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India still in the game: Harbhajan

October 07, 2004 21:57 IST

Harbhajan Singh, who claimed five wickets in Australia's first innings in the first Test in Bangalore, does not believe the game has slipped away from India, who are facing the prospect of a follow-on.

"We really have to bat well in the second innings. We have done it in the past. You never know," he told reporters after the second day's play, which saw India collapse to 150 for six in reply to the tourists' first innings total of 474 on day 2 of the Test.

"We did not do well today. Hopefully, we will play good cricket in the next three days," he said.

On his bowling performance, the off-spinner said: "It's good to get five wickets. But they [Australia] played better than us. Adam Gilchrist and Michael Clarke put us on the defensive. And they bowled very well today. We have to play really well tomorrow to get back into the game."

Harbhajan said, overall, the wicket at the M Chinnaswamy stadium was "good".

"It was not easy to bowl in the first innings of the Test match. Let's us see how it goes in the second innings. We know the kind of batsmen we have. We can always put them under pressure."

He said the toss was crucial and it offered advantage to the team batting first.

"The toss was very crucial and they [the Australians] won it. On the second day, today, it [the wicket] was turning a bit.

"Let's see how it goes. There are another three days to go. There won't be any bounce, that's what I think."

The ace spinner said it was a good feeling to mark his Test comeback after an injury lay-off with a haul of five wickets.

"I am playing the first Test match after my return from a finger injury. Getting five wickets is always good, especially against Australia, no matter how we played.

"It will boost my confidence ahead of the next match and the next innings. To get five wickets is special," he added.



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