Hussey, Haddin lead Australians' fightback
16:50 HRS - Australians went into stumps on day 2 at 191-4, trailing the hosts by 264 runs, requiring a further 64 runs to avoid the follow on. Michael Hussey (54) and Brad Haddin (34) were the unbeaten batsmen at stumps.
Earlier, Board President XI were bowled out for 455.
16:35 HRS – Michael Hussey and Brad Haddin led the Australians’ fightback after BP XI spinners Piyush Chawla and Pragyan Ojha triggered a mini collapse. Hussey brought up his half century and displayed an impressive technique of tackling the spinners.
Haddin ran well between the wickets, pinching plenty of singles and converting singles to twos and twos to threes. Hussey played the waiting game but Haddin’s aggression kept the Indian spinners at bay. Haddin stepped down the pitch and smashed Ojha for a six.
14:30 HRS – Michael Hussey (12) and Michael Clarke (0) walked out to the middle with Australians losing three quick wickets in the second session. The visitors needed a further 162 runs to avoid the follow on.
Ricky Ponting’s dismissal ended the second session of play as a fired up Piyush Chawla trapped the Australian captain leg before wicket.
12:42 HRS – The Australians experience their first jolt as veteran opener Matthew Hayden (20 runs, 29 balls, 4x4) edges a straightforward catch to BP XI wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel off Irfan Pathan. The opening duo of Hayden and Katich added 26 runs before the former’s dismissal.
Coming back from a career-threatening heel injury, Hayden looked in fine form, attacking the bowlers and even stepping down the pitch on a couple of occasions. Manpreet Gony, who shared the new ball with Pathan was impressive with the bounce and pace that he generated in his first burst.
12:15 HRS – Australia take Lunch on Day 2 at 26-0 with openers Hayden and Katich seeing off a fiery spell from Manpreet Gony. Earlier BP XI were bowled out for 455.
11: 25 HRS - The Board President’s XI were shot out for 455 runs inside the morning session against the visiting Australian outfit here at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium today.
Resuming from an overnight score of 371-6, the hosts added 84 runs and lost four wickets in the session. Wicketkeeper batsman Parthiv Patel (62 runs, 97 balls, 4x8) was the first to be dismissed, bowled by Peter Siddle.
Irfan Pathan (56 runs, 81 balls, 4x8) continued to frustrate the Aussies but was eventually dismissed by Stuart Clark (3-67). The duo of Patel and Pathan added 75 runs for the seventh-wicket and prolonged the BP XI innings. Virat Kohli’s dismissal had left them at 328-6 but a courageous performance by their lower order helped them amass 455 runs.
Mitchell Johsnon (4-75) was the standout bowler for the Aussies, claiming the wickets of Aakash Chopra (25 runs, 56 balls, 4x4), Yuvraj Singh (29 runs, 47 balls, 4x5), Rohit Sharma (105 runs, 144 balls, 4x12, 6x4) and Piyush Chawla (23 runs, 32 balls, 4x5).
The Australians will come out to bat with veterans Matthew Hayden and Simon Katich opening the batting.
