The second Test: The epic at Eden Gardens
Trending
In what could possibly be called one of the greatest Tests of the millennium, Australia continued their momentum, posting 445 in the first innings thanks to Steve Waugh’s 110. Harbhajan Singh announced himself with seven wickets, but the Indian batsman floundered and were bundled out for just 171.
They were asked to follow on by Steve Waugh, which would turn out to be one of the biggest blunders of his career.
Trailing by 274, India started steadily, reaching 232 for 4, with Australia looking to wrap things up as quickly as possible. VVS Laxman, whose impressive 59 in the first innings led Ganguly and John Wright to promote him to No. 3 at Dravid’s expense, added 117 with Ganguly for the fourth wicket.
Then came one of the partnerships of the century – 376 of the most sublime runs ever scored under pressure – as Dravid and Laxman played out an entire day without losing their wickets. Laxman scored 281, then India’s highest individual score in Tests, while Dravid scored 180.
India declared on 657 setting Australia a target of 384, a number many felt was too big. Ganguly, many thought, lost a golden opportunity to win the match by declaring late, needlessly hanging on with batting on the fifth day morning.
Ganguly’s perspective was not to lose the match at any cost. Eventually, Australia, who started very steadily at 74 for 1 in 23 overs collapsed and were 212 all out in 68.3 overs. Harbhajan picked six wickets and Sachin Tendulkar picked three prized scalps at the right moment when India were battling against time.
India won by 171 runs and Eden Gardens, Kolkata, will remain in Indian cricket history as the most hallowed ground of all time.
Follow IPL Auction 2025 Live Updates, News & Biddings at Sportskeeda. Get the fastest updates on Mega-Auction and cricket news
