India v Pakistan 1979-80

At Bangalore, November 21, 22, 24, 25, 26. Drawn. Although the ball turned from as early as the first day, both sides topped 400 in the first innings. Pakistan's 431 for nine declared reflected the depth of their batting, with Mudassar Nazar taking more than seven hours to score 126, made off 337 balls. The Indians paid dearly for letting him off with their only lapse during almost ten hours in the field. Mudassar, flicking Kapil Dev off his legs, was dropped when only 17 and the total 62 for one.

Good bowling by Doshi limited Pakistan to 256 for four on the first day, and it was already apparent that India should have played a third spinner, as indeed Pakistan did. Moreover, they might have contained Pakistan more effectively had Gavaskar not delayed the use of spin until the seventeenth over, for the damp pitch held potential for the spinners. Doshi struck in only his second over, dismissing Zaheer Abbas, the scourge of the Indian bowling in the previous series.

India, in an hour's batting at the end of the second day, soon lost Chauhan, and the next day they were in some peril when Gavaskar, after a slow, sturdy 88 in four hours twenty minutes, between Viswanath, batting with authority and flair, and Yashpal Sharma. Viswanath's was the one wicket to fall on the fourth day, when play was limited by poor weather to only forty-two minutes, and India continued on into the last day. Although the last four wickets went down for just 6 runs, India finished only 15 runs behind Pakistan. Binny, making his Test debut, scored 46 and atoned for some very loose bowling earlier in the match.

Although the pitch was slow, Imran Khan was Pakistan's most incisive bowler, despite the lack of adequate support with the new ball. In the prevailing conditions, Ehtesham-ud Din did not look the part of an opening Test bowler. With the pitch turning, it was surprising that Iqbal Qasim went without a wicket, but Majid Khan's off-breaks proved useful in dealing with the lower order.

Pakistan, starting their second innings midway between lunch and tea, lost both openers at 41 and then had to bat with care to avoid further problems against the spin of Doshi and Yadav.