DellmarIndia's V.V.S Laxman drives to the boundary as West Indies captain Carl Hooper looks on yesterday.
Tony Becca, Senior Sport Editor
ST. JOHN'S, Antigua:
THE FOURTH Test between the West Indies and India at the Antigua Recreation Ground moves into the third day today with the home team under pressure and the visitors in a wonderful position to press for victory.
At stumps on yesterday's second day, India, riding on the back of a record-breaking, unbroken seventh-wicket partnership of 205 in 71 overs between Vangipurappu Laxman, who is on 124, and Ajay Ratra, who is 93 and seven short of his maiden Test century, were 462 for six and firmly in control.
Coming together with India sliding at 257 for six, Laxman and Ratra erased the previous India versus West Indies record of 186 for the seventh-wicket between Dilip Sardesai (150) and Eknath Solkar (65) at Kensington Oval in 1971 and in the process left the West Indies, who won the toss and elected not to bat, with hardly anything to hope for but a draw.
With the series locked at one-one with one to go, the match crucial to the victory bid of either team, with neither one willing to give anything away, and the honours nicely balance after the West Indies had picked up three early wickets in the morning, it was a day of tactics and counter tactics.
It was also a day lacking in exciting strokeplay before, with the batsmen at home on a good pitch for batting and confident, with the West Indies wilting under a blazing sun and India in a commanding and apparently impregnable position, Laxman and Ratra preened themselves with some glorious strokes towards the end.
Resuming on 226 for three with Rahul Dravid on 86 and captain Sourav Ganguly on 41, India were well placed in their bid for a huge total before losing three wickets for 31 runs in the first 19 overs as fortune smiled on the West Indies on two occasions.
Once when Ganguly, on 45, went back to a short delivery from pacer Cameron Cuffy and cut the ball straight into Wavell Hinds' lap at point, and once when Dravid, on 91, went back to cut pacer Mervyn Dillon and knocked the ball on to his stumps.
Wicket No. 3 had nothing to do with fortune, however. It was a good bouncer from Dillon, Anil Kumble could not deal with it as the ball kicked towards his face, and Shivnarine Chanderpaul took the simple catch at backward short-leg.
At that stage it was 257 for six, the West Indies were closing in, there were predictions that India would not reach 300, and but for a small group of Indians in the lower deck of the Richie Richardson Stand, the fans in the ARG were happy.
In a beautifully executed counter attack, however, the 27-year-old Laxman, playing in his 34th Test match, and the 20-year-old Ratra, playing in his only his third, checked the West Indies with solid defensive strokes while scoring 15 runs off the remaining six overs to lunch and 65 off 32 between lunch and tea before spanking them later on with well selected drives, cuts, hooks and even a couple of pulls.
In ticking off his third century, the elegant Laxman, who has far batted for 348 minutes, faced 237 deliveries and stroked 13 boundaries, played some wristy strokes through the onside - including one when he went over to the offstump and flicked a short delivery from pacer Adam Sanford to the wide long-on boundary.
The man who stunned Australia with a fantastic 281 after India were forced to follow-on in Kolkatta (formerly Calcutta) in March, 2001, was at his best just after lunch when he drove Sanford through extra-cover and then straight for boundaries in three deliveries, after tea when he hooked Sanford twice for boundaries, and with the West Indians running in with the second new ball and hoping, when he drove Sanford to the cover boundary, pulled the unfortunate pacer for two and hooked for two, and then blasted Dillon over long-off off the front foot.
The real star of the show, however, was Ratra.
In his previous two Test matches, at Queen's Park Oval and at Kensington Oval, Ratra, batting at number seven, did not last long and scored zero, two, one and 13.
So far, however, and after looking vulnerable and ready to go in the first 30 minutes, he has batted for 291 minutes, faced 233 deliveries, and for a man who did not look capable of getting the ball off the square at the start, he has far scored 10 boundaries.
One was a delicate back-foot cut against the offspin of captain Carl Hooper, one was a pull to mid-wicket off pacer Pedro Collins, and in the final overs, with the shadows stretching across the field, there were four that brought nods of approval from Laxman.
One was a hook to the square-leg boundary off Sanford, one was a drive to the extra-cover boundary off Collins, one was a drive to the long-on boundary off the left-hander - the little man going back onto the offstump and hitting a half-volley straight past the bowler's boots, and one was a copybook front-foot drive through extra-cover - again off Collins.
SCOREBOARD
India first innings
(Resumed at 226-3)
R. Dravid b Dillon 91
S. Ganguly c Hinds b Cuffy 45
V.V.S. Laxman not out 124
A. Kumble c Chanderpaul b Dillon 6
A. Ratra not out 93
Extras (lb-5 nb-8 w-1) 14
Total (for six wkts, 180 overs) 462
Fall: 1-13 2-168 3-168 4-233 5-235 6-257
Bowling: Dillon 45-13-99-2 (nb-2), Cuffy 32-7-58-1 (nb-1), Collins 42-10-121-3 (nb-4 w-1), Sanford 32-6-113-0 (nb-1), Hooper 13-4-29-0, Hinds 2-0-9-0, Sarwan 9-3-23-0, Gayle 5-1-5-0.
