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The MCG: Where fast bowlers come home to ©Getty Images

The pace and bounce at Melbourne is expected to be to the Australians’ liking, but India can take encouragement from the fact that this is the only venue in Australia where they have won two Tests – in 1977-78, and then again three years later. India have lost five times there, though, while the 1985-86 Test ended in a draw. Australia, meanwhile, have a 52-28 win-loss record here.

Both the Indian wins were achieved through exceptional bowling performances: in 1977-78, BS Chandrasekhar ripped through an Australian line-up weakened by the Kerry Packer exodus, claiming 6 for 52 in both innings as India romped to a 222-run win. Then, in 1980-81, Kapil Dev turned it on, taking 5 for 28 as Australia, chasing 143 for victory, were bundled out for 83. India let go of another chance to win when, requiring 126 in the fourth innings in the 1985-86 series, they crawled to 59 for 2 in 25 overs.

Australia’s five victories against India here have all been emphatic ones – two of them by an innings, three by margins greater than 175 runs and one by eight wickets.

Winning the toss would normally count as a blessing, but at the MCG, the captain losing the toss has a better chance of going on to win the match – that is exactly what has happened in six of the last nine Tests here.

Fast bowlers have had far greater success than spinners at Melbourne. In all Tests since 1995, fast bowlers have taken 198 wickets at 27.92, with a strike rate of 58.66; for the spinners the 58 wickets have come more expensive – 37.76 – and at a much slower rate (79.14).

Sachin Tendulkar has had a lean run in Australia so far, but the last time he played a Test at Melbourne, he was in sublime touch, scoring 116 and 52. As with so many of his overseas centuries, it didn’t help alter the result of the match, as Australia swept to a 180-run win.

Another player who would have fond memories of the MCG, and of playing against India on that ground, is Brett Lee. The last time the Indians played a Test there, Lee bounded in and blasted out five batsmen for a smashing debut performance, ensuring that Tendulkar’s sterling effort with the bat would go unrewarded.

India have some firepower in the bowling ranks themselves, and Zaheer Khan and co. could do worse than ask for tips from Bruce Reid, their bowling coach for this series. In Reid’s only match against India at Melbourne in 1991-92, he bagged a six-for in each innings, finishing with figures of 12 for 126 and the Man-of-the-Match award.

Kenyan coach Sandeep Patil admitted to being hurt by the manner in which hisside slumped to defeat in the second unofficial Test against Sri Lanka A inMatara, calling it the worst performance in his three-year tenure.He went on to complain that his players’ natural talent was being wastedbecause of their inability to play as a team.Speaking straight after the team had been defeated by an innings and 152 runsto lose the series with a Sri Lanka A side two-nil, Patil said: “Winning andlosing doesn’t matter, but the way we lost it does.”He added: “We have to start playing as a team. There’s no point in playersgetting hundreds if we cannot play as a team.””We have no excuses at all, the umpiring has been very good, the pitcheshave been absolutely brilliant, and the facilities tremendous.”I still don’t believe the kind of cricket we have played. This the worstperformance of the Kenyan team in the last three years I have beenassociated with them.””We’ve come here to educate ourselves, to learn and we have already wastedten days without learning.”His batsmen bore the brunt of his disappointment: “We have not beenselective enough in out shot making, playing too many shots. We have notbeen able to handle the pressure.”But Patil is also convinced that the team can perform much better.”I have seen these guys playing some brilliant cricket and I am confidentthey can do it,” he said.He now hopes they can salvage from the series in the final Test startingThursday at Dambulla.”Now it is up to us to wake up and pull our socks up and get back into theseries by playing some good cricket,” he said.”As long as we can learn from our mistakes and we take a step forwardtowards what we intend doing ultimately, then I’ll be happy. We can performto our ability in the next game.”Sri Lanka ‘A’ coach, Roshan Mahanama, was delighted with the performance ofhis players, whom he claimed had worked hard and to a plan.”I wanted them to get big scores and they have done so,” he said. “In thebowling, all the wickets have been shared. That’s a sign the team is playingas a unit and everyone is trying to do their best for the team. It hasworked out well for the boys and I am happy for them.”Commenting on Chandana’s contribution to the win, Mahanama said: “To be fairby Chandana, he has been labeled a one-day cricketer. He has played a lot ofone-day cricket and he hasn’t had the opportunity of playing the longerversion of the game. He’s clearly making good use of the opportunity givento him now.””I am sure the captaincy also would have given him that added confidence. Hehas done a fantastic job, not only with the bat and ball, but as captain aswell”.On Tillakaratne Dilshan’s century (164 not out), Mahanama said: “I was veryimpressed with him. He went through a lean period. He got two back-to-backhundreds against England but since then he has struggled a bit.”I wanted him to convert the fifties and sixties in club matches into bigscores and that’s exactly what he did. He batted for close to seven hoursand he showed his commitment.”

Indian opening batsman Shiv Sundar Das, who was chosen as the man ofthe match in the first Test between India and Zimbabwe at Bulawayo forhis two innings of 30 and 82 not out has dedicated the award to hisparents and coach. In an interview to a Kolkata newspaper, Das said,"I am a relative newcomer to the team. For me to have played a partin this historic win, is quite thrilling. I dedicate the MoM award tomy parents Uttam Das and Kanchanbala Das and to my coach KishoreMania."In the interview, Das also stated that at one point, he thought ofgoing for a hundred. "However, once Laxman got out, I decided to hangon till the end. Even Sachin Tendulkar told me to hang on till the winwas completed. After this, I decided not to get out," said Das.However, inspite of his two innings, Das is unhappy at the way hebatted. "Maybe I got the runs. However, I had a few close shaves.That is why, before the second Test begins, I will have a session withMr. Gavaskar. Since he is on this tour, I will discuss a couple ofproblems that I am having."

Newcastle United could make an opportunistic move for Arsenal’s Bernd Leno, Pete O’Rourke has told GiveMeSport.

The lowdown

The German started the season as Mikel Arteta’s number one, getting the nod for the Gunners’ first three Premier League matches of the campaign.

However, his only minutes since then have come in the cup competitions, with August signing Aaron Ramsdale establishing himself as first choice. In that time, the north Londoners have gone from bottom of the table to fourth, on course for a return to the Champions League from next term.

Arsenal have already signed a new goalkeeper in Matt Turner from MLS outfit New England Revolution ahead of the 2022/23 season, and he could potentially replace the 30-year-old as Ramsdale’s deputy. With less than 18 months now remaining on his contract, Leno is valued at £14.4m by Transfermarkt.

According to Fabrizio Romano, Newcastle were ‘interested’ in January but couldn’t reach an agreement, adding that the player is ‘gonna leave’ when the summer transfer window opens.

The latest

O’Rourke believes that Leno will be assessing potential routes out of the Emirates Stadium, which may duly alert Newcastle.

The journalist told GiveMeSport: “I think that at Arsenal he’s well down the pecking order behind Aaron Ramsdale, so I think Leno would be interested in a move away from the Emirates Stadium, so that might be something they look at.”

The verdict

Do Newcastle need an upgrade on Martin Dubravka? Perhaps not.

Data from FBRef shows that the Slovakian has the third-best shot-stopping record in the Premier League this season, ‘preventing’ 4.7 goals (only Manchester United’s David de Gea and Wolves’ Jose Sa have performed better in that regard).

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While Leno, who finished second in Arsenal’s player of the season vote in 2019/20, could be a strong signing, it perhaps isn’t a necessary one for the Magpies. Indeed, the German goalkeeper might be wary of moving to St James’ Park given the strength of competition that Dubravka would provide.

In other news, Newcastle are eyeing up a summer move for this Premier League midfielder

Netherlands have appointed Peter Drinnen as their coach, replacing Peter Cantrell, who stepped down following last year’s World Cup.Drinnen, the former Scotland coach who resigned in July, has signed a contract until April 2009 subject to meeting the requirements of Dutch immigration law.”This is an important step towards the professionalisation of the Dutch national side,” Marc Asselbergs, the KNCB chairman, told . “We won’t be letting a single day go unused on our way to the qualifying tournament in spring 2009.”Drinnen, whose time at Scotland ended in controversy, is looking forward to the new challenge. “I’m a positive man who is able to motivate himself and who is keen both to set goals and to achieve them,” he said. “There is an energy and optimism within the team and board about the future and I am excited to be joining the KNCB at this time.”As with most smaller nations the remit is broader than just the national team and I am certainly looking forward to working across all ages.”

Mark Shields: additional factors which had not been made public that backed up the case that Woolmer had been murdered © Getty Images

Mark Shields, Jamaica’s deputy commissioner of police, told the media on Thursday that Bob Woolmer could have been strangled with some sort of fabric – possibly a hotel towel – which would help explain why no marks were found on his neck.Speculation has intensified in the last few days over Woolmer’s death, with some beginning to question whether he was in fact murdered. The lack of marks of the neck has been put forward as one of the oddities in the case, but Shields reiterated that it was “categorically” a murder investigation.”If it’s some form of manual strangulation and there are no physical marks on the neck of the victim, therefore there may have been something between the hands of the assailant and the neck of the victim,” he said. “That is as far as I will go.”Shields also said that examination of the CCTV from the night of Woolmer’s death had now been analysed and that the police now had images of everyone who had been in the Pegasus Hotel’s 12th-floor corridor.However, he admitted that there was still uncertainty over the time Woolmer had been attacked. All that was known for sure was that he sent an email sometime between 8pm and 9pm, and that he had also ordered room service during that period. “Until I establish an exact time of death it is very difficult to tie down when we should be looking at the tape,” he added.Meanwhile, Dr Ere Seshaiah, the pathologist who carried out the autopsy on Woolmer’s body, spoke out after increasing speculation that his conclusions were open to doubt.”Questions are always there but I’m confident of my ability,” he said. “I worked on this post mortem for two hours. I did a complete post mortem and arrived at a cause of death. Then I prepared my report and handed it over to the top police command. I did the best of my abilities and so did my team. We did our best.”Shields earlier said that he had no reason to doubt Dr Seshiah’s findings and stressed that there were additional factors which had not been made public that backed up the case that Woolmer had been murdered.

Harbhajan Singh during practice on the eve of the match – but he is unlikely to play © AFP

Four relaxed days in the middle of a hectic tour would have come as a welcome relief for India but it may well be the calm before the final storm. The next four matches span just nine days and unless India sort out their bowling worries and level the series at Rawalpindi, the series may slip away in a trice.Say what you want about pitches, conditions, opposition batsmen and Duckworth-Lewis technicalities but India’s inability to defend a target of 329 at Peshawar was baffling. Irfan Pathan, Zaheer Khan and Ajit Agarkar have a combined aggregate of 304 ODIs between them (249 more than Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Mohammad Asif and Umar Gul) and talk of “inexperience” and “learning time” can only hold so much water.India bowled on similar pitches on their previous visit to Pakistan but posed a formidable threat because of Pathan’s superb swing, Lakshmipathy Balaji’s canny seam and Ashish Nehra’s nippy cut. They played on similar smaller grounds and were confronted with outfields just as fast. Most importantly they made an impact with the new ball, like Asif did at Peshawar, and pegged Pakistan back from the outset. The Rawalpindi pitch, according to Inzamam-ul-Haq, will probably be a sluggish one and India will have their work cut out in their bid to square the series.Mix and match
With Harbhajan Singh all but ruled out and Sreesanth just recovering from a bout of illness, India might well decide to play two spinners in the crucial tie. Ramesh Powar, who made his debut on this very ground two years ago, could find a place and his hitting ability could come in use late in the piece. “It looks a good batting wicket,” said Chappell, “and it looks drier than what the Peshawar pitch looked before the game. It may not spin that much and there may not be as much early help for the faster bowlers.”The Pathan factor
That Pathan’s bowling form has gradually dipped is there for all to see, but his value as a batsman cannot be underestimated. An average of 36.22 in his last 15 games, with some vital knocks at the top of the order, have played a big part in India’s recent successes and he’s shown an increased assurance while handling the new ball.”I see Pathan as an allrounder in the future,” said Greg Chappell at the pre-match press conference. “He’s batted at the top of the order and has been a good finisher as well. I wouldn’t say he will be a regular No.3 but we’ll use him there from time to time. He’s an impact player and we’ll decide where to use him with the balance of the team in mind.”The Sehwag conundrum
Two fifties in the last 19 ODIs at an average of 31.77 is totally untypical of Virender Sehwag. Like a switch that has turned on and off, Sehwag has slumped in one-dayers while scaling dizzying heights in Tests. Interestingly, in 13 off those 19 innings he has reached at least 20 and it may not be as big a problem as statistics suggest after all. Pushing him down the order is probably an option but India’s lack of options may require him to continue at the top and rediscover the old touch.The journey continues
Greg Chappell confirmed that the rotation policy would continue in India’s attempt to “manage their resources”. Playing Pakistan, according to him, provided India with a good opportunity to test themselves against a top side, probably the second or third best side in the world. “We think we compare favourably to Pakistan,” he said. “They’re a good batting side and have some exciting young fast bowlers. We’re looking at it as a journey and we get an opportunity to play some good sides throughout this year. We’ll get an idea of where we stand by the end of the year.”Team (likely) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Sachin Tendulkar, 3 Rahul Dravid (capt), 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Mohammad Kaif, 6 Irfan Pathan, 7 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 8 Ramesh Powar, 9 Murali Kartik, 10 Ajit Agarkar, 11 RP Singh.

Australia 432 and 135 for 1 (Langer 72*) beat
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Glenn McGrath traps Stephen Fleming in front as New Zealand crumble on the fourth day© Getty Images

Shane Warne led a sensational bowling performance that demolished New Zealand for a miserable 131 and Justin Langer and Ricky Ponting made sure there were no fourth-innings jitters as Australia took a 1-0 lead. After three days only 10 runs split the teams in a gripping, swinging opening to the three matches, but Australia quickly swung the momentum and recorded a demoralising nine-wicket win.New Zealand also troubled Australia at Brisbane in November before crashing disastrously and their horrible third-innings blues were again on show. The Australia fast bowlers roared back to life as their opponents gave up the advantage won over the first seven sessions and lost with a day to spare. The recovery from this disaster will take longer than the four days before the second Test starting at Wellington on Friday.Warne continued the momentum surge provided by Adam Gilchrist and Simon Katich on Saturday by taking five wickets to move past 1000 first-class victims. Australia’s at-the-stumps attack collected a world-record equalling seven lbw decisions and the four bowlers hunted together as they finally exerted their influence over a side that caused them serious danger in a first-innings 433.Varying his bowling over and around the wicket, Warne took 5 for 39 from 14 overs that hypnotised the shot-scared batsmen. Hamish Marshall was the most composed following his first-innings 146, but he was again outclassed as he tried to pad the ball away. Bowled through his legs in the first innings, he was cleaned up around them today and became Warne’s No. 1000. Australia’s last man to reach the mark was Graham McKenzie.The worst dismissal came from Craig McMillan, whose feet were so unsure where to move his shoelaces must have been tangled. Warne needed one over to turn him into a defensive knot as he let two full tosses outside leg stump hit his foot on the full, and then popped a defensive prod to Simon Katich at short-leg. Three lbw decisions – Daniel Vettori’s was slightly doubtful – completed his 29th Test five-wicket haul and highlighted a disturbing batting trend.While Australia’s trouble traditionally comes from chasing small fourth-innings totals – they had no none today – New Zealand’s difficulty since December 2003 has been batting in the third. Failure to set a significant target hampered their chances of victory with 76 at Brisbane, when they lost by an innings and 156 runs, and 161 and 218 as England beat them in the second and third Tests last winter. In two matches against Pakistan in 2003-04 they registered 96 for 8 and 103 in the 1-0 series loss. The disease struck violently when a total of 250 on a spinning pitch could have been a match-winner.”The batsmen let us down,” Fleming said. “It was a bad batting performance and the top order needed to come through. There were stops and starts, but nothing of substance. We’ve succumbed again on the fourth day of a Test.”Australia’s one chasing wobble came when Vettori removed Matthew Hayden with the last ball before tea and they went to the break at 25 for 1. Langer drove powerfully on his way to a half-century and with Ponting’s 47 ensured a smooth and hasty passage to safety. It was a satisfying end to a day belonging to the bowlers. “It’s a very big win that, after day one and early day two, to fight back and win so comprehensively,” Ponting said. “Shane and the rest of the bowlers bowled beautifully.”Jason Gillespie, who was ineffective on days one and two, was snubbed for the opening overs in favour of Michael Kasprowicz, but when he got the ball his menace returned and two wickets dropped the home side to 34 for 3. The first victim was Craig Cumming and it brought huge cheers from the Australia huddle as his teammates understood the bursting pressure from the 12th man Brett Lee.Increasing his pace to the 140kph range, Gillespie’s inswing forced both Cumming and Lou Vincent to play the wrong line. He returned after lunch to win a slightly doubtful decision to a similar ball to Brendon McCullum, and the lift in energy arrived in time to save his spot for the next Test.Stephen Fleming was lucky not to fall lbw to the first ball of the day from Glenn McGrath, who won his third lbw shout when Fleming squeezed across the crease and left without the big innings he and his team so desperately required. Another game had slipped from his secure grasp after two brilliant rearguard hundreds and more bamboozling from Warne on his way to another envious record.How they were out
New Zealand Fleming lbw b McGrath 17 (20 for 1)
Fell across his stumps trying to flick an outswinger that hit in line with leg stump and was moving slightly down legside. Cumming lbw b Gillespie 7 (30 for 2)
Stepped forward and played straight to a ball that angled in and was going to hit. Vincent lbw b Gillespie 4 (34 for 3)
Attempted to defend and was caught in front a long way forward to a late inswinger heading for middle.Astle b Kasprowicz 21 (71 for 4)
Off-cutter forced an inside edge from Astle, who was trying to leave, and the ball knocked over leg stump.McMillan c Katich b Warne 5 (78 for 5)
Confused over his defensive method, McMillan blocked from outside his stumps to short-leg.Marshall b Warne 22 (87 for 6)
Wanted to pad up to Warne bowling around the wicket and outside leg stump, but his bent leg didn’t straighten in time.McCullum lbw Gillespie 24 (121 for 7)
Another tricky inswinger that thudded into the pad, but was sneaking down the legside.Vettori lbw Warne 23 (127 for 8)
Sweeping Warne as he bowled over the wicket, he became the fifth lbw of the innings when the legspinner pitched on off stump and turned.O’Brien lbw Warne 0 (131 for 9)
Went half-forward to a straightening delivery.Martin lbw Warne 0 (131)
Full ball drifting in slightly hit Martin on the front foot.AustraliaHayden c Cumming b Vettori 15 (25 for 1)
Forced back to a high bouncing ball that brushed his glove and ballooned to short-leg.

As the West Indies squad assembled in Antigua to begin their five-day preparation before starting series in Zimbabwe and South Africa, Brian Lara spoke to the media about the need for his side to end their recent poor overseas record.”We have to go down there and make sure we take command of a very tough tour,” explained Lara. “They are good teams. We know that they are playing at home and we are playing away. We have got to muster up everything collective to ensure we do well in South Africa.”We have been at the bottom for some time. They [the side] tasted success against Australia and Sri Lanka; the feeling of been successful; of creating history that they seem to want to cling onto.”Lara said that while West Indies’ batting had been good, the side’s weakness had been the inability to bowl opponents out twice. “It is something we will have to address. It is all well and good to score 500-600 runs but if you can’t get the opposition out you are not going to win any Test match.”Although the selectors have chosen a battery of fast bowlers for the trip, Lara dismissed suggestions that they were trying to recapture the approach which served West Indies so well in the late 1970s and 1980s. “I’m not going to say that we are leaning towards four fast bowlers in a Test match but definitely we are going to give the guys who we think are possible stars that opportunity,” he said. “We have been known for four fast bowlers and we are going to exploit that. It would be great to have a good spinner … but unless that comes about you best stick with what you know.”Lara hinted that promising youngsters would be given every chance to prove themselves. “I think the opportunity is there for anyone who really wants to represent West Indies cricket and anyone who shows that they have the character to do so.”

Skipper Carl Hooper’s masterful unbeaten 112 helped the West Indies put a daunting 260 on the board, and the Caribbean attack put enough pressure on Pakistan to rustle up a win by a whopping 110 runs. The victory didn’t alter the result of the three-match series, but salvaged some much battered pride for the West Indies.Predictably, Hooper walked away with the man-of-the-match award, as Abdul Razzaq bagged the man-of-the-series honours.After the West Indies had collapsed again and again in Sharjah, this time it was Pakistan’s turn. They lost their first three batsmen for only 18 in the fourth over and last four for 23 to manage a most disappointing 150. On a good batting wicket, this was a display unworthy of a team which had won nine one-dayers and six Tests on the trot.True, the target was stiff and Pakistan are not known to be good chasers. But it was the same attack they had mastered so thoroughly in the previous games. The only explanation for this shoddy show is that maybe the Pakistanis thought that the match was only of academic importance.With four Pakistan wickets down by the 11th over, it seemed to be all over bar the shouting. After the West Indian seamers had undone the upper order, Hooper and Gayle mopped up the rest with their off-spin, never allowing any resistance to take root. With no partnerships going, wickets falling at regular intervals and the asking rate climbing up with each passing over, the writing was on the wall.Gayle’s part-time off-spin was good enough to account for Inzamam-ul-Haq (who in contrast to the previous match when he opened the innings, came in at seven), Rashid Latif, Waqar Younis and to end the innings, clean bowling Shoaib Akhtar for a creditable haul of four for 19.Chasing a big target, Pakistan needed a quick and solid start. The man who could get them off to a flyer was Shahid Afridi. He clubbed Pedro Collins for a four at mid-wicket, but then perished trying to turn one to square leg uppishly, straight to Morton. Latif and Younis departed shortly afterwards. Youhana was the main hope, but when he too played a casual stroke, Dillon grabbing the caught and bowled chance, at four for 51 Pakistan could not have hoped to outscore the Windies.Razzaq tried to play himself in with Shoaib Malik, but when they were sent back, bowled by Hooper and run out respectively, Pakistan had lost the match. Only the last rites remained to be completed.Earlier, Carl Hooper (112, 127 deliveries, 8 fours and four sixes) played a great skipper’s knock. With Ganga, Gayle, Morton and Hinds gone for only 61 by the 14th over, yet another defeat stared him in the face. But Hooper and Shivnarine Chanderpaul had different ideas. By the time the stand for the fifth wicket was finally broken in the 45th over, these two had put together a West Indian record 154 runs in one-day internationals. The previous best for this wicket was 152 between Viv Richards and Clive Lloyd against Sri Lanka at Brisbane in 1982.More importantly this was the first time in this series that the West Indies managed to put more than 200 on the board. After a slow start, both Hooper and Chanderpaul started calling the shots, and devoid of Wasim Akram and Saqlain Mushtaq, who between them have nearly 700 one-day wickets, the Pakistan attack wilted under their clinical assault. They mixed caution with courage and mastery; the first 50 of the stand came off 90 deliveries while the next 104 consumed only 95. The last 13 overs produced 113 runs, as the Pakistani bowlers were hit around the park.Hooper and Chanderpaul both started slowly, milking the bowling for ones and twos until they were set. The Pakistanis had brought the run rate under four by the 23rd over, when Waqar for whatever reason brought the untested Naveed Latif to bowl military medium. Chanderpaul and Hooper took a boundary apiece, the former an imperious drive to long-on fence and the latter an edge to fine third man; 13 off an over. Sami and Afridi put the brakes on, but by then Hooper was really well set, and he stepped out to put Shoaib Malik beyond the long-on fence for a six to notch his 50 (5 fours, 1 six).Chanderpaul clubbed Afridi for a six over mid-wicket and then drove him for four to mid-wicket. As if trying to match him stroke for stroke, Hooper hoiked Mohammad Sami over long-off six and then square-drove him for four.As the two put their feet on the pedal, the figures of Pakistani bowlers took a beating. Sami had been miserly in his first spell, earning him a wicket for 18 runs off the first six overs. His other three went for 36. Chanderpaul (67, 93 balls, 4 fours, 2 sixes) ultimately fell to Razzaq, caught at the wicket. Looking for quick runs, Hooper cover-drove Waqar for six while Ridley Jacobs was promoted in the order. The two were unbeaten at the end as the last five overs yielded 40 runs.260 for five was a great deal more than what Hooper would have expected after his top order was gone for 61 after he had won the toss. Ganga was again gone in the first over, edging a Waqar away-swinger into Rashid Latif’s safe hands for a second successive blob. Inzamam at first slip failed to hold onto a Gayle edge off Shoaib Akhtar. To add insult to injury, Gayle unleashed two fours, pulling him straight back and to the mid-wicket fence.Shoaib once again induced the edge from Gayle in his next over, and this time it was Younis at first slip who pouched it with a sigh of relief. Waqar removed Runako Morton with a delivery that moved back sharply. Hinds and Hooper hung in there for a while but an innocuous looking Sami delivery was guided by Hinds to Younis at first slip for the second catch of the day.That brought Hooper and Chanderpaul together, and the two between them did a remarkable job to put Pakistan firmly on the back foot. The Pakistanis did not recover from the onslaught.