Ganguly sets Dhaka ablaze

By Vijay Lokapally

DHAKA, MAY 31. The fireworks only created enhanced excitement in the stands, for India carried far too much ammunition for Bangladesh to pull off any coup.

The inspired batting performance by the home team, setting India a target of 250, only elicited a strong response from the opposition. For India, a lot was at stake in its opening match of the Asia Cup.

Once Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar gave India a customary start, the Bangladesh bowlers were bound to find it hard on a pitch which encouraged strokeplay all the way. But nothing failed to change the course of the result which went India's way quite comfortably.

With Ganguly taking the responsibility upon himself, carrying the scoring chart to keep in touch with the required rate, the Indians were in safe hands. An encouraging debut by Hemang Badani was a positive feature of the contest for a team looking for a sound batsman at number three.

There was much for the spectators to cheer, after Bangladesh resumed its innings today at 98 for two in 25.2 overs. The batting of Akram Khan; the cameo by Naimur Rehman; and the cheap dismissal of Sachin Tendulkar. In its quest for Test status, Bangladesh was exhibiting its progress in limited overs cricket, thanks to the positive style of the middle order.

The spirit of Bangladesh cricket was reflected in the entertaining batting of Akram Khan and Naimur Rehman. There was a calculated effort by these two to unsettle the bowlers and their bold tactics led to some acute embarrassment for the Indian attack, which looked so ragged this day.

Even as Akram and Naimur revelled, it was shocking to see the Indian team run out of ideas against the minnows of international cricket. The bowling degenerated in the face of Akram and Naimur slamming the ball in a most disdainful manner.

People are often misled by Akram's appearance. His strokes matched his burly physique but he must be the softest cricketer on the circuit. With a big smile on his face, he presented a broader bat to the bowlers and produced some sensational shots.

For Akram, a former skipper, it was a stage to justify his presence in the side. Slow only when chasing the ball, he was quick on his feet today to put the Indian bowling in the right perspective.

The Indians had no clue on the field. The field placements were repeatedly mocked at by the Bangladesh batsmen and a few reputations were marred under their furious charge. Anil Kumble came in for some stick but T. Kumaran received a caning as he bowled an erratic second spell.

The Indians might have been surprised by the aggressive response from Akram and Naimur but their bowling deserved the treatment it was handed out by the home batsmen. There were several one-bounce boundaries and the sixes were struck hard and clean.

Even if a little rusty, the Indian attack looked out of depth. None was spared as Ajit Agarkar, Kumble, Kumaran and Sunil Joshi were carted all over. The worst treatment was reserved for skipper Sourav Ganguly, who was slammed by Akram as if the batsman wanted to settle a score.

Akram comes from a background where football was the first love of the family in Chittagong. He was different, opting to play cricket, and rose to lead his country. Here he left his mark with an innings of great value for Bangladesh. His thrust in the middle order, hitting the ball on the rise and sometimes connecting across the line with tremendous power, certainly left the Indians red-faced.

A wealthy businessman, Akram brought into play his wide range of strokes. He was adequately supported by Naimur, who threw his bat around when it mattered. Naimur also helped himself to some handsome runs as the Indian attack went to pieces. The damage, when assessed at the end of the Bangladesh innings, was 97 runs off the last 10 overs. It once again exposed India's poor tactics in the slog overs.

It was the brightest phase of this tournament for the home spectators. If they entertained hopes of a victory it showed the confidence they had in their team but Bangladesh lacked teeth in its bowling.

Ganguly and Tendulkar opened out after some initial circumspection. The lack of experience in the Bangladesh attack was evident as the Indians had ample time and space to place their shots.

Tendulkar, despite some rousing strokes, did not show the inclination to bat long and succumbed to a careless attempt to hoist the ball out of the field.

Ganguly, who was declared man of the match, led from the front with a blazing charge on left-arm spinner Mohammad Rafique. The experiment by Bangladesh to give the new ball to a spinner did not work as Ganguly used his feet well. But the Indian skipper twice escaped being run out in a needless haste when things were rosy.

The innings by Ganguly showed that the man was in form. The made- to-order tri-coloured batting gloves kept reminding the skipper of his resolve not to allow any complacency to creep in at any stage. Every time he seemed to fumble, Ganguly responded with an aggressive shot, which eventually led to his 13th century in 143 matches. The applause for Ganguly's strokeful century, with sixes all around adorning his essay, showed the man's popularity with the spectators.

Badani was quick to impress with his style. His urge to look for runs spoke for his temperament and a couple of drives did give an indication of the Chennai left-hander's ability to time the ball and pick gaps. It was a nice effort to keep Badani in the right frame of mind for a bigger contest against Sri Lanka.

Mongia arrives

Meanwhile, Nayan Mongia joined the Indian squad here on Wednesday after Saba Karim returned home for treatment to the eye injury sustained during play yesterday.

Karim was struck by a ball from Anil Kumble which gained height on pitching and the wicketkeeper was late in reacting.

Mongia's last appearance for India was at Hobart in the four-day match against Tasmania on the tour of Australia. On that occasion too, Mongia had been summoned after M.S.K. Prasad, the original choice, had sustained an injury.

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