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Double jeopardy - Shoaib takes two in two

Shoaib Akhtar completely changed the complexion of the Kolkata Test with consecutive late-swinging yorkers that sent Rahul Dravid and Tendulkar on their way

01-Mar-2005
Electrifying passages revisits ten great passages of play that exemplify the intensity and passion of the rivalry between India and Pakistan ...
Shoaib Akhtar completely changed the complexion of the Kolkata Test with consecutive late-swinging yorkers that sent Rahul Dravid and Tendulkar on their way.
Moin Khan
We hadn't made much of an impression on the batting till then - they were 150-odd for 2 and Dravid looked set and comfortable. Then, right after a drinks break, Shoaib produced this amazing yorker which took Dravid's leg stump.
I remember those two balls really well, particularly the second one, which got Sachin. When he walked in, the crowd had gone wild and given him a standing ovation.
Shoaib was bowling really well at that period in the game, and he had found some good rhythm in that spell. For a brief while he looked as if he was going to get a wicket with almost every ball. The way he was charging in, his attitude, it was phenomenal. He just wanted to impose himself on the game and do something; you could really see it.
The ball that got Sachin looked the better of the two to me - middle stump and fuller. Both the deliveries were quick obviously, but it was more the swing that did it, and the lateness of the swing. I had seen some Wasim and Waqar specials but these two weren't far off. When Sachin was bowled, the crowd went completely quiet and you could only hear Shoaib and some of the other players going ballistic.
Moin top-scored in the first innings, with 70, took four catches, and effected a run-out. Interviewed by Osman Samiuddin.
Rahul Dravid
I was batting with Sadagoppan Ramesh and we had been in for a while. Shoaib had come on to bowl and had completed a few overs when we had a drinks break. He was bowling sharp but not with much venom. I told Ramesh, "We've got a good partnership here. Let's keep it going. Shoaib generally bowls three or four good overs and after that we can cash in." The ball had just started to reverse swing a little bit.
First ball after drinks, bang! I saw it clearly as it left his hand - it looked like it was going to be overpitched. It started from outside off stump and came back in a long way. The ball was too good for me on the day.
I walked back to thunderous applause. Having scored only 24 runs, I found this a bit strange, till I realised it was for Sachin, who was coming out.
I had hardly settled down in the dressing room when there was a roar and then pin-drop silence. I looked up at the television screen in the dressing room, but I needn't have. You could sense what had happened. Because the television pictures are slightly delayed, I saw Sachin being bowled.
It was too good a ball to receive first up. I was set for a while and yet he got me. Sachin had no chance. Those two balls turned the Test match around.
Dravid made 13 in the second innings before he was dismissed by Shoaib again. Interviewed by Anand Vasu.