India v South Africa

During a thrilling innings which navigated the path between the sublime and the reckless in a manner reminiscent of Brian Lara, Tendulkar became the first batsman to pass 15,000 runs in one-day internationals - a mark he reached when he passed 50 with the aid of a single and four overthrows - as India levelled the series. Chasing 227, Tendulkar and Ganguly shared a firstwicket stand of 134. Tendulkar hooked Ntini dismissively for four, square-cut Langeveldt with something akin to disdain, and pulled Nel, world cricket's answer to the pantomime villain, commandingly for six. Tshabalala's off-spin was driven for six and four off successive balls, but he did finally dismiss Tendulkar, cutting on to his stumps, out in the nineties for the second match running. India made hard work of a match they ought to have won easily, and it needed an unbroken fifth-wicket stand of 85 between Karthik and Yuvraj Singh, who had earlier taken three wickets with his deceptive slow left-armers, to secure victory. South Africa, who had the worst of the toss, were seven for two as the left-armers Zaheer Khan and R. P. Singh made the most of the conditions, before van Wyk's career-best and a brisk half-century from Boucher gave their attack something to bowl at.