Sachin Tendulkar struck telling blows with the ball as hosts India sent a sell-out home crowd of 75,000 wild with a 87-run victory over Pakistan in the first One-Day International on Saturday.
Tendulkar made amends for failing with the bat by picking up five for 50 with his occasional leg-spin as India bowled out Pakistan for 194 in reply to their own 281/8 from 50 overs at the Nehru stadium.
Mohammad Hafeez top scored for the tourists with 42, but wickets tumbled at regular intervals to hand India a 1-0 lead in the six-match series.
India's challenging total was built by centuries from Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid, who put on a record 201 for the third wicket after seamer Rana Naved-ul-Hasan removed Tendulkar and captain Sourav Ganguly off consecutive balls in the day's second over.
Sehwag smashed 108 off 95 balls with nine boundaries and three sixes after being dropped twice before he had reached double figures. Dravid made a gutsy 104 in stifling heat and humidity in this southern coastal town.
India were pegged to 48 runs in the last 10 overs as off-spinner Arshad Khan finished with 4-33 in six overs after conceding 13 runs in his first over.
{{/usCountry}}India were pegged to 48 runs in the last 10 overs as off-spinner Arshad Khan finished with 4-33 in six overs after conceding 13 runs in his first over.
{{/usCountry}}Pakistani openers Salman Butt and Kamran Akmal made a rollicking start by hammering 45 in the first six overs, before India hit back with three wickets in the space of four runs.
It became 64/4 in the 12th over as Zaheer Khan took a tumbling return catch at the start of his second spell to dismiss Yousuf Youhana for zero.
Captain Inzamam-ul-Haq and Hafeez put on 48 for the fifth wicket when Tendulkar, cheered lustily from the overflowing stands, finally made his presence felt.