AHMEDABAD — India broke through the stubborn England resistance with a morning burst of five wickets before surging to a comprehensive nine-wicket victory in the opening cricket Test for a 1-0 lead in the four-match series here Monday. Needing 77 runs to record its first win at this venue in seven years on a crumbling and dusty pitch, India achieved the target when it made 80 for one in 16.3 overs after lunch with more than half a day to spare. Openers Virender Sehwag (25) and Cheteshwar Pujara (41 not out), who scored a double hundred in the huge first innings total of 521 for 8 declared, polished off the major part of the target by adding 57 runs in only 9.5 overs. Earlier, left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha prized open the victory door for the host when he broke through England's resolute batting by packing off overnight batsmen Matt Prior (91) and Alastair Cook (176) in 12 balls to virtually bring the visitors to their knees. The two had kept England afloat Sunday with a determined partnership, which had helped the visitors avoid an innings defeat and had raised their hopes of even saving the game. The pair remained unconquered last evening with the visitors on 340 for five, an overall lead of 10 runs. Ojha's two for 18 burst in 11 overs was complemented by Umesh Yadav, Ravichandran Ashwin and Zaheer Khan who grabbed a wicket each as England slumped from 356 for five to 406 all out in just over 16 overs and in 113 minutes of play this morning. Ojha, who grabbed 4 for 120 in the second innings to add to his superb haul of 5 for 45 in the first, emerged as the most successful bowler from the game. Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni credited the bowlers for the win. “There was something in the wicket to start with, but as the game progressed there was low bounce but not much turn. It was hard work for the spinners. They bowled 70-80 overs, even fast bowlers bowled more than 40 overs. So it was a fantastic effort from them,” Dhoni said. “Ojha bowled a tight line and took extra responsibility,” he added. The India skipper also had good words for Man-of-the-Match Cheteshwar Pujara. “It was a fantastic game for Pujara. He has the temperament to play big innings and has shown that on the domestic circuit. He makes sure he converts fifties to hundreds. Overall it was a fantastic effort by the team,” he said. England skipper Alastair Cook lauded the fighting spirit of his team and vowed to come back stronger in the second Test in Mumbai. PCB clears players for Big Bash Pakistan Monday allowed three players to compete in Australia's Big Bash Twenty20 competition following a request from Australian cricket authorities. Shahid Afridi signed for Sydney Thunder, Saeed Ajmal for Adelaide Strikers and Umar Akmal for Sydney Sixers, but the PCB had ordered them to feature in a domestic Twenty20 event being used to test players ahead of the matches against arch-rival India. But Monday, PCB spokesman Nadeem Sarwar said they would be allowed to play in the Big Bash following a request from Cricket Australia that said they had already signed their contracts. Afridi, however, has ended his contract with Sydney Thunder. Afridi, however, insisted he would rather play in Pakistan's domestic league as he struggles to recapture his form. — Agencies
