India close in on win despite Windies fightback

KOLKATA, (Reuters) – India marched steadily  towards victory after enforcing the follow-on despite an  improved batting performance by West Indies in the second  innings of the second test at Eden Gardens today.
At the close on the third day, West Indies were 195 for  three wickets, still trailing India by 283 runs, with Darren  Bravo (38) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (21) at the crease.
Adrian Barath (62) and Kirk Edwards (60) scored dogged  half-centuries in West Indies’ second innings after the visitors  collapsed in a heap to be all out for 153 in their first essay.
West Indies lost opener Kraigg Brathwaite (nine) early, but  Barath (62) and Edwards added 93 for the second wicket to lead  the tourists’ fightback.
Brathwaite edged paceman Umesh Yadav in the fifth over for  captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni to complete a low catch behind the  stumps.
Barath, who hit 10 boundaries, played a wild drive against  paceman Ishant Sharma, just four deliveries after the tea break,  and Vangipurappu Laxman held on to a low chance at slip.
The lanky Sharma, who is leading the Indian attack in the  absence of Zaheer Khan, also got rid of Edwards when he got him  out lbw. Edwards hit six boundaries and a six during his knock.
Earlier, the West Indies batsmen capitulated under the  weight of India’s mammoth first innings total of 631 for seven  declared and were bundled out in the morning session.
Resuming on the overnight score of 34 for two, the tourists,  trailing 1-0 in the three-match series, offered little  resistance as India’s bowlers ran riot to scuttle them in 140  minutes on the third day.
Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha picked up four wickets while  Yadav and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin chipped in with three  and two respectively.
The visiting batsmen lasted 48 overs in their first innings  with India’s bowlers extracting considerable spin and bounce  from the track.
Yadav took the wickets of Bravo (30) and Marlon Samuels (25)  — the only batsmen to offer some resistance — in the morning,  clean-bowling both of them.
Ashwin, who got married a day before the second test  started, picked up the prized wicket of Chanderpaul.
West Indies captain Darren Sammy (18) went on the  counter-attack and hit two fours and a straight six during his  14-ball knock. However, he edged Ojha to Dhoni behind the stumps  immediately after hitting the six.
The teams will play the third and final test in Mumbai from  Tuesday.