Ahmedabad Test, Day 1, Tea
Tuesday, December 11, 2001

That was an excellent spell by Anil Kumble, not just because he took three wickets, but more because he bowled with all the guile of an orthodox legspinner. His armoury today included the legbreak, the googly and clever variations in flight, line and the angle of delivery. We've come to expect Kumble to be devastatingly accurate, but this afternoon's spell was much more than that.

The googly was an especially potent weapon for him, as he got it to turn appreciably. In fact, all three wickets came courtesy of that delivery. There wasn't too much in the wicket for him, which is why he will be delighted with this performance.

Marcus Trescothick is fast becoming England's most respected batsman. Ian Botham had said before the series began that Trescothick had a big heart and that he would be the player to look out for. He proved that today with an excellent innings. He had got runs in Mohali too, but this was a more difficult wicket to bat on, especially for batsmen not used to Indian tracks.

Sourav Ganguly could have attacked him a little more when he was in the 80s and 90s. The Indians understandably went on the defensive against him when Trescothick got past his half-century, but as he was reaching the three-figure landmark, Ganguly could have put more pressure on him and made him earn his runs. As it turned out, Trescothick moved along towards his hundred fairly comfortably, as the Indians tried to turn the screws on the other batsmen.

The afternoon session confirmed that the pitch has nothing to offer the seamers. Even the spinners will have to show tremendous control and discipline to make an impression here.

Sanjay Manjrekar, mainstay of the Indian batting in the late '80s and early '90s, was talking to S Rajesh.

More from Manjrekar
Day 1, Lunch: an unsporting wicket

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