Third Test, Bangalore (day four, stumps): India 626 & 131-2 v Pakistan 537
Match scorecard
India's 19-year-old prodigy Ishant Sharma impressed with 5-118 as India and Pakistan looked poised to draw the third and final Test in Bangalore.
Sharma, a 6ft 4in right-arm seamer from Delhi playing his second Test, wrapped up Pakistan's tail but Misbah-ul-Haq's unbeaten 133 took the tourists to 537.
India reached stumps on 131-2, leading by 220, with one day remaining.
A draw would give India the series by a 1-0 margin, their first home success against Pakistan since 1979-80.
They were briefly troubled by the new ball, but old hands Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid carefully monitored some low bounce to put on an unbroken 106.
Ganguly played some exquisite shots late in the day - including a straight six off Danish Kaneria that crashed into the sightscreen.
Play began on Tuesday with Pakistan on 369-5, the follow-on target still 58 runs away.
606: DEBATE
Misbah, Pakistan's outstanding player in the series, soon took his partnership with Kamran Akmal past the 100-mark.
And while Akmal was often beaten by the bowlers, Misbah was rarely troubled.
The follow-on saved, the pair were finally separated when Akmal was stumped off Harbhajan Singh thanks to the speedy reactions of Dinesh Karthik.
But the partnership had raised 144 runs and as debutant Yasir Arafat produced a confident innings either side of lunch, the possibility of a Pakistan lead was raised.
Misbah continued to play an unflustered innings, even after reaching his century with a deft leg-glance for four off Harbhajan.
The third new ball finally did for Arafat, who was neither forward nor back to Sharma as he edged onto his stumps for 44.
Sharma then took wickets in each of his next three overs to wrap up the tail, and Pakistan were all out on the stroke of tea.
An out-of-sorts Gautam Gambhir survived just 17 balls before a slower delivery from Shoaib Akhtar bowled him and Wasim Jaffer was lbw to an unplayable delivery from Arafat that seamed into his pads and kept horribly low.
If there was the faintest suggestion of alarm bells ringing for India's fans at that point - with the scoreboard showing 26-2 - Ganguly (63) and Dravid (35) used their collective nous to quench Pakistan's victory ambitions.
Ganguly, who hit 239 in the first innings, became the second man after Jacques Kallis to cross the 1,000-run landmark in the calendar year.
Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson on India's Ishant Sharma: "It's nice to see a bowler hit the deck hard and he could be handy in Australia.
"He has pace and bounce."
Sharma himself: "When you bowl well then it's a great satisfaction.
"It is not an easy track to bowl on. After some time I changed my line and tried as hard as possible.
"I was hit for a few boundaries but I never get discouraged so you have to keep a big heart to bowl at this level. You need patience on such pitches."
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