India poised for dramatic win - Sports News - Fanatics - the world's biggest events

India poised for dramatic win

By Michael Donaldson 15/12/2003 08:37:54 PM Comments (0)

He can bat, he can catch. Can he win the match?

With India chasing a rare and dramatic victory over Australia, Rahul Dravid looms as the critical player on Tuesday's final day of the second cricket Test at Adelaide Oval.

Blasted by their coach for immature batting and with a bowling attack looking more innocent by the day, the Australians look powerless to stop Dravid and his team-mates claiming India's first win on Australian soil in 23 years.

After bowling out Australia for 196 in its second innings, thanks to 6-41 from Ajit Agarkar, India needs 230 to win.

The tourists will resume on 0-37 needing another 193 to win, with Virender Sehwag on 27 and Akash Chopra on 10, with Dravid to follow at No.3 and Sachin Tendulkar at No.4.

If India can conjure up a win, it would be a remarkable victory for a team regarded as a poor performer away from home. A rank outsider before the game started, India was 20-1 to win after it conceded 556 in the first innings before falling to 4-85.

But Dravid's fifth wicket partnership of 303 with VVS Laxman dragged India back into the game - just as the pair did in the second Test in Calcutta in 2001 when India came from the abyss of following-on to win.

The home side, after a batting performance labelled "immature" by coach John Buchanan, is facing the prospect of going down 1-nil in a series for the first time in a decade, going back to the 1993-94 series against South Africa.

Buchanan said Australia's goal had been to bat until lunch on Tuesday to play India out of the game.

"The batting was immature," Buchanan said.

Brought to you by AAP AAP © 2024 AAP

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