India had one eye on the weather as they were struggling to save defeat in the
first cricket Test against England, reaching 207 for 5 at lunch on the
final day in their pursuit of 380 for an unlikely victory.
VVS Laxman and Mahendra Singh Dhoni kept England bowlers at bay after the
early dismissals of Dinesh Kaarthick and Sourav Ganguly with in
the first half-hour of the morning session.
Laxman looked in fine nick and was unbeaten on 29 while Dhoni
survived some anxious moments early on to remain on 28 not out.
India's last recognised pair were featured in a vital partnership
of 62 runs for the unbroken sixth wicket.
India need another 173 runs to overhaul England's daunting
target of 380, but the track also suited the batsmen when the sun stayed out.
Rains have been forecast for the afternoon and India would
certainly be happy to seek any divine help in saving the Test.
James Anderson (2-66) and Ryan Sidebottom (1-33)
were the successful bowlers for England.
India has successfully chased a target of over 300 runs only
once in their entire Test history when they scored 406 for 4 against the West
Indies in 1975-76 at Port of Spain.
India's previous best fourth innings chase was 264 for 3 against
Sri Lanka at Candy in 2001-2002.
India resumed the day at 137 for 4 under overcast conditions.
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