Cricket- Sehwag surpasses Tendulkar, scores 219

Sachin Tendulkar stepped on a plane yesterday as the proud owner of the highest individual score in 50-over cricket but will land on Australian soil to find that he has been robbed of the record by his one-time protégé Virender Sehwag.

Sehwag has come a long way since his early days when he was called a ‘Tendulkar-clone’ and the 33-year-old struck a blazing 219 against West Indies to surpass his mentor in his 240th one-day international.

Tendulkar, who hit 200 not out against South Africa in Gwalior in February 2010, was among the first batch of Indian cricketers to leave for the team's Australia tour. Sehwag fiercely cut an Andre Russell delivery for the most memorable of the 25 fours he hit yesterday as Indore's Holkar Cricket Stadium went into a delirium.

One of the few batsmen considered capable of hitting 200 in one-dayers, Sehwag punched the air before hugging batting partner Rohit Sharma. He then took the helmet off to acknowledge the cheers from the hollering fans. One male supporter even managed to sprint on to the ground with a bouquet and tried to present it to a bemused Sehwag before being escorted out.

"Everybody was expecting me to score a double hundred and I think I lived (up to the) expectation," a visibly tired Sehwag said at the innings break, happy to have made the most of the perfect batting conditions. "Whenever I wanted to hit a ball, I hit into the gaps and it went for four. Whenever I wanted to hit a six, I just tried to hit it with a straight bat," said the opener with perhaps the most uncomplicated batting philosophy. "I was telling myself and Gautam Gambhir that if we batted with a little patience, we could score a big one here."

Fortune also favoured the brave opener in his pursuit of the milestone. Sehwag survived a run-out chance when he was on 20 and could have been dismissed on 170 as well but his opposite number Darren Sammy running in from extra cover, dropped an easy catch off Ravi Rampaul. "When Sammy dropped my catch, I thought God is with me and God is telling me 'just bat until the 45th-46th over and you will achieve your 200'," said Sehwag, one of the most devastating batsmen in contemporary cricket.

Sehwag took 41 balls to reach his half-century and needed 28 more to score his 15th ODI century. His 150 came off 112 balls and by the time Kieron Pollard ended his 149-ball batting pyrotechnics studded with seven sixes, Sehwag had entered the record book after a breathtaking knock that left him drained. Sehwag scored his previous highest ODI score of 175 against Bangladesh in the February 19 World Cup match in Dhaka. "I'm very tired because I'm a 33-year-old. I'm an old man and my back and glutes are tight," Sehwag said.

India crashes to an embarrassing defeat

India suffered a crushing, mortifying defeat in the second test at Trent Bridge, both the manner and the magnitude (319 runs) ill-befitting a team ranked No. 1.

Asked to bat five sessions and a bit, the batsmen were roughed up by a disciplined, bruising performance from England's seamers, who used their height and their strength forcefully.

There were pockets of resistance — Sachin Tendulkar's 56, Harbhajan Singh's 46, Praveen Kumar's 25 — but they merely delayed the inevitable. England took a 2-0 lead, Tim Bresnan adding to his second-innings 90 with five wickets.

India has a formidable task ahead of it in the two remaining Tests, but there is time yet to pursue that line of thought.

The immediate need is an account of Monday, the fourth day of what had shaped to be an enthralling contest before ending anti-climactically.

Impeccable delivery

Stuart Broad began England's victory charge with an impeccable delivery to Rahul Dravid. The angle of the delivery — it was directed from wide of the crease into the right-hander — and the movement off the wicket — it straightened after pitching on the seam — complemented the three-quarter length.

Dravid's hands flicked out like a switchblade; the thin edge was taken by the ‘keeper.

V.V.S. Laxman fell in the second over after lunch, to another magnificent delivery. James Anderson produced an in-swinging leg-cutter — the action of the wrist and fingers can sometimes conjure this magic ball (as it can, the out-swinging off-cutter), especially if the fingers drag down the side of the ball.

Laxman's off-stump was violently unearthed.

Bresnan, who had enjoyed his time batting earlier in the day, then got two wickets with two wickedly directed bouncers.

Abhinav Mukund might have narrowly escaped a king pair (it was Bresnan who put the catch down at second slip, a difficult chance), but he had no chance against a short ball of considerable pace that seamed across him. The ball looped to slip, bringing to memory the young opener's dismissals in the West Indies.

Suresh Raina was caught between ducking, swaying, and pulling in the first innings. He chose valour in the second (or fool hardiness, depending on how you see the world). He had no control of the hook stroke: he didn't play the ball; the ball played him. The top-edged hook travelled straight to fine-leg.

Bresnan also had Yuvraj Singh in trouble with the short ball, hitting the left-hander's fingers with a particularly nasty one. Broad smashed Yuvraj's elbow once, after the batsman had advanced!

Yuvraj looked to be walking off (perhaps he thought it was tea); eventually he turned and shook his head, and England's review of a caught-behind decision was of no avail.

Bresnan eventually overwhelmed Yuvraj, having him well caught at short-leg with a lifter.

The next ball found M.S. Dhoni offering no stroke; because the seam had been scrambled, swing, whatever little there was, had been turned off. The ‘lbw' decision was fairly straightforward for Asad Rauf, who's had an excellent two Tests.

At the other end, Tendulkar appeared to be batting in another match. When the ball was pitched up, it was driven surely, majestically.

When it was short, it was ducked under. A pity none of his mates, barring Harbhajan, wanted to hang around for the master-class. It ended when his bete noire, Anderson, trapped him ‘lbw' with a dramatic break-back.

Embattled bowling

The distressing batting performance followed an embattled bowling effort — England piled on the pain on Monday morning, continuing Sunday's charge. Matt Prior (73) feathered one behind, but Bresnan and Broad (44) plundered a tired attack.

There are few more exhausting things for a bowler than contending with a line-up that bats deep — and bats deep convincingly, the lower-order men playing with a batsman's judgment and repertoire.

Fatigue

For Ishant Sharma and Praveen Kumar, who've bowled more than 210 overs between them in less than two weeks' time, it was an effort just to run up.

Harbhajan, who it's learnt is struggling with a stomach muscle injury, didn't bowl, and Yuvraj and Raina's part-time offerings were — as Shane Warne suggested on commentary — as inviting as a bowl of Caesar salad and a side of fries.

Substitute Wriddhiman Saha sparked a moment of fielding brilliance to run Broad out; Praveen got another to bounce off a length to end Bresnan's stay: it mattered little, for the Test was long gone by then.

Scoreboard

England — 1st innings: 221.

India — 1st innings: 288.

England — 2nd innings: A. Strauss c Dhoni b Sreesanth 16 (52b, 1x4), A. Cook c Yuvraj b Ishant 5 (11b, 1x4), I. Bell c Laxman b Yuvraj 159 (206b, 24x4), K. Pietersen c Dhoni b Sreesanth 63 (120b,7x4), E. Morgan c Dhoni b Praveen 70 (88b, 8x4, 1x6), M. Prior c Dhoni b Praveen 73 (60b, 10x4, 1x6), J. Trott c Dravid b Praveen 2 (10b), T. Bresnan c Dravid b Praveen 90 (118b, 17x4), S. Broad (run out) 44 (32b, 5x4, 2x6), G. Swann c (sub, Saha) b Ishant 3 (12b), J. Anderson (not out) 1 (15b); Extras (b-9, lb-5, w-2, nb-2): 18; Total (in 120.2 overs): 544.

Fall of wickets: 1-6 (Cook), 2-57 (Strauss), 3-219 (Pietersen), 4-323 (Bell), 5-329 (Morgan), 6-339 (Trott), 7-458 (Prior), 8-540 (Broad), 9-540 (Bresnan).

India bowling: Praveen 36-5-124-4, Ishant 29.2-4-131-2, Sreesanth 27-5-135-2, Yuvraj 11-0-51-1, Harbhajan 9-1-47-0, Raina 8-0-42-0.

India — 2nd innings: A. Mukund c Strauss b Bresnan 3 (41b), R. Dravid c Prior b Broad 6 (12b, 1x4), V.V.S. Laxman b Anderson 4 (7b, 1x4), S. Tendulkar lbw b Anderson 56 (86b, 8x4), S. Raina c sub b Bresnan 1 (5b), Yuvraj c Cook b Bresnan 8 (32b, 1x4), M.S. Dhoni lbw b Bresnan 0 (1b), Harbhajan c sub b Bresnan 46 (44b, 8x4, 1x6), Praveen b Anderson 25 (25b, 5x4), Ishant (not out) 8 (25b), Sreesanth b Broad 0 (8b); Extras (b-1): 1; Total (in 47.4 overs): 158.

Fall of wickets: 1-6 (Dravid), 2-13 (Laxman), 3-31 (Abhinav), 4-37(Raina), 5-55 (Yuvraj), 6-55 (Dhoni), 7-107 (Tendulkar), 8-129 (Harbhajan), 9-153 (Praveen), 10-158 (Sreesanth).

England bowling: Anderson 17-3-51-3, Broad 14.4-5-30-2, Bresnan 12-2-48-5, Swann 3-0-21-0, Pietersen 1-0-7-0.

Man of the Match: Stuart Broad.

Cricket: England down India by 196 runs

The English bowlers took a little over two sessions to remove nine remaining Indian batsmen and score a win in the opening Test at the Lord's, on Monday by 196 runs.

Stuart Broad dismissed Ishant Sharma to claim the last wicket of the Indian innings as England win the 1st Test at the Lord's by 196 runs.With the Lord's Test victory, England lead the 4 Test series 1-0 James Anderson claimed his 11th 5- wicket haul in Tests by dismissing Suresh Raina for 78 on Day 5 of the Lord's Test.

(India 260/9) -  England's bowlers fought their way through dogged batting, the absence of DRS for lbws and some sloppy catching to avoid a repeat of Lord's 2007 and finish a comprehensive win 28.3 overs before the gruelling final-day scrap was to be called off.

India's four big hopes survived 93, 113, 56 and 68 deliveries, which meant England were made to work for the wickets, and also that they never let those batsmen feel they were in. James Anderson took out Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar, although it could be argued that his were the knockout blows after the softening up done by Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett.

Not that any man in the England side will mind how the wickets came. Although there were two dropped catches and two controversial lbw not-outs involved, it all went down in a manner suggesting England had scripted it thus.

They wouldn't have budgeted for the strongest resistance to be coming from Suresh Raina, who told his critics he belonged with a fighting 78, but by the final session an erstwhile Anderson was in red-hot form, completing his 11th five-for by breaking through that final piece of Indian fight with a beautiful in- swinger from round the stumps. Initially Anderson fed off the immense pressure created by Tremlett and Broad, and Graeme Swann did his thing by accounting for one of the best players of spin today, Gautam Gambhir.

It was just as well that England finished India off, thus avoiding what would have become a major controversy had India hung on with one wicket in hand. The moment when Hawk-Eye and the umpire would be in disagreement was much dreaded, and showed up twice in potentially crucial circumstances. Both were off Broad, when he had comprehensive cases for lbws against Tendulkar and Raina, and would have successfully challenged the original not-out decisions on both occasions had DRS been employed for lbws.

Those two calls cost England 15.4 overs, potentially a deciding delay in such matches. Those two would have left Broad wondering what he needed to do to get a wicket. He had had two catches dropped off him in the first innings. And in the morning session, after Anderson had drawn Dravid into a rare loose shot outside off, he regularly beat Laxman's bat in a five-over spell, often proving to be too good to take the edge.

And while Andrew Strauss's catching at slip and his defensive in-and-out fields in the first session could be argued against, his bowling changes worked like a charm. About 20 minutes before lunch, he brought on Anderson, who began with a long hop, which Laxman pulled straight to short midwicket. Laxman denied England for 113 deliveries.

That brought together India's walking wounded, Gambhir and Tendulkar. Bravely they hung in, Gambhir for 56 balls with a painful elbow and Tendulkar for 68 balls coming out of a viral infection. Whatever be the debate surrounding DRS, the umpires had a great match, and it was obvious in Gambhir's lbw in the over after Laxman's dismissal. It was the Swann arm ball, and the ball had hit the pad a microsecond before it did the bat.

Asad Rauf sent him on his way. From the injured man the burden now transferred to the ill man, Tendulkar, who began positively but found himself a shell post lunch. That Raina looked more comfortable than him during their 17.4-over partnership should tell a story. While Tendulkar was solid in defence, he let the bowlers bowl to a perfect rhythm, and the odd one was bound to be too good. After surviving that Broad shout, Tendulkar played 40 balls for one run. Once again Anderson came back and struck immediately.

He had Tendulkar dropped by Strauss fourth ball, but two balls later, produced an in-swinger similar to Braod's earlier one, and Tendulkar was plumb this time. In the lead-up to tea, with England easing the pressure a bit as they built up to the new ball, Raina and Dhoni gave India hope. Raina especially showed character in how he avoided the bouncers and reached a half0century that will only do him good. With the new ball, though, England were back to the script. The ball started jagging around again, and a shaken-up Dhoni finally and fatally poked at an out-swinger from Tremlett.

A cold, ruthless demolition of the tail followed. Harbhajan Singh refused to back away, but England worked him over with precise short deliveries. Praveen Kumar didn't stand that much of a chance. Raina got a gem from Anderson, coming in from round the stumps, then leaving him, taking the edge. Broad deservedly ended it all with a plumb lbw; the last four had fallen for 18 runs. Scenes of elation followed for the England team and the biggest crowd at a Lord's Monday, but England will feel relief too at finishing off a job, and not only because they righted what happened in 2007.

Had India drawn this, they would have had positives to look at; now they have injured bodies and a series deficit. Match Summary: England 474 for 8 decl. (Pietersen 202*, Trott 71, Praveen 5-106) and 269 for 6 decl. (Prior 103*, Broad 74*, Ishant 4-59) beat India 286 (Dravid 103*, Broad 4-37, Tremlett 3-80) and 261 (Raina 78, Laxman 56, Anderson 5-65, Broad 3-57) by 196 runs