At 254 for 6, Team India only required 17 runs to outclass arch-rivals Pakistan led by legendary pacer Wasim Akram in the Test series opener at Chennai's MA Chidambaram Stadium back in 1999. With Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar batting on 136, India were heavily tipped to register a comfortable win over Pakistan at Chennai. An on-song Tendulkar had creamed two successive boundaries off spin maverick Saqlain Mushtaq and the Little Master was closing in on wrapping up the contest in India's favour. What followed next shell-shocked every Team India fan.
Mushtaq outfoxed Tendulkar and India's lower-order went down like ninepins as Pakistan stunned the cricket fraternity with a monumental win over the Asian giants in their backyard. Tendulkar's mistimed lofted shot paved the way for Akram and Co. to stage a late comeback in the thrilling Chennai Test match. So how Pakistan managed to get the better of Tendulkar? Former Pakistan skipper Akram recently revealed how the Sultan of Swing masterminded the jackpot wicket of the Master Blaster.
“The Chennai Test is very special to me... It was very hot and the pitch was bare, which suited us because we relied on reverse-swing. We also had one of the best spinners at the time in Saqlain Mushtaq. Nobody could pick the doosra delivery that he had invented at the time. Sachin [Tendulkar] played him well after the first innings. Every time he bowled the doosra, Sachin went for the lap shot just behind the keeper. A very odd shot to play against the off-spinners’ doosra but he mastered it and that’s why Sachin was one of the greatest of all time,” Akram told Sportstar.
{{/usCountry}}“The Chennai Test is very special to me... It was very hot and the pitch was bare, which suited us because we relied on reverse-swing. We also had one of the best spinners at the time in Saqlain Mushtaq. Nobody could pick the doosra delivery that he had invented at the time. Sachin [Tendulkar] played him well after the first innings. Every time he bowled the doosra, Sachin went for the lap shot just behind the keeper. A very odd shot to play against the off-spinners’ doosra but he mastered it and that’s why Sachin was one of the greatest of all time,” Akram told Sportstar.
{{/usCountry}}Mushtaq reduced India to 5-82 when the spin-bowling icon removed Sourav Ganguly in the 42nd over. Asked to chase down the 271-run target in the 2nd innings, India staged a comeback with Tendulkar who smashed a sublime century to keep the hosts alive in the host. Tendulkar joined forces with Nayan Mongia (52) as the duo managed to put India in the driving seat at Chennai. However, Tendulkar took the long way back to the pavilion in the 92nd over after Akram had removed Mongia.
“I remember how close the game was. They [India] needed 20-odd to win, the great man [Tendulkar] was batting on 136 and I remember talking to Saqlain just one ball earlier. Every fielder was on the boundary, Sachin was facing and I told Saqlain to bowl his doosra outside off-stump and give it some air as Sachin would probably try to hit it through midwicket. That’s exactly what happened. He went for a six through midwicket, top-edged it and I kept repeating to myself ‘balance, eye on the ball, balance’ as I got under the ball," Akram recalled.
Akram took the match-altering catch to complete the dismissal of the batting legend. Following Tendulkar's departure, Pakistani bowlers managed to run a riot as the visitors demolished the tail of the Indian side to secure a win by 12 runs. Not just for Tendulkar's batting masterclass and Mushtaq's spin wizardry, the Chennai Test match between traditional rivals is also fondly remembered for the victory lap taken by Akram and Co. after denying India an easy win.
“Forty-thousand people were screaming while I was talking to myself in the split-second just before the catch... Winning in India was a massive deal, but what struck all of us was the standing ovation we got from the Chennai crowd. That Test will be special forever because of the drama, the standing ovation, the tour and the circumstances – one of the best Test matches I have played. So, thank you to the people of Chennai,” Akram added.