Masterful Tendulkar guides India

PRETORIA: Sachin Tendulkar defied a painful thigh strain to score a masterful 98 off 74 balls yesterday as India beat their great rival Pakistan by six wickets to cruise into the second round of the Cricket World Cup.

Chasing Pakistan’s impressive 273 for seven, which included 101 from Saeed Anwar, India turned the Centurion Stadium into a green, saffron and white carnival and leave Pakistan’s hopes of staying in the competition no more than mathematical. It was the fourth time in a row that India had beaten Pakistan at the World Cup without reply although Pakistan still have a 52-30 advantage in one-day matches. It was the first match between the neighbouring rivals in three years. “It’s absolutely fantastic,” said Indian captain Sourav Ganguly. “It was a big match for us. A big match for all the people who’ve come to watch and for the people back home. A win here has given smiles to everybody. “Schools were closed, offices were closed for the big match and the way we played has made the whole country proud.” Tendulkar seemed set to score his 35th one-day century until he was slowed by his leg injury. Although he finally called for a runner on 98, he was out without adding to his score when Shoaib Akhtar had him caught by Younis Khan. “This has always been a special match for us and it’s the fourth World Cup we’ve beaten in a row,” Tendulkar said. “I’m very excited about the victory. The ball was coming on quite nicely so I thought why not play some aggressive cricket. “The leg is all right. I was cramping badly and it got worse. I should be all right for the next match.”

Despite twice needing treatment on the field, Tendulkar struck one six and 14 boundaries to lead India’s charge. Tendulkar made Pakistan pay a heavy price for two dropped chances when he was on 32 and 88. Tendulkar’s wicket fell at 177 for four and slowed the Indian scoring. But Rahul Dravid, 44 not out, and Yuvraj Singh, 50 not out from 53 deliveries, saw India through to the target with four overs to spare. The result puts India into the second round along with Group “A” winner Australia while Pakistan have to beat Zimbabwe in their final group match on Tuesday and hope all the other results go in their favour.
“They played extremely well although we bowled badly on occasions,” said Pakistan captain Waqar Younis. “Saeed played really well. That was a pleasing sight and let’s see what happens tomorrow and we start off from there.”

In a thrilling start to India’s reply, Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag attacked the strong Pakistan pace attack of Shoaib Akhtar, Wasim Akram and Younis with a flurry of boundaries to create a deafening atmosphere in a packed stadium. In three balls from Akhtar, the world’s fastest bowler, Tendulkar hit a six followed by two fours. Then Sehwag hit Younis for six over cover point and struck two fours in one over off Akram. By that stage India were racing along at 10 runs an over but Younis struck to halt the chase. Earlier, Pakistan rode on Saeed Anwar’s 20th one-day century to set India a challenging target. “Playing against India brings the best out of me,” said Anwar, who passed 2,000 runs in one day matches against India when he reached 99. “I have struggled a little bit with injuries. The last few years I have been in and out with a lot of injuries and I think I’m a little aging as well.” Anwar is now tied with India’s Sourav Ganguly as the second top century makers in one-day cricket. Tendulkar is well ahead with 34. When he had reached 99, Saeed also passed 2,000 runs against India in one-day matches but, two runs later, he was yorked by Nehra. Starting with a round-robin league match at Sydney in 1992, India defeated Pakistan in the 1996 quarterfinal and then a Super Six league encounter in 1999 to build an unbeaten World Cup record against the subcontinental rivals.