Flair meets flint: Two contrasting double-centuries

Two contrasting hundreds from two contrasting batsmen told contrasting stories on the second day at the Feroz Shah Kotla. While Aakash Chopra, despite resuming on an overnight 137, refrained from the big shots until crossing a double-hundred and grafted, an in-form Subramaniam Badrinath played his shots positively throughout his unbeaten 200. India declared on 588 for 4 thanks to their efforts - it was a batting barrage but in neither case was a masterpiece in sight.

Chopra's unbeaten 239, a career-best, consumed 461 balls and took 623 minutes. Badrinath's 200 not out, came from 307 balls in 400 minutes. There was a difference in the strike rate of both batsmen, but there was a bigger difference in the approach.

And perhaps this has to do with the situation the two found themselves in.

Chopra is back in the national reckoning after nearly three years, having last played for India in October 2004, while Badrinath is a talented batsman who's been piling up runs but is still really nowhere near national selection. For Chopra, this shot at the India A side came after consistent performances on the domestic circuit in the previous season and a century for the Marylebone Cricket Club against Sri Lanka A this summer. Badrinath came off a good showing against Zimbabwe A and Kenya recently. When the squad was announced Dilip Vengsarkar, the chairman of selectors, said the idea for Chopra was to give him a chance to see how he performed against a good side like South Africa A. India need another option for the opening slot with a series against Pakistan at home and Australia away in the near future. Chopra was, after all, a vital member of the Indian team which drew their away series with Australia in 2003-04.

But there was no mention of Badrinath, who could expect to be overlooked again despite this double-century here and more in the series. He could well think to himself, what more do I need to do? This has been Badrinath's case for some time. Hundreds, classy ones, back-to-the-wall ones, have shown his potential but failed to bring him close to being selected.

It didn't show in his batting, however. Badrinath was given just one life, late on the first day, but came out much more positive than Chopra on day two. He ran the singles well, as did Chopra, but his cutting and overall back-foot play was more polished than Chopra's. He played the spinners well, his feet moving and his soft hands nudging the ball into the gaps. He was very assured, as if he knew what was expected of him. And this was a big innings against better pace bowling than he would have faced in Zimbabwe or Kenya.

Watching Chopra bat you got the sense that he was putting too much pressure on himself, falling back into a shell almost. There were no flashy shots, and it looked intentional. You could say he was playing it safe. Chopra was more forward-and-back, choosing to smother the ball and occasionally work it off the pads when the bowler erred. Chopra was reprieved four times, first early in his innings when Charl Langevelt spilt a tough chance inside the circle, and later when the wicketkeeper and Hashim Amla at long-on dropped chances. The fourth time was a hard caught-and-bowled to Justin Ontong, but by that time Chopra had 231 runs to his name.

There was one thing in common, however, and that was the aim to punish South Africa. While the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 is taking place in South Africa, and the Indian Premier League hogging the headlines, Chopra and Badrinath fell back to the purist form of batting. They played it by session, slowly gnawing away at the opposition and building a platform from which India A cannot lose.

In the process, Chopra and Badrinath recorded the second-highest fifth-wicket stand in first-class cricket, second to the unbeaten 464 put on by the Waugh brothers of New South Wales against Western Australia at Perth in 1990-91. They now find themselves sandwiched between Mark and Steve and two other legendary Australians, Sid Barnes and one Don Bradman, who added 405 against England in 1946-47.

These were timely double-hundreds from two good batsmen, but only time will tell what they were really worth.