India 218-5 at tea after Anderson traps Tendulkar

India reached 218-5 at tea on day five of the first test with England at Lord’s Monday, but lost the key wicket of Sachin Tendulkar.

By (AP)

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Published: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 9:18 PM

Last updated: Mon 6 Apr 2015, 6:32 PM

Suresh Raina was 54 not out, from 98 balls with eight fours, while MS Dhoni was unbeaten on 16.

India needed to bat for another 44 overs to avoid defeat, or score another 240 runs for an improbable win.

James Anderson (3-55) was the only England bowler to take a wicket after lunch, trapping Tendulkar lbw for 12, and leaving the batting great still one shy of his 100^th international century. After what is expected to be his final test match at Lord’s, Tendulkar’s highest score at the famous ground remains a modest 37.

England skipper Andrew Strauss had dropped Tendulkar two balls earlier on a day of unrelenting tension.

Fans started queuing at 2 a.m. local time for the 20,000 tickets available, yet the ground was still only around half full when play began nine hours later, with thousands still locked outside.

Some stands were opened only after India resumed on 80-1, although they were filling rapidly by the time the first chance of the day went begging.

A ball from Chris Tremlett looped up off Rahul Dravid’s bat and pad, just beyond the reach of Ian Bell at short leg.

It was a short-lived reprieve for Dravid, who wafted at an outswinger from Anderson and was caught behind for 36.

Gautam Gambhir, who was batting with a severely bruised elbow, edged Stuart Broad’s first ball but it fell short of the slip cordon and India got four overthrows when Andrew Strauss’s shy at the stumps flew to the boundary.

England then wasted a review when the third umpire Marais Erasmus upheld Billy Bowden’s decision not to give VVS Laxman caught behind to Broad.

Laxman looked well set until he pulled a long hop from Anderson to Ian Bell at midwicket, bringing Tendulkar to the crease.

Tendulkar got off the mark by clipping the fifth ball he faced through midwicket for four, but the momentum swung behind England when Gambhir was lbw to Swann.

Any thoughts India had of chasing the win faded as Tendulkar faced 38 balls and went 47 minutes without scoring.

Tendulkar fell an hour into the afternoon session. He was on 12 when an Anderson delivery hit the toe end of his bat and was dropped by Strauss at first slip.

However, to Strauss’s relief, Anderson removed Tendulkar two balls later, trapping him plum lbw.

Before a run had been added Raina was given not out by Erasmus, after Bowden reviewed a stumping from Matt Prior off Swann. Replays showed Raina’s toe may just have been in his crease and he was given the benefit of the doubt.

After 73 overs England brought on Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen, resting their strike bowlers with the new ball in mind and allowing Raina to reach his 50, from 90 balls, before tea.