THERE is, so those who know them intimately say, an unshakeable belief in destiny within the ranks of the Indian team. So no one will have been surprised in the way that the Indian team appears to have uncovered the next generation.
Fate, they will say, was responsible for the alleged shenanigans that induced the Indian selectors to leave at home Vinod Kambli, a young batsman with a Test average in excess of 50. Fate, too, that caused their most experienced opener Navjot Sidhu to pack his bags and return to India in a fit of pique and Sanjay Manjrekar, the man who coveted the number three position, to turn his ankle in the first Test and so miss this one.
Faced with such disruption, many teams might have folded. Instead, Indian cricket, on the rack at Edgbaston, has rediscovered itself at Lord's.
In England's first innings there were wickets for Venkatesh Prasad, who with Javagal Srinath, already forms one of the most potent opening attacks in the world. Then, when they batted, it was not the genius Tendulkar or the sorcerer Azharuddin who scored the runs, but two novices in their first Test innings. On Saturday, Sourev Ganguly, a rare Bengali Test cricketer, cast aside the aspersions that he was in the side purely on the strength of a father in high places to make a century in more than seven hours of concentration. It was only the third hundred on this ground by a man playing his maiden Test innings.
No Test match has seen two debutants from the same team score centuries however. It still hasn't, but yesterday India came within a whisker as Rahul Dravid, who had kept Ganguly company during a sixth wicket stand of 94, carried on where his partner had left off, batting and battling until the afternoon session, and making 95 before he was ninth out.
It was an innings, though, which carried India onwards to 429, a lead on first innings of 85. The England response was to counter attack during a torrid new ball spell with some forthright batting largely from Alec Stewart who made a half century from 88 deliveries before calming down to reach 65 not out by the close.
This has also been the series when Nasser Hussain has re established himself as a batsman of true international quality and temperament and, for 95 minutes yesterday evening, he played with composure and assurance while making 28. Srinath however banged in another short ball, and Hussain, pulling out of a hook Shot and turning away, left his bat in line, the ball ballooning off the toe end to point.
And it was left to the nightwatchman, Peter Martin to help Stewart through to stumps, at which point England were 113 for two, a lead of only 28. If the trees are thinning out they are by no means out of the wood.
India had begun the fourth day on 324 for six, 20 only behind England, and unless they could establish a substantial lead, the game was already dead and buried. But despite consistent movement in the air, the England bowlers performed poorly, allowing Dravid to accumulate and failing to dislodge Kumble until Martin, the worthiest of the bowlers yesterday, had him lbw after almost an hour.
By this time, Dravid had added only seven overnight 56, but realised that with capable partners and sensible batting, a hundred: was possible. He found further staunch company, first of all from Srinath and after he had been bowled round his legs by Mullally, from Mhambrey.
After a lunchtime pondering the possibilities, he looked to be more assertive, driving Mullally square to move into the nineties. Atherton now had a decision to make. The new ball was due, but the old one was still swinging sharply at times. He chose to give Lewis his head with the new ball, and in his second over he obliged.
