Entertaining final day in store

An entertaining final day is in store at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday, with New South Wales needing 222 to defeat the touring Indians with nine wickets in hand.

Saurav Ganguly and Ajit Agarkar were the stars of the third day Saturday as India made 331 in their second innings, a vast improvement on their uninspiring first innings total of 185 on Thursday.

Given the challenging target of 286 to win from 109 overs, the Blues were 64 for one at stumps.

Beginning the third day on 110 for two in their second innings in cooler conditions than had been experienced in the past two days, India lost three wickets in the morning session.

Sadagopan Ramesh added just four runs to his overnight score, a pull shot backward of square to Don Nash. He fell on 74 when Brett Lee, bowling around the wicket to the left-hander into a stiff southerly, found the edge as Ramesh attempted an off drive, Brad Haddin taking the catch behind the wicket.

Kanitkar (13) fell to Nash, who had the wind at his back. Not offering a shot, Kanitkar was rapped on the pads and appeared plumb lbw. India were now 124 for four, a lead of 78.

Ganguly displayed more of the confidence that was on show in the first innings, however the same could not be said of Rahul Dravid. The batsman who this year has taken part in the two biggest partnerships in one-day history defended and prodded for 73 minutes in scoring seven runs, four of those coming from a cut shot played through the slips of Shane Lee.

Dravid eventually fell victim to a well-flighted Stuart MacGill leg break which took a leading edge and gave the bowler a return catch. Dravid was at the crease for three hours and three minutes in this match in scoring 28 runs.

With Ganguly launching a magnificent cover drive for four off MacGill to bring up the lunch break, the score at the interval was 178 for five. He continued the brisk scoring after lunch, the Bengal left-hander bringing up his half-century with a superbly struck four over midwicket from the bowling of MacGill. Ganguly's fifty came up in 75 deliveries. Bharadwaj (10) fell later in the same over, not picking the turn and getting an edge which deflected of Haddin's gloves to Shane Lee at first slip.

Ganguly became the highest scorer of the match when he got a thick edge through the slips off Brett Lee to reach 77 and pass Ramesh's score. After another boundary in the speedster's next over, Ganguly fell in the first over of Don Nash's new spell with the new ball. Edging the ball to the keeper, Ganguly faced 122 balls in scoring 81 and hit eight boundaries.

For the first time in this match, India scored more than a hundred runs in a session as they carried the score to 279 for seven at the tea interval.

The Indian tail, dominated by Ajit Agarkar, carried on at the crease for an hour after tea, the second innings ending with the score on 331, leaving New South Wales 286 for victory.

Agarkar (65*) played some fine shots as the total pushed on past the 300 mark, a figure that seemed unlikely considering the way the pitch was playing on the first day. His 120-ball innings included ten boundaries.

Kumble (12) flicked a Brett Lee ball off the hips, but it was too fine and went to the waiting hands of Brad Haddin for his third catch of the innings. Srinath (7) was bowled by a MacGill wrong-un, while it was a similar delivery that removed Prasad (9).

Brett Lee (4/77) and Stuart MacGill (4/84) were the pick of the Blues bowlers. Don Nash (2/67) did well, but Shane Lee (0/58) was unthreatening and overbowled. Gavin Robertson inexplicably was given only six overs to bowl in the entire innings.

With 19 overs to face on Saturday evening, NSW started the chase confidently. Greg Hayne, who broke the record for most runs in a Sydney first grade season last year, took two fours and a two ff Ajit Agarkar's first three balls when he replaced Prasad at the southern end, and was proceeding at a pace close to a run a ball.

Greg Mail played a surfacemail-like innings to Greg Hayne's airmail-express, and after scoring 15 from 54 deliveries he played back to a shorter ball which popped up off the gloves to Rahul Dravid behind the crease - perhaps the most positive thing Dravid has done so far in this game.

Gavin Robertson came to the crease and faced some torrid appeals for lbw off the bowling of Anil Kumble, at least one of which looked well worth a shout. Kumble's next over, the last of the day, was the most sensational episode of the match.

The first ball of the over saw Hayne survive a confident appeal for a catch at bat-pad by Laxman. Umpire Simon Taufel gave it not out, but TV replays seemed to show Hayne getting an edge. Hayne scored a single from the second ball, then the third ball went for four byes. A quick single off the fourth ball saw Hayne almost run out, the ball missing the stumps and the fielders to go for four overthrows - a total of five runs. Hayne was beaten by Kumble on the fifth ball and then survived a vociferous appeal for caught behind on the last ball of the day, play ending after 6.30pm.

A match that had the words "lacklustre" written all over them on Thursday looks very open going into Sunday. India have the edge but NSW are still capable of a win.