Tendulkar goes beyond 12,000 while Aussies toil

Sachin Tendulkar ventured where no batsman has gone before as India powered their way to 5-311 against Australia on day one of the second Test in Mohali.

Beginning the day needing a further 15 to surpass Brian Lara as Test cricket's leading scorer, Tendulkar ended his innings on 88 as he became a debut wicket for Peter Siddle, after Tendulkar became the first man to pass 12,000 runs.

Tendulkar's career total was 12,027 at 54.17 at the close, but he was disappointed to end his partnership of 142 with veteran left-hander Sourav Ganguly (54no) on a PCA Stadium pitch that offered about as much assistance to bowlers as a block of concrete.

The Australians had done well to restrict the home side to 4-174 at tea, thanks to a burst of 3-17 in 24 balls in the fourth hour of the match.

India were strolling at 1-146 before Rahul Dravid (39), Gautam Gambhir (67) and VVS Laxman (12) all fell in rapid succession to Australia's best bowler Mitchell Johnson (3-68), and Brett Lee (1-56).

But Johnson, Lee and the rest were rendered toothless for most of the evening by Tendulkar and Ganguly.

Unforgiving conditions made it a difficult debut for 23-year-old Victorian Siddle, in the side for the injured Stuart Clark, and the scalp of Tendulkar was a deserved reward for his unstinting efforts across the day, returning figures of 18-2-80-1.

Stand-in skipper Mahendra Dhoni won an important toss, and the home side were given a rollicking start by Gambhir and Virender Sehwag (35).

Siddle made a clunking first impression by striking Gambhir on the back of the helmet first ball, but was subjected to some punishment thereafter.

Lee failed to find any new ball movement and was also taken for plenty of early runs, so it was a relief for the tourists when Johnson dismissed Sehwag, nibbling down the legside and caught by Brad Haddin.

Dravid eventually lost patience, dragging an extravagant back foot forcing stroke onto his stumps.

Johnson was rewarded for his nagging length when Gambhir's airy drive resulted in a thin edge behind two balls later.

Next man Laxman was unlucky to be the second batsman of the day caught down the legside, his glance travelling too fine to elude the clutches of Haddin.

Tendulkar was relieved to pass Lara with the first ball after tea, which he ran through third man off Siddle to spark widespread celebrations, generous acclaim from the Australians and noisy fireworks at the boundary's edge.

Once the hubbub died down, Ganguly should have been dismissed for 35, playing down the wrong line to a Cameron White (0-26) topspinner and neatly stumped by Haddin.

However umpire Rudi Koertzen ludicrously failed to call for a replay, which would have resulted in White's second Test wicket.

Ganguly passed his own landmark on 40, becoming the fourth Indian batsman after Tendulkar, Dravid and Sunil Gavaskar to score 7,000 runs in Tests.

Tendulkar was closing on a century when the second new ball was taken, his attempted back foot drive st Siddle caught well and low by first slip Matthew Hayden.

India skipper Anil Kumble was ruled out of the match due to a shoulder problem he picked up last week in Bangalore, allowing fellow legspinner Amit Mishra to debut for India.