Date: December 27th, 2011.
Location: Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Session: Morning.
Overnight Score: Australia 277/6.
The second morning of a Boxing Day Test is often where the game is defined. The pitch, having settled, usually offers the best batting conditions before deterioration sets in.
MS Dhoni gathered his troops. "They have 277. If they get to 350, it's their game. We need to kill it off under 320. Sid, you have the old ball. Finish what you started."
Siddanth Deva marked his run-up. He was stiff, the rigors of Day 1 settling into his calves, but the [Perfect Rhythm] skill smoothed out the lethargy, leaving only a cold focus.
Mike Hussey and Peter Siddle were at the crease.
Over 92: Deva to Siddle
Deva decided to test the "Victorian toughness" of Siddle.
He bowled a barrage. Short, into the ribs. Siddle hopped and fended.
91.4: Deva went full. Reverse swing, tailing into the toes.
Siddle jammed his bat down. Inside edge. The ball missed the stumps by an inch.
Over 96: Deva to Siddle
Deva changed the angle. Round the wicket.
He bowled a cutter. It gripped the surface.
Siddle tried to drive. He was early.
The ball popped up to short cover where Virat Kohli dived forward.
WICKET (Siddle 8).
Australia: 295/7.
But the Australian tail was stubborn. James Pattinson came out swinging. He hit Umesh Yadav for two boundaries. Hussey was accumulating runs quietly. The score crossed 300. The Indian shoulders slumped slightly.
Dhoni threw the ball to Deva again. "One more burst."
Over 104: Deva to Pattinson
Pattinson backed away to slash.
Deva saw the movement. He followed him. 146 kmph at the hip.
Pattinson was cramped. He gloved it.
The ball lobbed gently to MS Dhoni.
WICKET (Pattinson 18).
Zaheer Khan cleaned up Ben Hilfenhaus in the next over.
And finally, Mike Hussey ran out of partners, caught in the deep trying to farm the strike off R. Ashwin.
Australia All Out: 333.
(Overs: 110.2).
Siddanth Deva Bowling Figures: 28-6-89-4.
A lion-hearted effort on debut in Australia.
---
Time: 12:15 PM.
Session: Pre-Lunch.
Score: India 0/0.
The Australian team sprinted onto the field. They were pumped. James Pattinson, Peter Siddle, and Ben Hilfenhaus marked their run-ups. The MCG crowd roared, sensing blood.
Virender Sehwag walked out, humming.
Siddanth Deva walked out, focused.
James Pattinson took the new ball. He was young, fast, and aggressive. He walked past Deva on his way to the mark.
"Enjoy the view, mate," Pattinson sneered. "It's the only time you'll be standing up straight today."
Deva ignored him, marking his guard.
Over 1: Pattinson to Sehwag
0.1: 148 kmph. Outswinger.
Sehwag slashed. Missed.
The crowd oohed.
0.2: Short and wide.
Sehwag slashed again.
CRACK.
The ball flew over the slip cordon. FOUR.
Sehwag winked at Deva. "Bounce is good."
Over 2: Ben Hilfenhaus to Deva
Hilfenhaus was a swing bowler. He pitched it up.
Deva, defended solidly under his eyes.
DOT.
DOT.
Brad Haddin chirped from behind the stumps. "Feet look heavy, Sid. Too much biryani in the off-season? You're a long way from Hyderabad now."
0.6: Hilfenhaus strayed on the pads.
Deva flicked. It raced to the square leg boundary.
FOUR.
Deva looked back at Haddin.
They survived the nervous twenty minutes before Lunch.
Lunch Day 2: India 24/0.
Sehwag: 18*.
Deva: 6*.
---
Time: 1:40 PM.
The sun was blazing. The pitch had hardened. It was time for the short ball examination Michael Clarke had promised.
Over 12: Peter Siddle to Deva
Clarke moved the field. He placed a leg gully, a backward square leg on the fence, and a fine leg.
The trap was set. Hook and die.
David Warner at point clapped his hands loudly. "Here it comes! The chin music! Let's see if you can dance!"
11.1: Siddle banged it in. 140 kmph. Directed at the nose.
Deva saw it early.
He didn't duck. He didn't weave.
He transferred his weight back. He swiveled.
He rolled his wrists over the ball to keep it down.
The ball traveled to fine leg.
1 Run.
As Deva jogged to the non-striker's end, Siddle shoulder-checked him slightly. "Lucky escape. Next one is taking your badge off."
Commentary (Ian Chappell): "It is getting heated out there. The Aussies are in his ear every ball. They are trying to get under the young man's skin. Siddle is steaming in."
11.3: Siddle to Sehwag.
Bouncer.
Sehwag upper-cut it. It flew over third man for SIX.
Sehwag didn't care about traps.
The partnership blossomed. Sehwag was the aggressor, cutting and slashing anything wide. Deva was the accumulator, driving straight and pulling controlled shots.
The 50 Partnership came up in the 14th over.
The 100 Partnership came up in the 22nd over.
Australia was rattled. Pattinson was bowling too short. Siddle was bowling too wide.
Over 24: Nathan Lyon to Sehwag
Sehwag danced down the track. He tried to hit Lyon into the Yarra River.
He didn't get to the pitch. The ball turned and bounced.
Top edge.
Caught at long-on by Mike Hussey.
WICKET (Sehwag 67 off 55 balls).
India: 104/1.
A brilliant, chaotic start. Sehwag had done his job. He had blunted the new ball.
Rahul Dravid walked out. The MCG rose to applaud the veteran.
Deva met him mid-pitch.
"The ball is still hard, Jammy bhai," Deva said. "Pattinson is coming back for a spell."
Dravid nodded, tapping his bat. "Let's grind them down."
Over 28: Pattinson to Deva
Pattinson, angry at the Sehwag assault, ran in hard.
27.4: Bouncer. Fast. 148 kmph.
Deva decided to send a message.
He stood tall. He played the tennis-ball pull shot he had used in the IPL.
He hit it in front of square.
The ball rocketed to the mid-wicket fence.
FOUR.
Pattinson walked down the pitch, glaring, his face red. "That was a slog! Do it again! I dare you!"
Deva adjusted his gloves, staring right back. "Bowl it faster, James. I had time to read the label on the ball."
Commentary (Bill Lawry): "Oh, there's a bit of needle now! Pattinson having a word, and Deva isn't backing down. This is proper Test match cricket! The temperature is rising at the MCG!"
Clarke frowned. He moved a fielder to mid-wicket.
27.5: Pattinson pitched it up, looking for the yorker.
Deva leaned forward. He presented the full face of the bat.
The straight drive.
It raced past the bowler. FOUR.
Commentary (Ian Chappell): "That is the answer to Clarke's question. Can he play the bounce? Yes. Can he play the drive? Yes. Siddanth Deva is looking ominous here."
Deva reached his 50 with a quick single. 72 balls.
Dravid, at the other end, was a wall. He left everything outside off. He forced the bowlers to bowl at him.
Tea Day 2:
India: 165/1.
Deva: 68*.
Dravid: 34*.
Trail by: 168.
---
The evening session at the MCG is tricky. The shadows lengthen across the pitch. The ball starts to do strange things.
Over 45: Peter Siddle to Deva
Deva was on 88. Siddle was bowling a tireless spell.
44.2: Bouncer. Deva ducked.
Haddin laughed from behind the stumps. "Scared, mate? Knees shaking? You're 20 years old, you should be at school!"
44.3: Length ball. Deva punched it through covers. 3 Runs.
He moved to 91.
The nervous nineties. The crowd sensed it. The "Aussie Aussie" chants grew louder.
Warner at gully clapped. "Pressure's on now! He'll choke! Watch him nick it!"
Over 48: Ben Hilfenhaus to Deva
Hilfenhaus found some reverse swing.
47.1: Inswinger. Deva got an inside edge onto pad.
47.2: Outswinger. Deva played and missed.
"Oooooh!" The slip cordon went up. "One ball, Benny! He's fishing! He's gone!"
Deva took a deep breath. He looked at the sky. He centered himself.
Just one ball. Watch the ball.
47.3: Hilfenhaus bowled short and wide. A loosenier.
Deva's eyes lit up. He cut.
The ball flew past gully.
FOUR.
(Deva 95).
47.4: Hilfenhaus corrected. Full on middle.
Deva flicked it. He used his wrists.
The ball raced through mid-wicket.
The outfield was slow, but Deva and Dravid ran three.
(Deva 98).
Over 49: James Pattinson to Deva
Pattinson ran in. He wanted to spoil the party.
48.1: Yorker. Deva dug it out.
48.2: Bouncer. High. Wide called.
Pattinson kicked the turf.
48.2 (Rebowl): Length ball outside off.
Deva leaned into it. He didn't overhit. He timed it.
Cover drive.
The ball pierced the infield. It rolled towards the boundary.
The crowd noise grew with every rotation of the ball.
It kissed the rope.
FOUR.
CENTURY FOR SIDDANTH DEVA.
102 off 140 balls.*
Deva took off his helmet. He didn't run. He didn't scream.
He just raised his bat.
He tapped his chest.
And then, he put his finger to his lips. Shhh.
He had answered the question.
Commentary (Bill Lawry): "A magnificent hundred! On debut in Australia! At the MCG! He has stood up to the pace, he has stood up to the bounce, and he has silenced the critics! What a player India has unearthed! That is his 10th Test Century in what has been a phenomenal start to his career! He is rewriting the record books!"
Commentary (Sunil Gavaskar): "It is staggering, Bill. Let's just look at the numbers. This is his 10th Test Century. That brings his overall tally to 32 International Centuries—20 in ODIs and 2 in T20 Internationals. He has 49 half-centuries across all formats. And let's not forget, he has taken 212 wickets in international cricket! We are witnessing a once-in-a-generation talent."
Commentary (Ian Chappell): "Absolutely. His highest score in ODIs is that mammoth 263 against Pakistan. But here is the interesting thing—he is yet to score a double century in Test cricket. He has the temperament, he has the shots. With the form he is in today, and the way he is handling this attack, could the MCG be the place where he crosses 200 in whites?"
Dravid hugged him. "Class, Sid. Pure class."
The partnership had reached 100 runs. India was dominating at 204/1.
But Australia never gives up.
Over 55: Nathan Lyon to Dravid
Dravid was on 45. He tried to cut a ball that was too close to him.
The ball bounced a little extra.
Under-edge.
It hit the keeper's gloves and popped up.
Michael Clarke at slip took the catch.
WICKET (Dravid 45).
India: 204/2.
Enter The God.
Sachin Tendulkar walked out.
The MCG crowd stood up. 70,000 people applauding the legend. They wanted to see the 100th hundred just as much as the Indians did.
Overs 56-65:
Sachin and Deva played out the remaining overs carefully. The second new ball was looming (due after 80 overs), but for now, they just had to survive the evening light.
Sachin hit two beautiful boundaries straight down the ground. Deva, tired but focused, defended resolutely.
Stumps, Day 2.
Score: India 232/2 (65 Overs).
Siddanth Deva: 112* (178 balls) - 14 Fours, 1 Six.
Sachin Tendulkar: 12* (25 balls).
Trail by: 101 runs.
Post-Day Analysis:
Sunil Gavaskar: "India's day. Without a doubt. To bowl them out for 333 and then be 232/2? That is dominance. Deva was the star. He absorbed the pressure of the short ball barrage. That 10th century was maturity personified."
Michael Slater: "Australia needs wickets early tomorrow. If Deva and Sachin bat for another session, India will have a 150-run lead. And on this pitch, that could be fatal."
In the Dressing Room:
Deva sat down, his body aching. Batting for 65 overs after bowling 28 was brutal.
Dhoni walked in. "You tired?"
Deva nodded. "Exhausted."
"Good," Dhoni smiled. "That means you did your job. Ice bath. Massage. Sleep. We need you tomorrow."