<
>

Raina's escape, and Tendulkar keeps fans waiting

Sachin Tendulkar's wait for Test century No. 50 continued Associated Press

The giggle of the day
Suresh Raina was the runner for a limping MS Dhoni but nearly joined the wounded list himself. He had just completed a single when he realised, almost too late, that the throw was heading straight at his head. He swerved, looked at the approaching missile, swayed away and collapsed down to the ground. When he got up on his feet he was smiling.

The power-packed shot of the day
Andy McKay hurled one full and Dhoni thrust his front foot out and bludgeoned it to the straight boundary in his inimitable style. He then strolled across the pitch and sported a gentle smile at his partner Rahul Dravid.

The misery of the day
Every bowler is going after Raina's head these days. Either bounce him out, or push him back and get him with a fuller delivery. Today, too, Raina got hit on the body by short deliveries and was tested with full ones. He must have sighed in relief when Daniel Vettori brought himself on. Mistake. The first ball turned in and bounced, and Raina edged his defensive prod to short leg.

The anticlimax of the day

The very first delivery from McKay was an off cutter from short of a length that Sachin Tendulkar partly steered, partly edged past gully. The third delivery kicked up and left Tendulkar, who, after being opened up, stabbed it to the keeper. The 50th hundred that the fans have been waiting for since the start of the series couldn't come today.