Tendulkar was severe on Tait, hitting him for four of his nine boundaries. Quite close to his famous upper cuts, Tendulkar culled the ball over the slip cordon, picking as many as 35 runs from the region (see wagon wheel graphic), given the general tendency of the Aussies to dig short or bowl wide with a 7-2 field. It’s a huge temptation to view this knock against his previous century in the 1992 Test. But a separate description of his 129-ball knock of 71 in 175 minutes that abruptly ended in Lee pumping his fist in delight and Tendulkar shaking his head a touch disappointed, can stand on its own.

Tendulkar reached his half-century in 91 balls with eight hits and kept his innings clean, unlike Dravid’s minor blemish when Michael Clarke at second slip let one straight in and out off Lee.

Dravid, on 11 then, stop fiddling outside the off thereafter.

Though Dravid wasn’t too far behind Tendulkar, his half-century had more boundaries —- nine from 95 balls — as the pair put in that 139-run third wicket stand.

Virender Sehwag missed more than he connected in his 81-minute stint, but eventually managed to get India off to a fifty-plus stand. The opener cracked cover-drives and then cut through square alternatively in an engaging performance with Lee and Stuart Clark —- the duo would bang the ball into his body and Sehwag would keep quiet, and then suddenly wake up to slam-bang everything pitched wide or right up to him.

... contd.