Dravid hits 31st ton as India reach 386 for five at lunch

Rahul Dravid scored his 31st Test century but Sachin Tendulkar again missed out on his muchawaited 50th ton as India reached 386 for five at lunch on the third day of the final Test match against New Zealand at the VCA Stadium in Jamtha here today The hosts now enjoy a healthy lead of 193 runs which is expected to increase further as the day progresses Dravid 105 batting 273 balls 12x4 who has had an indifferent time before the start of this Test series now has two centuries to show for his effort having scored another in the first Test at Ahmebabad u00a0It wasnt one of his smoothest of efforts as it was more about patience and intense concentration Nevertheless it was an effort that worth its weight in gold considering there was a minislump in the morning session when Sachin Tendulkar 61 VVS Laxman 10 and Suresh Raina 3 were back in the pavilion in quick succession Along with captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni 35 batting 48 balls 6x4 Dravid added 58 runs for the sixth wicket to consolidate Indias position in the match The moment he tucked Daniel Vettori to square leg for a double it was more about the release of pressure than celebration for the former India captain It took him 256 balls and 384 minutes to complete the ton having hit 12 boundaries in the process Dhoni who has also faced a lot of flak of late for his subdued batting looked to hit his way out of bad patch with a flurry of boundaries of the pace bowlers Some of the shots reminded the Dhoni of three years back when he used to attack the bowlers with great gusto The whole country waited in anticipation of Sachin Tendulkars 50th Test century but it was disappointment as he was out as early as second over of the day Needing 43 runs to complete what would have been a first in the history of Test cricket debutant Andy McKay got rid of the iconic batsman of the very third ball he faced After steering the leftarm pacer to the thirdman boundary McKay got one to lift from short of good length The awkward bounce forced Sachin to get squared up and the snick was gleefully gobbled up by Gareth Hopkins standing behind the stumps Sachin scored 61 off 129 deliveries with the help of eight boundaries For McKay who has waited in the wings for several years it couldnt have been a more memorable first Test wicket For the thousands of Tendulkar fans they would now have to wait in anticipation till the Test series in South Africa starts as it looks unlikely that the legendary batsman would get a chance to complete the landmark if India bat last VVS Laxman 10 who has enjoyed a fantastic season so far started off in style with a shortarm pull of McKay and caressing the same bowler through the covers However Chris Martin bowled a lethal inswinger that sent the Hyderabad batsmans legstump cartwheeling There was absolutely no footwork from Laxman as he remained rooted in his crease The movement was sharp and the ball had the pace which undid Laxman Dravid however remained solid at the other end although he failed to get the scoreboard moving In fact he scored his first run of the day in the seventh over He did punish the loose deliveries as one bowled by Southee on his legs was whipped away to midwicket boundary He also pulled a short one from McKay to the square leg boundary Raina who is in woeful form of late didnt last long offering a simple batpad catch off Daniel Vettori to substitute Brian Watling standing at forward short leg However Dhonis positive intent helped Dravid to concentrate carry on a repair job with Dhoni being the dominant partner