For the first time the team chose exactly my eleven! I support the decision to go in with five bowlers but the way they bowled, we will need 11 to get Pakistan out on this pitch!

Inzamam won the toss and chose to bat. Pakistan ended the day on 379 /4 off 90 overs with Inzamam on 79 (122 balls) and Afridi on 85 (84 balls).

Irfan and R P Singh opened the bowling. Irfan’s bowling has been pathetic this series and after today he should be third choice seamer. I have said repeatedly that he now bowls at a very friendly 74 - 75 miles an hour which is cannon fodder when there is little movement. To make matters worse he keeps bowling short and wide outside off. He does not seem to have learnt any lessons from the caning he got at Lahore. I would play him only in distinctly helpful conditions. His 11 overs cost 70 and he never looked like taking a wicket.

Rudra Pratap was the pick of the bowlers. He took some time to get his line right and troubled the batsmen all day ( 17-1-77-3). He got bounce off the pitch and moved the ball more than Irfan and Zaheer. He did drift on to the pads occasionally and will need more control over his line. His delivery that leaves the right hander is bowled too wide and needs to be pitched closer to the batsman.

Zaheer bowled at the right length and stuck to a good line after struggling for his first two overs. He was, however, the culprit of the day. At 77/2 Mohd. Yusuf drove one to Sachin at mid on and refused a single, leaving Younis Khan stranded mid pitch. Younis had given up but Zaheer, who had finished his follow through, just stood with his hands on his hips, watching Sachin. As a result, Sachin had to hit the stumps and missed by a whisker. Zaheer was a lot closer to the crease than Younis and should have run back to take the throw and run him out easily.

His inaction is indefensible and belies a lack of intelligence and presence of mind, with a good dash of plain laziness. Such ineptitude is not expected from a professional cricketer. It was a costly mistake as Younis was out to a blinder of a catch by Yuvraj at point at 216 (83 off 131 balls). 77 for 3 would have brought Inzamam to the crease when there was some juice in the pitch and would have changed the course of the Pakistan innings.

Harbhajan bowled well, extracting turn from the outset, but the slowness of the pitch and his lack of variation denied him wickets ( 21-1-75-0). Kumble was poor and I fear he may not last very long. He bowls well only on helpful tracks and India should speed up the grooming of Piyush Chawla and other promising young spinners as we will need them quicker than we think. Instead of catching, he took evasive action to a fierce cut at point in the opening overs.

The Indian cricket team made a bold move by selecting five specialist bowlers, only for the bowlers to give it away by insipid bowling. Had it not been for another great catch by Dhoni to dismiss Mohd. Yusuf, things would have been worse. Dravid took a great catch too, to dismiss Shoaib Malik who did his best submarine impression, leaving his bat high up like a periscope while ducking to Rudra Pratap (19 off 33 balls - 49/1). Salman was taken by Dhoni off Zaheer for 37 off 57 (65/2).

Once again, the Indian batsmen will have to bail the bowlers out if they are to have any chance of saving this match. And Irfan, please stop bowling your version of a bouncer - it is a long hop and even I would hit it for a six. Our endless search for a world class fast bowler will have to continue, I am afraid.