Pakistan bid for unlikely series draw

Pakistan's batsmen dug deep to save themselves from defeat in the second Test against India but they still face an uphill battle if they are to stop India from clinching the series win as the two sides head to Bangalore for the third and final Test, starting on Saturday.

Having won the first Test, India dominated the second but couldn't finish the job, leaving them with a job still to do in Bangalore, where they have not had the greatest of success.

Bet365 make India 5/4 (2.25) to win the match and take the series 2-0, while it's 6/5 (2.20) the draw and 4/1 that Pakistan win it to seal a 1-1 series draw.

The question for India is, how to play it. Conservative by nature, they will surely not take many risks and the draw has to be a more than likely result. In fact, a repeat of events from the second Test would probably suit them down to the ground.

Their batsmen look to be enjoying themselves and though they have a couple of injury doubts, they will fancy their chances of at least avoiding defeat.

That said, their record in Bangalore Tests is far from impressive and not a little surprising. In the 16 Tests there, they have won just four, losing six and drawing six. In fact, they have lost four of the past five there and were beaten by Pakistan last time out, in 2005. On that occasion, Pakistan batted first and Younis Khan made 287.

Younis to excel again
In fact, Younis Khan is almost certainly the man India will want to see the back of sooner rather than later. The right-hander, who will captain the side in the absence of the injured Shoaib Malik, averages 95 in Tests against them now and his century in the second Test was his fifth in 15 innings against them.

Mohammad Yousuf, whose form in this series has not quite lived up to his form of the past 12 months, is still bet365's favourite to be Pakistan's top runscorer, at 11/4. However, the fact that he is favourite does mean that the price on Younis, at 3/1, is better value than you might expect given the stats above.

Salman Butt and the impressive Misbah-ul-Haq are both 5/1 and I wouldn't look too far beyond those four.

For India, captain Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar share favouritism at 10/3 but if history is anything to go by, you'd have to prefer Tendulkar to his captain. While Sachin averages 55 in Bangalore, Dravid has made just 165 runs in five Tests there.

Wasim Jaffer, next in the betting at 4/1, didn't do much in his only Test in Bangalore, but he looked truly world class in the second Test and he could be value to continue that form. VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly, both centurions last week, are 11/2 and that's about as far as you need to look, even if noth men have pretty awful records there.

Interestingly, Anil Kumble, who almost single-handedly led the bowling attack in the second innings of the second Test, has not performed that well in his past two Tests in Bangalore, taking just one wicket in that defeat by Pakistan a couple of years ago. I doubt that will happen again but you never know.

Cambers' Call
Sachin Tendulkar to be India's 1st innings top runscorer - 10/3 bet365
Younis Khan to be Pakistan's 1st innings top runscorer - 4/1 bet365