement in the match was minimum as he was just ‘‘content in observing the players’’. While Dravid felt his stint at the crease was a ‘‘good way to start the season’’, Tendulkar explained his subdued efforts saying, ‘‘I was playing a different role (leading a side) which demanded that I should hang around. But the basic idea was to spend time (at the crease).’’

Dravid admitted that Mumbai were more hungrier than the Rest. ‘‘But we needed to show some character and showed it today,’’ he said to highlight the three-wicket victory.

The big guns boomed allright but there were a few sparks of promise too. Ramesh Powar, Sairaj Bahutule and Laxmipathy Balaji advertised their credentials well. Balaji climaxed his impressive bowling with a gritty batting display. ‘‘It is rare to see a fast bowler bat with intelligence. It was a tremendous effort,’’ glowed Wright on the local hero, who coming in as nightwatchman stuck around for more than two hours to wear out the Mumbai bowlers.

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Tendulkar had the final say on the preparations for the upcoming series against New Zealand: ‘‘We should basically concentrate on our current form and play to our strenghths.’’