Cricket: Indians on top as NZ sweat

New Zealand face a mammoth task simply to save the third cricket test and series against India after the hosts set themselves up for a crushing victory at VCA Stadium today.

Barely two days into the match and the tourists have a mountain to climb, with India already 99 runs ahead with eight first innings wickets intact.

More ominously, two batting giants of the modern era are entrenched at the crease, with history beckoning Sachin Tendulkar when he resumes tomorrow alongside Rahul Dravid.

Tendulkar is on 57 not out and Dravid 69 not out as the two veterans steered their team to 292 for two by the close, a threatening response to New Zealand's inadequate 193.

Unless India inexplicably fall over New Zealand may have to wipe out a deficit of 350-plus before even forcing the Indians to pick up their bats for a second time.

With a combined age of 74 and with more than 26,000 tests runs between them, Tendulkar and Dravid have put on precisely 100 for the third wicket with many more in the offing tomorrow if the tourists do not strike early with the second new ball.

It could prove to be a very special date - at New Zealand's cost - as Tendulkar sets his sights on a landmark hundred.

He gave all the signs of painting by numbers today as he controlled proceedings and it is clear he is determined to tick off the 43 runs remaining to become the first player in history to post 50 test centuries.

Young New Zealand seamer Tim Southee took it upon himself to rough up Tendulkar early in his innings, twice striking the best batsman of his generation on the shoulder with short deliveries aimed at the body.

At one stage Southee even dared eye up the champion batsman, later telling NZPA: "I was not about to back down to him."

He may not have backed down but Southee and the remainder of the bowling attack had to bow to the little man's superiority today as he banked his 59th test half-century off 117 balls in 143 minutes.

He even helped draw Dravid out of his shell, the defensive mastermind allowing himself the rare pleasure of hitting in the air himself en route to his 60th 50 at the elite level from 115 balls in 173 minutes.

Their jobs were made all the easier by yet another spanking innings from destructive opener Virender Sehwag, who treated the attack with disdain in reaching 74 off 73 balls, with 12 fours and one six, before spinner Daniel Vettori beat him in flight to attract a return catch.

Sehwag lifted his series aggregate to 398 runs at an average of 99.5, totally overshadowing opening partner Gautam Gambhir's 78 as they collaborated in an opening partnership of 113 in less than 24 overs.

New cap Andy McKay tested Gambhir thoroughly early on and was the best of the bowlers despite going wicketless.

He finished the day with none for 47 from 18 overs delivered in three spells.

Southee said the 30-year-old left-arm fast bowler had made a good fist of things in his first test.

"He's got off to a good start and showed he can step up to this level. He's bowled some pretty good spells."

The Indian plan is simple: to bat the tourists out of the match and the series.

"I feel if we can lead by 300 runs that we will have a very good chance to put pressure on them then finish the game off," Gambhir said.

It could be that New Zealand will be asked to bat the best part of two days to force a draw, a tall order in anyone's arithmetic.

Their cause has been helped by promising news on Brendon McCullum's back injury which forced him to abandon his plans to open and instead appear at No 8 in the tourists' first innings.

McCullum experienced back spasms immediately before the toss yesterday and fears then emerged the problem could be disc related.

However, those concerns eased today as he spent the best part of the day in the field, moving freely even if he was careful when forced to bend down to pick up the ball.

A team spokesman said while a full diagnosis was still to be done, everything pointed to McCullum being close to fully fit.

"It's still early yet but the signs are pretty positive."

McCullum is coming off a career best 225 which enabled New Zealand to draw the second test at Hyderabad.

Similar heroics are now required here, either by him or a teammate.

SCOREBOARD

New Zealand
First innings (overnight 148-7)
T McIntosh b Sreesanth 4
M Guptill c Dhoni b Sreesanth 6
R Taylor lbw b Sharma 20
J Ryder c Raina b Singh 59
K Williamson c Sehwag b Ojha 0
D Vettori b Sharma 3
G Hopkins c Raina b Ojha 7
B McCullum c Dhoni b Sharma 40
T Southee c Sehwag b Ojha 38
A McKay b Sharma 5
C Martin not out 2
Extras (1b, 5lb, 3nb) 9
Total (66.3 overs) 193

Fall: 11 (Guptill), 16 (McIntosh), 42 (Taylor), 43 (Williamson), 51 (Vettori), 82 (Hopkins), 124 (Ryder), 159 (McCullum), 165 (McKay), 193 (Southee).

Bowling: S Sreesanth 12-4-28-2 (1nb), I Sharma 18-4-43-4 (2nb), P Ojha 19.3-2-57-3, H Singh 17-2-59-1.

India
First innings
G Gambhir c Taylor b Southee 78
V Sehwag c and b Vettori 74
R Dravid not out 69
S Tendulkar not out 57
Extras (8b, 3lb, 2w, 1nb) 14
Total (for 2 wkts, 82 overs) 292

Fall: 113 (Sehwag), 192 (Gambhir).

Bowling: C Martin 13-0-58-0 (1w, 1nb), T Southee 13-3-41-1, A McKay 18-5-47-0 (1w), D Vettori 30-3-101-1, K Williamson 3-0-18-0, M Guptill 5-0-16-0.



- NZPA