In-form Saurav Ganguly cracked 91 to lead India to 221 for five at lunch on the last day of the third and final Test against Pakistan on Wednesday.
Ganguly and Rahul Dravid (42) took their overnight third-wicket stand to 152 after the hosts had resumed at 131 for two and by the interval they had extended their overall lead to 310 runs with the match heading for a draw.
Dinesh Karthik was on 23 at lunch with Vangipurappu Laxman on 14, Pakistan’s chances of an improbable series-levelling victory looking to be over.
Former captain Ganguly, playing his 99th Test, missed a rare double hundred and a century in a match when he flashed at fast bowler Mohammad Sami and Faisal Iqbal took the catch at gully.
India lead the series 1-0 after winning the opening Test by six wickets in New Delhi.
The 35-year-old Ganguly, who scored his maiden Test double century in the first innings, fell in the middle of a collapse when Sami struck twice after leg spinner Danish Kaneria trapped Dravid lbw.
Ganguly, who scored a century in the drawn second Test in Kolkata, also passed 1 000 runs for the calendar year.
Spearhead Shoaib Akhtar bowled a fiery spell in the morning when he hit Ganguly on the back as the batsman tried to duck.
Yuvraj Singh edged Sami to the wicketkeeper for two but Karthik, who hit Kaneria for a six and two fours in an over, and Laxman denied the visitors further success in a 37-run stand. – Reuters