Sehwag's nightmare and Uthappa delights
Sept 14 - Dream start, nightmare finish
Coming back into international cricket after a while, Virender Sehwag had a dream start: the first ball he faced was a trifle short, and Sehwag played a short-arm flick so effortlessly that it was easy to wonder why he had been kept out of the side for so long. The answer wasn't long in coming: the third ball he faced, his first from Mohammad Asif, did all the things that bother Sehwag - it pitched on a good length, came at a lively pace, and nipped back enough to beat the middle of the bat and take the inside edge. At least Sehwag can't complain about encountering unfamiliar situations on his return.

Uthappa hits back
For nine overs, India danced to the tune of Pakistan's fast bowlers, especially Mohammad Asif. Then, in the tenth, the batsmen called the shots, albeit briefly. Robin Uthappa first walked down the wicket and creamed Yasir Arafat over long-off for an exquisite six, and then pulled him off the front foot for another. The Indian flags, which easily outnumbered the Pakistani ones today, finally got an opportunity to make their presence felt.

The rain dance
To drizzle or not to drizzle? That seemed the perennial question through the first couple of hours of the game. Play started on time, but soon the weather gods decided to intervene, but in such a manner that everyone was kept on tenterhooks, with the covers coming on, going off, coming on, going off, and then again. Once the covers had only managed to travel halfway up to the stumps when the drizzle stopped, and it was time for play again. It served the Pakistan cause nicely, though - twice a wicket fell off the first ball after resumption.

 

       
         

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