da pinnacle： Plays of the day for day one of the second Test between India and England in Mohali
Cricinfo staff19-Dec-2008
Rahul Dravid placed and timed his drive to perfection © Getty Images
One day you’re the dog
After the frisky knock that set up animprobable Indian win in Chennai, it was Virender Sehwag’s turn to be thelamp post. A hint of away movement from Stuart Broad, a thin nick, andcelebrations all round for England. They didn’t know then that the daywouldn’t get any better.Different venue, different game
During the Chennai run-chase,India had streaked past 50 in less than six overs. Here, the first halfdozen overs yielded 10 runs. When Sehwag is not out there, it can be a verydifferent sport.The waiting is the hardest part
Rahul Dravid had not struck a ballto the rope since the third Test against Australia in Delhi nearly twomonths ago. So, when he finally played an emphatic pull off a short one from JamesAnderson, it was a sign that normalcy was being restored. Slowly.Timing and placement
Those aren’t two words anyone has associatedwith Dravid’s batting in quite a while, but when Monty Panesar landed ahalf-volley just outside off stump, Dravid leant into a superb drive thatneatly bisected the two men stationed in the cover region and past mid-off as well, leaving three fielders on the ground.When it’s not your day
Graeme Swann was a cut above any otherEnglish bowler, and he should have had Gautam Gambhir when he was on 70 – a thick edge to slip and a drop from the usually safe Paul Collingwood. It was a tough chance, and Swann’s mood didn’t improve a couple of overs later when Daryl Harper turned down an excellent leg-before shout.After the lull
India dawdled along in the hour before tea, and thecouple of thousand who had braved the chill and the security to sit in theconcrete stands opposite the pavilion were pretty silent until Gambhirsauntered down the pitch and lofted Swann over long-off. On a day whenattrition was very much the name of the game, it was one of the fewmoments for the crowd to do a little in the aisles.