Lakers' Phil Jackson isn't committing to set lineup Coach says, 'It's who finishes games that's important.' By Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer October 19, 2008 It was the fourth exhibition game for the Lakers, another chance to make strides as they prepare for the regular-season opener Oct. 28 at home against the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Lakers played Regal FC Barcelona on Saturday night in the "shootout" at Staples Center and Coach Phil Jackson had a few things he wanted his team to accomplish. watch live match here
Mishra's five helps India dominate Amit Mishra had to wait six years for his second call-up to the Test squad but the timing was nothing short of perfect and his performance the definition of heart. Handed a Test debut after Anil Kumble was ruled out by injury, Mishra, the 25-year-old legspinner from Haryana, picked up five wickets and spun Australia out for 268 to give India a 201-run lead. Shane Watson batted superbly for a career-best 78, the highest score in a disappointing Australian innings, but couldn't take his team past the follow-on mark. India chose not to enforce it, however, and their openers rattled off 100 in 23 overs, extending the lead to 301.
If India go on to win this Test their think-tank should pat itself on the back because the decision to play Mishra, plucked out of relative obscurity, paid off spectacularly. India bowled with determination and resolve through the day but Mishra was the pick of the lot. Short and stocky with an easy action, he bowled the ball slow and that earned him the massive wickets of Simon Katich and Michael Clarke yesterday. The remaining three came either side of a 73-run partnership for the eighth wicket between Watson and Brett Lee, and proved crucial in strengthening India's position.
India gained the early advantage by removing Michael Hussey in the first session, but Watson and Brad Haddin looked to be settling in when the persevering Harbhajan Singh struck. He bowled Haddin with an offbreak that went through the bat-pad gap before Mishra doubled India's joy by sneaking a googly through Cameron White.
India were made to toil for over two hours during the one period Australia can claim to have dominated. Watson played a positive innings and remained in control throughout, timing the ball superbly through the off side. He leant into his drives and caressed the ball- six of his fours came on the off side.
Watson batted with composure despite the ball turning enough to beat the bat or strike the pad. He walked in after lunch on 39 with the responsibility of lifting Australia from 174 for 7, and was fortunate to be given not out by Rudi Koerzten, when the first ball of Ishant's post-lunch spell swung in and struck him plumb in front. With a couple to long-leg in the same over, Watson equaled his highest Test score of 41, and bettered it with a pull for six when Mishra dropped short. His fifty came with a cut behind point for four and the Australian dressing room voiced its appreciation.
Watson and Lee batted out the first hour after lunch, scoring 47 runs, and were nine minutes away from tea when Harbhajan was rewarded for tight bowling when Lee pushed hard and edged low to Rahul Dravid at slip.
Mishra was immediately called back into the attack, and he ended Watson's resistance on 78, trapping him on the back foot with a slider. Soon after, the flight did it for Peter Siddle, who failed to get his back foot down before Dhoni completed a smart stumping. Mishra's 5 for 71 was the best return for an Indian bowler on debut since Narendra Hirwani's 8 for 61 against West Indies in 1988. Fittingly, the camera panned to a beaming Hirwani, now a selector, in the pavilion. Plenty had been written about India's persistence with two spinners, and Mishra stepped up commendably. He didn't get a lot of turn, but got enough, and his fearlessness to toss the ball up was refreshing.
Expectedly, Mahendra Singh Dhoni did not enforce the follow-on. Australia needed wickets but Ricky Ponting spread the field and started with one slip. Gautam Gambhir survived a vociferous leg-before shout off the first ball from Lee and opened up with a pleasing square drive. Virender Sehwag batted aggressively and received support from Gambhir who played a couple of superb drives either side of the pitch. India's 50 was up in 12 overs and, soon after, Siddle pitched the ball up and Sehwag slammed him over extra-cover. Sehwag's fifty took 68 balls and he promised much more on day four.
The day began with Australia in difficulty at 102 for 4 and ended with them facing the prospect of chasing a gigantic target.
Australia's bowlers corrected the mistakes that added to their suffering during the morning session and were able to restrict the run-rate and take crucial wickets to reduce India's advantage in Mohali. They had conceded 104 runs during the first session but pulled India back by dismissing two set batsmen, Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid, and VVS Laxman during the second, which cost only 70 runs.
Mitchell Johnson, Australia's best bowler in Bangalore, was largely responsible for the fightback. He ended Virender Sehwag's charge in the morning, caught down the leg side, and dismissed Laxman in a similar manner after lunch. In between those wickets he contained Dravid by bowling full and wide with seven fielders on the off side, and forced an edge from Gambhir as he tried to drive another full delivery through cover. Australia had picked up three wickets for 17 runs and regained ground lost earlier in the day when Gambhir and Sehwag raced away at nearly six an over.
The frequent showers in the days before the Test had caused concerns about the pitch at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium. The curator Daljit Singh feared it would be sluggish; however it was anything but. Unlike the surface in Bangalore, the bounce was true, there was hardly any swing or movement off the pitch, and the ball came on to the bat, and sped off it. The pitch allowed the batsmen to drive on the up, or hit through the line, and Sehwag and Gambhir took advantage of it.
They were aided by a supply of loose deliveries. Brett Lee began by spraying one for five wides outside off stump in his first over and he, and the debutant Peter Siddle, bowled several that were too full, wide and sometimes too straight.
Gambhir experienced an unsettling moment when Siddle's first ball in international cricket struck him on the back of the helmet. He recovered and, moving his feet smoothly, drove Siddle through cover, a stroke that would become a feature of his innings.
Sehwag had an edgy start to his innings: he slashed Lee in the air past gully and was beaten by one from Siddle which seamed away from him. However, he ensured the run-rate stayed around six an over by piercing the infield frequently. He punished Siddle when the line was too straight, nudging him down to fine leg, and flicking to the square-leg boundary twice in succession.
The batsmen hit 10 boundaries in the first hour and raced to 63 in 13 overs. Ponting employed a man on the sweeper boundary and also brought in a conventional square leg. The cordon, which had three slips at the start, now had only one.
Having tried all his fast bowlers, Ricky Ponting gave the final over of the session to the left-arm spinner Michael Clarke. Gambhir took the opportunity to reach his half-century before lunch by stepping out to loft Clarke twice in a row over mid-on.
The Australians came out after the break with different lines of attack. Watson and Siddle restricted Gambhir's scoring by aiming short balls at his ribs. Their strategy to Dravid, however, did not work for they angled deliveries into him and often drifted on to the pads. Dravid thrived against this line: he glanced one delivery towards the fine-leg boundary, and flicked three between square leg and mid-on, in the space of eight balls.
Ponting eventually brought Johnson and Lee back and their restrictive lines were successful in slowing down the innings. Johnson slanted deliveries full and wide outside off stump and asked the batsmen to drive through a string field. Dravid chased one and was beaten after which he let several go. He had moved from 11 to 33 in 21 balls but scored only six off the next 20 before playing on while trying to force Lee through the off side.
India had two new batsmen at the crease a short while before tea and had to begin from scratch. They went into the break with Sachin Tendulkar two runs short of becoming the leading run-scorer in Test cricket but their strong start to the game had been weakened. Click here to watch live match
Australia's bowlers corrected the mistakes that added to their suffering during the morning session and were able to restrict the run-rate and take crucial wickets to reduce India's advantage in Mohali. They had conceded 104 runs during the first session but pulled India back by dismissing two set batsmen, Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid, and VVS Laxman during the second, which cost only 70 runs.
Mitchell Johnson, Australia's best bowler in Bangalore, was largely responsible for the fightback. He ended Virender Sehwag's charge in the morning, caught down the leg side, and dismissed Laxman in a similar manner after lunch. In between those wickets he contained Dravid by bowling full and wide with seven fielders on the off side, and forced an edge from Gambhir as he tried to drive another full delivery through cover. Australia had picked up three wickets for 17 runs and regained ground lost earlier in the day when Gambhir and Sehwag raced away at nearly six an over.
The frequent showers in the days before the Test had caused concerns about the pitch at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium. The curator Daljit Singh feared it would be sluggish; however it was anything but. Unlike the surface in Bangalore, the bounce was true, there was hardly any swing or movement off the pitch, and the ball came on to the bat, and sped off it. The pitch allowed the batsmen to drive on the up, or hit through the line, and Sehwag and Gambhir took advantage of it.
They were aided by a supply of loose deliveries. Brett Lee began by spraying one for five wides outside off stump in his first over and he, and the debutant Peter Siddle, bowled several that were too full, wide and sometimes too straight.
Gambhir experienced an unsettling moment when Siddle's first ball in international cricket struck him on the back of the helmet. He recovered and, moving his feet smoothly, drove Siddle through cover, a stroke that would become a feature of his innings.
Sehwag had an edgy start to his innings: he slashed Lee in the air past gully and was beaten by one from Siddle which seamed away from him. However, he ensured the run-rate stayed around six an over by piercing the infield frequently. He punished Siddle when the line was too straight, nudging him down to fine leg, and flicking to the square-leg boundary twice in succession.
The batsmen hit 10 boundaries in the first hour and raced to 63 in 13 overs. Ponting employed a man on the sweeper boundary and also brought in a conventional square leg. The cordon, which had three slips at the start, now had only one.
Having tried all his fast bowlers, Ricky Ponting gave the final over of the session to the left-arm spinner Michael Clarke. Gambhir took the opportunity to reach his half-century before lunch by stepping out to loft Clarke twice in a row over mid-on.
The Australians came out after the break with different lines of attack. Watson and Siddle restricted Gambhir's scoring by aiming short balls at his ribs. Their strategy to Dravid, however, did not work for they angled deliveries into him and often drifted on to the pads. Dravid thrived against this line: he glanced one delivery towards the fine-leg boundary, and flicked three between square leg and mid-on, in the space of eight balls.
Ponting eventually brought Johnson and Lee back and their restrictive lines were successful in slowing down the innings. Johnson slanted deliveries full and wide outside off stump and asked the batsmen to drive through a string field. Dravid chased one and was beaten after which he let several go. He had moved from 11 to 33 in 21 balls but scored only six off the next 20 before playing on while trying to force Lee through the off side.
India had two new batsmen at the crease a short while before tea and had to begin from scratch. They went into the break with Sachin Tendulkar two runs short of becoming the leading run-scorer in Test cricket but their strong start to the game had been weakened. Click here to watch live match
