Tendulkar could open bowling

2004-11-02 10:48

Mumbai - India will consider playing three spinners and ask star batsman Sachin Tendulkar to open the bowling as they attempt a face-saving victory over Australia in the fourth and final Test here from Wednesday.

With the series already lost, the Indians are determined to avoid a 0-3 drubbing by playing bold cricket on a Wankhede stadium wicket expected to provide turn and bounce to the bowlers.

Coach John Wright said playing three spinners - Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh and Murali Kartik - was an option, but stressed the final composition will not be decided till just before the toss.

Asked who will share the new ball with Zaheer Khan in case three spinners were included, Wright deadpanned: "Sachin. He is bowling quick at the nets."

Tendulkar, struggling to regain top batting form following a tennis elbow injury, has claimed 35 Test wickets in 115 matches, most of them bowling leg-spin.

India have not lost three Tests in a home series since 1983 when Clive Lloyd's world-beating West Indies avenged the stunning defeat in the World Cup final in England a few months earlier.

Australia, who clinched their first series win on Indian soil since 1969 after winning the third Test at Nagpur for a decisive 2-0 lead, were boosted by the return of captain Ricky Ponting for the final match.

Ponting missed the first three Tests due to a broken thumb suffered during the Champions Trophy in England in September, and now takes over the captaincy from Adam Gilchrist and the number three slot from Simon Katich.

Katich, one of Australia's batting successes on the tour, will slide down to number five or six in place of Darren Lehmann, who was ruled out of the match with a hamstring injury.

India, meanwhile, are certain to blood rookie opener Gautam Gambhir and 19-year-old wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik as they look ahead to the two-Test home series against South Africa later this month.

Rahul Dravid will lead the home team for the fourth time in seven Tests this year after captain Sourav Ganguly was ruled out for a second match in a row with a groin injury.

"We have a lot to play for in this game," said Dravid. "A victory here will do the team a lot of good for the season ahead."

India surrendered the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after losing the first Test in Bangalore by 217 runs and the third in Nagpur by a whopping 342 runs, their biggest defeat in terms of runs.

- AFP