da winzada777： The Queensland Bulls had the upper hand as India played their first day’scricket on their Australian tour at The Gabba today
Rick Eyre26-Nov-1999The Queensland Bulls had the upper hand as India played their first day’scricket on their Australian tour at The Gabba today. At stumps on day oneof the four-day tour match, India are 9/273. A 136-run partnership betweenVVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar prevented matters from being much worse.With Queensland captain Stuart Law putting the Indians into bat, thetourists lost their first wicket without a run on the board in the thirdover when Devang Gandhi was caught behind off the bowling of Andy Bichel. Apartnership of exactly 100 followed between Sadagopan Ramesh and VVS Laxmanbefore Ramesh (43) fell to a smart stumping by wicketkeeper Wade Seccombeoff the bowling of left-arm spinner Matthew Anderson.Ramesh’s departure brought Rahul Dravid to the crease for his firstappearance on Australian soil. Two balls later, the much-anticipatedbatsman was gone, being trapped lbw by Anderson.With India 3/100, Tendulkar came to the crease. After hitting Anderson forfour from the second ball he faced, the Indian captain retreated into hisshell for a while, before taking a liking to the normally-economical swingbowler Adam Dale. Tendulkar took fourteen runs, including three boundaries,off one Dale over shortly before the tea break.Tebdulkar brought up his half-century shortly after the interval when he hitBichel to mid-on for three. Sachin’s 50 came from 78 deliveries.Laxman played a number of fine shots to the boundary throughout the day, andwhen on 95 despatched Anderson to the fence on three consecutive occasions.Laxman’s hundred came from exactly 200 balls from his eighteenth four of theday. The very next over saw Tendulkar despatch Bichel for four fours, twodriven forward of off, one cut past second slip and a bouncer pulled to theleg side.Scott Muller, back in the Queensland side after his two-match sojourn as anAustralian Test bowler, returned to the attack and removed Laxman for 113,Geoff Foley taking the catch at second slip. Laxman’s innings includedtwenty boundaries.With Tendulkar looking set for a big score in his first innings of the tour,Muller struck again beating him with a beautiful delivery that dislodged thestumps. Tendulkar made 83. Three balls later, MSK Prasad was gone, caughtby Seccombe to become Muller’s third victim of the day. India were now6/245.Andrew Symonds removed Vijay Bharadwaj (5) and Anil Kumble (5), with AndyBichel claiming the scalp of Venkatesh Prasad (1) shortly before stumps. Atthe close, Kumaran was 14 and Mohanty 4.Scott Muller, who has been the unwitting centre of a controversy this week,was easily the best of the Queensland bowlers, taking 3/27 from twentyovers. Television microphones at the Hobart Test against Pakistan last weekcaught a voice, thought at the time to be an Australian team-mate, sayingthat Muller “can’t bowl and can’t throw”. Today he proved his worth as abowler, though the Indians will be happy if he doesn’t earn a recall for thethree-Test series.