Mohali, March 30 (IANS) India lost three quick wickets, including those of Sachin Tendulkar and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, and were reeling at 205/6 in the 42nd over of their World Cup semifinal clash against Pakistan at the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium here Wednesday.
Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag gave India a blazing start and mustered 48 runs in 6.5 before the latter was adjudged leg before by Wahab Riaz by Australian umpire Simon Taufel.
The explosive batsman straightaway went up for a review, which went waste as TV umpire Billy Bowden upheld the decision as the ball had pitched in line with the stumps and was hitting the middle stump.
Tendulkar, who had been playing a chancy innings, gave the jitters to the crowd when, at 75/1, the other umpire, England’s Ian Gould, ruled him lbw to offspinner Saeed Ajmal. After discussing with Gautam Gambhir, Tendulkar successfully challenged the decision and the review showed the ball was going down the legside, missing the stump.
Tendulkar’s luck continued when he was dropped twice off skipper Shahid Afridi by the two senior-most cricketers in the side, first by Misbah-Ul-Haq at short midwicket when he was on 27 and then by Younis Khan at short extracover when he was on 45.
Tendulkar and Gambhir added 68 runs for the second wicket and just when things looked to steady for India, Gambhir was stumped off off-spinner Mohammad Hafeez. Gambhir went down the track but was beaten by the turn.
The new batsman, Virat Kohli, had survived only nine balls when Riaz struck again. Kohli failed to read the delivery and edged it to Umar Akmal at backward point as India slumped to 141/3.
A loud cheer accompanied the arrival of local boy Yuvraj Singh, who has been in terrific form and has been adjudged Man-of-the-Match in four matches. But Riaz silenced the crowd when he crashed Yuvraj’s stumps with his first ball, a fullish swinging delivery, and the bowler was on a hat-trick.
Dhoni averted it, but India soon lost Tendulkar, caught in the covers by Afridi off Ajmal. Then, the captain himself lost the team’s only remaining referral when Taufel’s lbw decision was upheld.
