Dravid's grit gives India control of opening Test

Kingston, Jun 23 (PTI) India were firmly in control of
the first cricket Test against the West Indies after former
captain Rahul Dravid's resolute hundred helped them set the
hosts a stiff victory target of 326 on the third day of the
match here.
West Indies made a jittery start to the chase, reaching
131 for three at stumps yesterday.
An intriguing battle is on cards as the match is expected
to be decided on fourth day itself with West Indies requiring
195 runs and visitors needing another seven wickets.
Darren Bravo (30 batting) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (24
batting) added 51 runs for the undefeated fourth wicket stand
after the Caribbeans were reduced to 80 for three.
The West Indian openers Adrian Barath (38, 36 balls, 4x4,
2x6) and Lendl Simmons (27, 41 balls, 3x4, 1x6) started put
together a whirlwind 62 runs in 10.5 overs.
Barath, in particular, was in Twenty20 mode as he hit
Ishant Sharma for a couple of sixes and four in one over
before Praveen Kumar made him flash at an away going delivery
to be caught by Suresh Raina at slips.
Next man in, Ramnaresh Sarwan (0) was snapped up
brilliantly by Virat Kohli off Ishant Sharma. Simmons was
beaten by a delivery that held its line to hit the off-stump.
The day, however, belonged to Dravid, who notched up his
32nd career hundred.
His effort of 112 (274 balls, 10x4, 1x6) had its worth
weight in gold as the battle-hardened veteran brought up one
of his most satisfying three-figure marks on a track where
batting was difficult.
Dravid was the last man to be dismissed after nearly six
and half hour vigil as he tried hit Devendra Bishoo (4/65) out
of the park.
The wicket was a two-paced one where the other
top-order batsmen struggled for survival.
But the 38-year-old former India captain was a picture of
confidence as he brought up his hundred in 252 balls when he
jabbed a Fidel Edwards delivery to scamper home for a single.
Amit Mishra (28, 60 balls, 4x4), whose sensible batting
at the other end helped Dravid reach his individual milestone,
also deserved credit.
The duo added 56 runs for the ninth wicket after
Harbhajan Singh (5) and Praveen Kumar (0) departed early after
lunch with India reeling at 183 for eight.
When Mishra departed at 239, India had stretched their
lead past 300 which looked to be a formidable one considering
the nature of the track.
Dravid showed that when the circumstances are adverse,
there is no substitute to watertight technique and
concentration. The effort was even more laudable as he
displayed a lot of gumption while batting with the tail.
This is Dravid's fourth century against the West Indies,
and he has now surpassed 1500 runs against the Caribbeans.
If the first session belonged to the West Indies who
pegged India back with triple strikes of Virat Kohli (15),
Suresh Raina (27) and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (16), the
post lunch session till tea was all about Dravid's patience
and Mishra trying to counter attack.
Starting the day at 91 for three, India reached 166 for
six at lunch with Dhoni dismissed at stroke of lunch. The
Indian captain should consider himself unlucky as Bishoo had
overstepped during the delivery.
During the post-lunch session, Harbhajan Singh (5) curbed
his natural instincts to play shots and dropped anchor at one
end.
However, a debatable decision from umpire Daryl Harper
saw him back in the hut. The delivery from Sammy hit him on
the left thigh and was clearly heading over the stumps.
Sammy then picked up Praveen Kumar (0) as he played an
ugly hoick when the situation demanded some discretion.
But then Mishra joined Dravid which could well prove to
be the decisive partnership of the match.
A cautious Dravid tried to shield him initially by
refusing singles early in overs but it didn't take him long to
develop trust on Mishra who even looked good against the
second new-ball.
Dravid was on 80 when Mishra joined him but the pair
frustrated the hosts immensely and stretched the lead beyond
300 runs.
Once Dravid reached his hundred, Mishra hit a spanking
cover drive as if to celebrate the feat of his senior. It also
followed with a solid square cut as the West Indians got
increasingly frustrated.
Dravid first played a risky shot after completing his
ton. It was a straight six off Bishoo. However, Mishra
perished while trying to slash Sammy in the third man region.
Ishant Sharma started off with a cover driven boundary.
He could have been Sammy's fifth victim but a stiff return
catch was just out of reach for the West Indian captain.
It was Bishoo who finally got his seventh victim of the
match when Dravid tried an uncharacteristic ugly hoick that
was easily caught by Ramnaresh Sarwan.
It was an effort that saw him get standing ovation from
his teammates. PTI AS
KAP