An impressive opening spell by Irfan Pathan rocked Australia's bid for a world record 17th successive win in the third Test against India at the WACA yesterday.
The home side are chasing 413 to win after the Indian tail wagged to lift their side's second innings total to 294 on the third day here.
Pathan, an onlooker for the first two Tests, removed openers Chris Rogers (15) and Phil Jaques (16) in his opening spell with impressive late swing.
PHOTO: AFP
Rogers, who has had a tough debut, making just four in the first innings, was caught behind, while Jaques lived dangerously before guiding an outswinger straight to Wasim Jaffer at gully.
At stumps Australia were 65 for two, still needing a further 348 to win, with Ricky Ponting on 24 and Mike Hussey on five.
Only once before in Test history has a team scored more to win in the fourth innings of a Test, when the West Indies made 418 for seven against Australia in Antigua in 2003.
The previous best at the WACA was Australia's 342 for eight against India back in 1977, in the first Test between the two countries at the venue.
Australia have not been beaten since losing to England at Trent Bridge in August, 2005 and have not lost a home Test since December 2003, against India in Adelaide.
Australian coach Tim Nielsen said his side were paying the price for underperforming in their first innings in making just 212. However, he said they were capable of creating history.
"The good thing is the wicket's still in pretty good shape, the outfield's fast and we've seen that if batsmen get in they find it easier to score," he said. "If we play well enough we'll give ourselves the chance to chase down a really big total and get the record we're looking for."
But Indian batsman VVS Laxman said chasing more than 400 was a huge psychological burden for the Australians and tipped skipper Anil Kumble to play a big role in India's push for victory.
"They're under a lot of pressure tomorrow getting 350 runs in the fourth innings," he said. "The way our bowlers bowled in the last hour was very encouraging."
India snapped Australia's previous record 16-Test winning streak when they notched a memorable victory after following-on 274 runs behind in Kolkata in 2001.
Laxman was the hero on that occasion with a double century and his fighting 79 in India's second innings here enabled the tourists to recover from 160 for six and set the Australians such a challenging target.
He received good late support from Mahendra Singh Dhoni, with 38, and number 10 RP Singh, who made an invaluable 30.
Pathan, who came in as night-watchman toward close of play on Thursday, also made an important contribution with a battling 46.
Laxman has been a thorn in Australia's side throughout his career.
He averages nearly 60 in Australia in Test cricket and his overall average against the world's top team is 51.76 compared with a career average of 44.40.
He was not at his fluid best yesterday and was dropped on 59 off the bowling of Brett Lee, but stuck to his task and only fell when he chanced his arm with number 11 Ishant Sharma at the other end.
India had started the day in control and leading by 170 runs with nine wickets in hand, but lost four quick wickets as Australia hit back.
Nagging seamer Stuart Clark (4-61) started the Australian fightback by bowling Virender Sehwag for 43 to leave Australia 79 for two.
Lee (3-54) snared the prized scalps of Rahul Dravid (3) and Sachin Tendulkar (13).
When Mitchell Johnson had Sourav Ganguly caught at first slip for a duck, India had slumped to 125 for five, and had lost four wickets for just 46 runs but, led by Laxman, they steadied the ship to reach their total of 294.
Australia lead the four-match series 2-0 and have already retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
The 2025 International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) Mr Universe Chinese Taipei competition began yesterday at Xinzhuang Gymnasium in New Taipei City, with more than 150 athletes showcasing their physiques. It is the first time in 16 years that the IFBB has held a competition in Taiwan, the last being the 2009 World Games in Kaohsiung. The professional bodybuilding contest is bringing together athletes from Taiwan and 16 other countries, including Malaysia, Japan, the US, France and Mexico. IFBB Chinese Taipei president Hsu An-chin said in an interview yesterday that the event came to Taiwan thanks to his lobbying efforts at last
Top seeds Alexander Zverev of Germany and American Coco Gauff on Tuesday advanced to the third round of the Canadian Open after both players were pushed hard by their opponents. World No. 3 Zverev, playing in his first match since his first-round loss at Wimbledon, was far from his best, but emerged with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 win over Adam Walton under the lights in Toronto. Momentum shifted firmly in Zverev’s favor when he won a 52-shot rally in the first set tiebreak and he sealed the win on a double fault by the Australian in the second set. “It was a very
Cycling great Marianne Vos won the opening stage of the women’s Tour de France with a brilliant late attack on Saturday. The 38-year-old Dutchwoman overtook her Visma–Lease a Bike teammate Pauline Ferrand-Prevot approaching the line, and then held off Mauritian rider Kim Le Court in the closing meters of a grueling uphill finish. Ferrand-Prevot looked set to win the stage, but the Frenchwoman attacked too early from 600m and could not withstand the late surge from Vos, who punched the air with her left fist as she crossed the line. Moments later, Vos hugged an exhausted-looking Ferrand-Prevot, the Paris-Roubaix winner. “I didn’t know if
TAIWANESE EXITS: Fellow Australian Christopher O’Connell joined Tristan Schoolkate as a winner following his 6-1, 6-2 defeat of Tseng Hsin-chun Australian qualifier Tristan Schoolkate on Monday dispatched rising Brazilian talent Joao Fonseca 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 at the ATP Toronto Masters, ensuring a breakthrough into the world top 100. The 24-year-old from Perth moved to 98th in the ongoing live rankings as he claimed his biggest career victory by knocking out the ATP NextGen champion from November last year. Schoolkate, son of a tennis coach, won his first match over a top-50 opponent on his sixth attempt as he ousted the world No. 49 teenager from Brazil. The qualifier played a quarter-final this month in Los Cabos and won through qualifying for his
RSS