Gautam Gambhir closed in on a rapid half-century as India raced to 122-1 in its second innings at stumps on the third day of the opening Test against Bangladesh Tuesday. The opener (47 not out) added 90 for the opening wicket with stand-in captain Virender Sehwag (45) after India had narrowly avoided conceding the lead to Bangladesh for the first time in six Tests. Bangladesh was bowled out for 242 in its first innings shortly after tea in reply to India's 243. India got off to a strong start, with left-handed Gambhir and Sehwag dominating the Bangladeshi attack with attractive shots during their 17-over partnership. Sehwag fell just three balls after hitting a straight six off left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan, caught by Raqibul Hasan at square-leg while attempting another big shot. Nightwatchman Amit Mishra was unbeaten with a 21-ball 24 when play was called off due to bad light. Bangladesh's Mohammad Mahmudullah earlier hit an impressive 69 for his maiden half-century. He put on 108 for the seventh wicket with Mushfiqur Rahim (44) to raise his team's hopes of gaining the lead. The host was tottering at 98-6 before being revived by Mahmudullah and Rahim, but three late wickets by Indian leg-spinner Mishra saw it concede the lead. Bangladesh failed to cope with India's pace in the morning, when it lost three wickets in the space of 30 runs, but Mahmudullah and Rahim denied the visitors success for more than two hours with their sensible knocks. The duo applied themselves remarkably well, patiently waiting for loose deliveries. Mahmudullah played some handsome shots in his 108-ball knock before being caught behind off paceman Shanthakumaran Sreesanth. Wicketkeeper Rahim had been batting confidently before he fell to a loose shot, caught by Sehwag at mid-wicket while attempting to hit Mishra against the turn. Rahim struck six fours in his 104-ball knock. Mishra and left-arm paceman Zaheer Khan finished with three wickets each, while seamers Ishant Sharma and Sreesanth grabbed two apiece. Play was delayed for the third successive day due to dense fog which had restricted play to 63 of the stipulated 90 overs on the first day and just 24.5 overs on the second day. The second and final Test will start in Dhaka on Jan. 24. Botha recalled Off-spinner Johan Botha, who has been banned from bowling his doosra after it was ruled illegal, has been recalled to the South Africa Test squad for its tour of India next month. Botha, 27, has played only two Tests for his country and was called for a suspect action on his Test debut against Australia in 2006. He was banned until he remodelled his action and subsequently cleared by the International Cricket Council (ICC). However, Botha was forced to undertake testing once again after his action was questioned in a ODI against Australia and he was banned from bowling the doosra, the delivery which turns away from the right-hander. Veteran fast bowler Makhaya Ntini, who was dropped against England, has been excluded while left-arm swing bowler Lonwabo Tsotsobe was named in the 15-man Test squad. South Africa will play two tests against India with the first scheduled to start in Nagpur on Feb. 6.
