Na doosra na teesra, seedhe chautha!
That’s how Saqlain Mushtaq described the treatment he suffered at the hands of Virender Sehwag as the Nawab of Najafgarh became Multan ka Sultan by hitting the first Test triple century by an Indian, on this day in Multan on the landmark tour of Pakistan in 2004.
India had never won a Test in the neighbouring country and Sehwag’s assault on a flat track went a long way in sealing an innings victory in a little over four days in a game that also made news when the visitors’ first innings was declared with Sachin Tendulkar unbeaten on 194.
But it was Sehwag who went where no Indian had gone before. The previous highest by an Indian batsman was the 281 by VVS Laxman in that iconic Kolkata Test three years earlier. Saqlain, one of the best spinners of his generation and the pioneer of the doosra – the delivery that deviates away from the right-hander – had been one of the trump cards for Inzamam-ul-Haq’s side in the skipper’s hometown, but his 43 overs went for 204 runs. The off-spinner was memorably hit over wide long-on as Sehwag went from 295 to 301 in one blow. Evidently, there was no burden of history on the opener, who always played in his own merry way. By the time he was dismissed for 309 off only 375 deliveries – including 39 fours and six sixes – the Rahul Dravid-led team had already crossed 500 for the loss of just three wickets in less than a day and a half of cricket.
The tone of the match was set very early on. Winning the toss, Sehwag and his Delhi teammate Aakash Chopra added 160 runs for the first wicket in less than 40 overs. The flat nature of the wicket necessitated that runs be scored quickly to enable the bowlers to take 20 wickets.
The Pakistan attack was led by Rawalpindi Express Shoaib Akhtar, who endured 32 wicket-less overs for 110 runs. Mohammad Sami – who had been touted as a pace prodigy – as well as Shabbir Ahmed and Abdul Razzaq couldn’t make much impact either as India piled on 675/5 in less than two days.
Battle of attrition
The Pakistan batting didn’t disintegrate but the sheer weight of runs meant that a decent first innings score of 407 was not even enough to avoid the follow-on. Yasir Hameed and Inzamam got in but didn’t manage the big scores that their team desperately needed.
And though the Indians had to toil for 126.3 overs – Irfan Pathan taking four wickets – they decided to put Pakistan back in to enforce a result on the benign surface as the match was well into the fourth day.
The call was vindicated in spades as the hosts were not as obdurate in their second essay, lasting only 77 overs to be bowled out for 216, with Mohammad Yousuf’s century the only resistance offered as Anil Kumble (6/72) being the wrecker-in-chief this time.
The innings-and-52-run win was India’s first on Pakistani soil and though the hosts won the next game in Lahore by nine wickets, the decider in Rawalpindi saw India sealing a historic series win.
It was India’s first Test tour of Pakistan since 1989. Then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had sent the team off with a message to win games as well as hearts, and the players delivered. Coming after the 3-2 triumph in the ODI series and close on the heels of a drawn Test series in Australia, it added lustre to the feel-good factor in Indian cricket.
