Close India 372 for 7 (Tendulkar 155, Sehwag 105)
Scorecard

Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag both made hundreds on a day which began for India with a familiar tale of disaster, and ended on a welcome note of redemption. India were looking down the barrel when these two came together with the score at 68 for 4, but held the gun firmly in their hands when play ended, with the score 372 for 7.

The South African bowling looked menacing early on, and it looked as if India would be all out before tea, a sickeningly familiar story overseas, when Sehwag strode out to join Tendulkar. Sachin, however, had other things on his mind.

He waded into the bowling with a blistering counterattack. He took three boundaries off the wayward Jacques Kallis, and three more off Makhaya Ntini. Before South Africa knew what had hit them, the fifty partnership had come up – and Sehwag had made just seven of those runs.

The normally flamboyant Sehwag had clearly decided to be the second fiddler, so that Rome didn't burn. Tendulkar, meanwhile, was on fire. His pre-lunch combustion became a post-lunch inferno as he launched into Shaun Pollock and Nantie Hayward, dealing in boundaries that looked ungainly, but were utterly safe, and extremely effective.

But there was beauty in Tendulkar's batting, too. The square-cut was his shot of choice, and he cut Pollock and Hayward repeatedly to the boundary, off deliveries that pitched just short of a good length. It was breathtaking – nay, asthma-inducing – stuff.

He moved from 79 to 83 with a stunning on-drive off Hayward, which made him the 21st player in history to reach 7000 runs in Tests. In the process, he passed Don Bradman (6996). The hundred partnership also came up, of which Sehwag's share was 21.

Tendulkar brought up his hundred in the 45th over, pulling Klusener for two. To celebrate, he unleashed a square-cut for four, before pulling one to the midwicket boundary. He continued motoring on like Michael Schumacher with road rage, and India went in to tea at 255 for 4, with Tendulkar unbeaten on 132, and Sehwag on 52.

It all seemed too good too last, and Tendulkar perished in the 68th over, mistiming a pull off Ntini and presenting an easy catch to Neil McKenzie at square leg (288 for 5). He had made 155, off 184 balls, with 23 fours and a six. Sehwag, instead of panicking as Indians are wont to do when Tendulkar is out, began a process of consolidation in the company of Deep Dasgupta, who seemed determined to justify the place in the side that he had got by default when Sameer Dighe pulled up lame.

These two added 63 in 16.4 overs, the sort of rearguard action that India is really not used to. Sehwag reached his century with an emphatic cover-drive off Klusener in the 80th over; interestingly, he scored a century in his maiden first-class innings as well, although that was in his second match.

Sehwag was out soon afterwards, but Dasgupta saw the day through, and remained unbeaten on 29. Sadly for India, Anil Kumble was caught behind by Mark Boucher, off Kallis, from the last ball of the day.

The day had begun well for South Africa. A groin infection meant that Harbhajan Singh couldn't play, and Dighe was also out, after pulling a muscle in practice. Shaun Pollock, moo-ing at the sight of grass on the pitch, won the toss and put India in. The Indians opened with Rahul Dravid and SS Das, with the debutant Sehwag down at No. 6.

In the opening overs, Pollock proved that he was the real McGrath. He bowled in the corridor from the first delivery itself, pitching relentlessly on the imaginary coin which he surely uses in the nets to get his line and length right. He got a fair amount of lateral movement, and was mainly swinging it away with the occasional inducker. He struck early, in his third over, when Dravid, (2) nicked an away-slanter to Kallis at second slip (7 for 1).

Das, who looked compact and self-assured against both Pollock and Hayward, was the next to go. With 9 to his name, he hung his bat out as if it was repugnant to him, and an inside-edge crashed into the stumps (43 for 2).

VVS Laxman, meanwhile, looked in Very Very Special form. He played some majestic strokes with the utmost ease, including an awe-inspiring six, a stately hook off Pollock with a lot of wrist in it, that sailed over the backward-square-leg boundary. He made 32 off 30 balls, and looked as if nothing could get him out except his own impetuosity. Sure enough, he tried to pull a short ball going down the leg side from Hayward, only to nick it to Boucher, who took a low catch diving to his left (51 for 3).

Sourav Ganguly joined Tendulkar at the crease and was out, yet again, to a short ball. He had made 14 without looking entirely comfortable when Kallis bowled him a bouncer right in that uneasy spot. Standing in position, Ganguly could have opened his mouth and eaten it. But not having such gastronomic adventures on his mind he could only fend it away, and watch it balloon into the hands of a diving Gary Kirsten (68 for 4).

And then, the men with faces like babies and hearts of steel took over.

Teams India 1 SS Das, 2 Rahul Dravid, 3 VVS Laxman, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 Sourav Ganguly (capt), 6 Virender Sehwag, 7 Deep Dasgupta (wk), 8 Anil Kumble, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Javagal Srinath, 11 Ashish Nehra.

South Africa 1 Gary Kirsten, 2 Herschelle Gibbs, 3 Jacques Kallis, 4 Neil McKenzie, 5 Boeta Dippenaar, 6 Lance Klusener, 7 Shaun Pollock (capt), 8 Mark Boucher (wkt), 9 Nicky Boje, 10 Nantie Hayward, 11 Makhaya Ntini.

Amit Varma is assistant editor of Wisden.com India.

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