Cheteshwar Pujara in action during his knock of 41 not out © AFP
Bangalore: Sep 3, 2012
A steady and unbeaten 64-run stand between Cheteshwar Pujara and Sachin Tendulkar helped India reach 147 for 2 at tea, needing 114 runs more to win, on a rain-hit fourth day of the second and final cricket Test against New Zealand.
Pujara was batting at 41 and Tendulkar at 23 when the play stopped and did not resume resulting in an early tea break.
Rain stopped play in post-lunch session at 1.12 pm and umpires decided to take tea between 1.55 pm to 2.15 pm. The final session of the day would resume at 2.30 pm and extend up to 5 pm.
Resuming the play after lunch, New Zealand pacers Trent Boult and Doug Bracewell bowled a disciplined line, mostly attacking the stumps making it difficult for Tendulkar and Pujara to score freely.
New Zealand pacers had a plan cut out for Tendulkar, making him play most often, as he was not in great form. They had Tendulkar in a spot of bother after the Mumbaikar survived two loud appeals for an LBW off Boult and Bracewell.
Pujara broke the shackles by plundering 12 runs in an over, dispatching Boult for a couple of exquisite boundaries, taking India's total past 100.
Tendulkar then turned the screws on against Bracewell thumping him for two consecutive boundaries.
Tim Southee, in his second spell after lunch, made most of the uneven bounce in the pitch by swinging and banging in the ball short to make batsmen play awkwardly.
On 37, Pujara got a life as stand-in wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum missed a straightforward stumping chance off Jeetan Patel when India were 134 for two.
Tendulkar joined the act and unleashed a couple of delectable shots off Southee, first standing tall punching off the backfoot and driving through offside, much to the delight of the boisterous spectators.
Earlier, the openers gave a rollicking start to India's chase before departing in quick succession as the hosts reached 88 for two at lunch.
Virender Sehwag (38) and Gautam Gambhir (34) plundered the Kiwi attack to give a perfect start to India's chase with their entertaining stand of 77 in under 12 overs.
While Sehwag was out bowled by Jeetan Patel, Gautam Gambhir was dismissed by Trent Boult.(PTI)
Brief Scores: New Zealand 365 & 248 (James Franklin 41, Ross Taylor 35; Ravichandran Ashwin 5 for 69) lead India 353 & 147 for 2 (Cheteshwar Pujara 41*, Virender Sehwag 38, Gautam Gambhir 34; Jeetan Patel 1 for 17) by 114 runs.
