100th ton eludes Sachin again
Mumbai: If four runs eluded the legendry Don Bradman from running up an average of 100 in Test cricket, six runs it was with Sachin Tendulkar, from scoring his 100th ton at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday.
India were briefly facing the possibility of a humiliating follow-on on the flattest of tracks after the West Indies' quicks struck three times with the second new ball, but the chances of that receded as Virat Kohli and R Ashwin forged a steadying seventh-wicket stand on the fourth morning of the third Test.
It was an anti-climactic session for the sell-out crowd in Mumbai, which came to see their favourite son get to a historic century, only for Tendulkar to be dismissed on 94, after some fantastic strokes raised hopes of him finally ending a seemingly endless wait for the100th hundred.
At lunch, Virat Kohli (32) and Ravichandran Ashwin (26) were the unbeaten batsmen and the home side were 376 for 6, only 15 runs short of avoiding the follow on and 214 runs behind the rivals' score of 590.Tendulkar was racing imperiously to his landmark after resuming at his overnight 67 in a team score of 281 for 3 when his dream was shattered, albeit temporarily, by Ravi Rampaul bowling with the second
new ball.
The veteran right-hander, who had mixed caution with aggression in a judicious mixture till then, reached out for a slightly wide ball and the attempted drive to the off ended safely in rival captain Darren Sammy's big hands at second slip to send the 15,000 strong crowd into a stunned silence.
The 38-year-old iconic cricketer could scarcely believe how he had missed out again when so close to the target and departed dolefully as the West Indians celebrated wildly.The visitors had earlier drawn early blood by packing off the other overnight batsman V V S Laxman (32) off the first ball he played this morning, through a catch at gully off Fidel Edwards.
The Caribbean team struck another major blow after Tendulkar's dismissal by packing off India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni for 8. With only five sessions left, the match appears to be heading for a tame draw.
When play commenced this morning, all eyes were on Tendulkar who was approaching the landmark for which the nation had been waiting for more than eight months.Tendulkar had slammed his 99th international hundred (111) against South Africa in a World Cup league match at Nagpur in March.
News Posted: 25 November, 2011
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