Gifting the key to victory

For all the attacking verve and gusto both India and Pakistan bring to the game, and have put on display at various times on this tour, the Rawalpindi decider, like Lahore, hinges on a day of grim determination. Inzamam-ul-Haq and Imran Farhat provided the steel at Lahore, but in Rawalpindi, the foundations of India's reply were built on Rahul Dravid's effort.

Dravid's century - his 17th in Test cricket and first against Pakistan - was as pleasing to the eye as watching paint dry. It had uncertain strokeplay, it had edges, it had dropped catches and it had dubious decisions, but at its core, it spoke of an unbending will and determination to come good. And within it may well lie the key to the outcome of this match. Having built up a healthy lead, with wickets in hand against an already depleted attack further weakened by the absence towards the end of the day of Shoaib Akhtar, India will look towards the outcome with considerable optimism.

It wasn't just his individual contribution, however, that impressed, as so much of what India achieved today flowed from Dravid's caution. As has been the case with India recently, his solidity and presence also allowed VVS Laxman to finally flourish with an attractive 71, in a series in which he has made little contribution with the bat. It was typically Laxman in nature; a languid, fluid and effortless gem, illuminated further by 12 mostly exquisite boundaries. One, against the legspin of Kaneria, flicked through wide mid-on was sublime; another, straight down the ground off Fazl-e-Akbar an over later, delicious.

Dravid's effort also justified the potentially disastrous move of sending Patel in as opener, as the impish wicketkeeper stroked his way to a second consecutive fifty, and helped build a much needed partnership after Virender Sehwag's first-ball dismissal. Patel visibly grew in confidence under the assured gaze of Dravid, and his innings of 69, studded with ten boundaries, helped to build an Indian platform.

And finally, ominously for Pakistan, Dravid's cussedness paved the way for Sourav Ganguly to come in towards the end of the day and confidently begin the process of taking the game away from them. Benefiting from the absence of Shoaib, Ganguly stroked his way to an almost arrogant fifty as Pakistan became ragged in the field. By this time, Dravid, too had stepped into a rhythm as he helped extend India's lead to 118.

But if yesterday was about the Indian attack making their luck, Pakistan today scorned it and mostly ignored the lessons of Lakshmipathy Balaji and Irfan Pathan. It wasn't as if they bowled poorly; indeed they put in a controlled and efficient performance. But where they erred was often in their length, and if the Indians had exhibited the fruits of a fuller length, then Shoaib's persistence in bowling short constantly seemed misplaced. He had Tendulkar's wicket to show for it, but given that he troubled the batsmen constantly when employing a fuller length, his strategy seemed one-dimensional. He still posed, however, the most potent threat today, and if he hadn't quite recovered his bowling nous, he at least partially rediscovered his rhythm, pomp and aggression.

Umar Gul and Shabbir Ahmed's absence was felt, for if their replacement Fazl-e-Akbar had stayed at home, he might just have served Pakistan's cause better. Oscillating readily between the innocuous, unthreatening and the pathetic, Akbar made Ajit Agarkar's performance in the last Test look inspired. Except for a period of about seven balls where he took the wicket of Patel and found some seam movement, Fazl convinced all those watching that nearly 400 wickets at domestic level does not an international bowler make.

Sami and Kaneria bowled well enough without much reward. If Kaneria was the most consistently accurate and threatening bowler, then Sami was the unluckiest. Twice he had strong appeals for leg-before against Dravid turned down. And when the umpires weren't in his way, then his own team conspired against him. When Yasir Hameed floored a catch that was as easy as it was crucial from Dravid - then on 71 - off Sami, he handed the key to the door to victory to India. Whether or not they eventually go through that door now rests in their own hands. Dravid is still at the crease, still present, and within his presence, you sense India will not let go of the opportunity too readily.