India too hot to handle

Red-hot Indian bowlers blew apart a beleaguered Bangladesh batting for a second time in three days as the hosts wrapped up a thoroughly dominant innings and 130-run win in the opening Test here on Saturday.

Second innings master Mohammed Shami led the onslaught with another destructive 4/31 show while pace colleagues Umesh Yadav (2/51) and Ishant Sharma (1/31) also chipped in beautifully. Ace spinner R Ashwin held his own with a fine 3/42 effort as India bowled out Bangladesh for 213 in 69.2 overs at the Holkar Stadium.

Leading by 343 runs overnight, Indian skipper Virat Kohli had no hesitation declaring before entering the field of play on Saturday. It was a no-brainer as nippy early morning conditions would present the ideal stage for his lethal pace attack to run the Bangladeshi side ragged. Ishant and Umesh, sharing the new ball, gave another demonstration of their skills, and it was simply too much for Bangladesh openers Shadman Islam and Imrul Kayes to handle.

Both Umesh and Ishant kept pitching the ball up, asking both the openers uncomfortable questions. The openers, however, showed decent application at the start but it was soon clear that the examination was too tough for them to handle. The set-up by both bowlers — get one to swing back in after moving a few away — really tormented Shadman and Kayes.

Kayes was the first to depart, a full and fast delivery getting an inside-edge onto the stumps. Shadman joined him in the dressing room in the very next over, a rare Ishant in-swinger for left-handers crashing the woodwork.

Shami then delivered a double blow to leave Bangladesh in tatters at lunch. He trapped skipper Mominul Haque and then forced Mohammed Mithun into a rash shot, to leave the visitors reeling at 44/4.

Indians then were in a hurry when Shami had Mahmudullah caught right after resumption, the pacer reaping the rewards for constantly pitching it up and probing the batsmen, many of whom didn’t have the patience nor the technique needed to counter it.

Kohli then introduced the spinners — Ashwin and Jadeja — at this stage, partly to give his pacers some rest to load up on ammunition and secondly, probably, to get the over-rate up. Ashwin responded with a superb exhibition of spin bowling, teasing and testing Mushfiqur Rahim and Liton Das — both fine players of spin in the Bangladesh side — with his natural variations and venomous drift.

Liton, like many wicketkeeper-batsmen in the world, counter-attacked Ashwin and Jadeja and luckily for him fortune kept favouring him. Experienced Mushfiqur, at the other end, banked on his defence and flashes of aggression as Bangladesh posted their best partnership of the match — 63 runs.

Liton’s attacking approach eventually brought his downfall, the diminutive right-hander offering a simple caught and bowled to Ashwin, the offie finally getting his reward for persistence.

The incoming Mehidy Hasan also followed Liton’s method as the Bangladesh forged another good partnership — 59 runs — to torment the Indians.

The hosts, though, never lost their cool and kept bowling those probing lines and lengths to keep going at Bangladesh. They knew the constant pressure will make them wilt and soon after tea, they did.

Umesh, all charged up following some refreshments, got one to shoot in sharply from a length, the ball ricocheting off Mehidy’s ribs and hands onto the stumps. The end was near, and Shami and Ashwin polished off the final three wickets in quick succession to put Bangladesh out of their misery.

The Indians, blazing away in the World Test Championship, will now shift their focus to the much-hyped pink-ball Test, starting Nov 22 in Kolkata, while Bangladesh will be hoping it’s not a massacre at the Eden Gardens.