Vettori does a Bracewell

John Bracewell now has Vettori for company in the 1000-run 100-wicket New Zealand club © Getty Images

Daniel Vettori said before leaving for India that Stephen Fleming's work on his batting had been an inspiration to him, and that he had been working hard on his own batsmanship over the winter in a bid to emulate his leader. Just how successful that was can be seen from his follow-on-saving effort in Ahmedabad on the fourth day of the first Test.

Vettori's 60 was his sixth Test half-century, and given that it left him sitting on 1000 Test runs he is certain to be able to enjoy some good-natured banter with his new coach when he finally takes over the reins back in New Zealand in December. John Bracewell, before today, was the only New Zealand spinner to have taken 100 Test wickets and scored 1000 Test runs, some even considering him a contender for allrounder status.

That may have been taking things a little far, although Bracewell probably wouldn't think so. But secretly he will be delighted to think that he has a player in his lower order capable of performing like Vettori does. And if there should ever be any points-scoring involved in the discussions between the two spinners, Vettori can always claim to have taken more wickets, 145 and climbing, and to have scored more half-centuries - six to Bracewell's four.

For the moment, Bracewell would be able to claim that at least he had scored a Test century, in England in 1986. But that is not an especially out-of-order expectation for Vettori. His best Test score is 90, against Zimbabwe, and Chris Cairns, a longtime team-mate of Vettori, believes that the occasion will occur when Vettori reaches three figures with the bat in a Test match.

One thing Vettori's 1000 runs did achieve was membership of a select group in New Zealand's Test history, players who have completed the 1000 runs-100 wickets double. Bracewell was one, Sir Richard Hadlee was another and then there was Chris Cairns. Now there are four.

In the meantime, there was much for Vettori and Paul Wiseman to savour in their recovery of New Zealand's situation. Their 67-run stand that took the side beyond the follow-on target was right up with some of the efforts that have made the strength of New Zealand's tail one of its saving graces on many occasions over the past 20 years. It was never going to be a ninth-wicket record against India - that privilege belongs to Ian Smith and Martin Snedden, on the day in Auckland in 1990 when Smith went on a one-man wrecking mission to score 169 of the 173 runs he finally finished with. But it did give the side a fighting chance of at least saving the match.

Dare the thought of a win snatched from India even be considered? It shapes as an unlikely prospect, but, and this is the but of cricket romantics, the New Zealanders have been in this sort of position before, albeit as the result of teasing declarations made by their skipper Stephen Fleming. In Hobart, in 1997-98, they accepted Mark Taylor's challenge to have a go at a total and were eventually nine wickets down having decided with the last pair at the crease that the target of 288 was probably out of reach. But Simon Doull and Shayne O'Connor survived for 38 minutes before the match was drawn with New Zealand 60 short. But they had chased for much of the distance, again with only O'Connor not having any pretensions with the bat.

Then in 2001-02 in Brisbane, Fleming did it again. He declared once the follow-on had been saved on the last day of the first Test, which was extended due to rain having affected the second and third days. Steve Waugh accepted the challenge, Australia rattled off a quick 84 and then left New Zealand a target of 284 to win. It was only a leaping catch at the boundary by Ricky Ponting to dismiss Chris Cairns that prevented New Zealand winning the match. They ended up with a draw, 10 runs short of Australia and unable to reach the wide balls the Australian bowlers delivered during the last two overs.

Mark Richardson still regrets that he got out for 57 in that run chase. He believed if he could have gone on, victory would have gone to New Zealand. But there will be no heroics from him this time around - he is back in the pavilion, having helped New Zealand reduce the overall target from 370 to 326, with another four having been knocked off before stumps.

It will be the role of the batsmen who failed in the first innings to carry on. If Lou Vincent, Stephen Fleming and Scott Styris can give New Zealand the sort of start that will allow Nathan Astle and Craig McMillan to flourish then who knows what might happen? Realistically, however, two gentlemen by the name of Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble might well determine how this Test ends. At least it should be a contest for most of the fifth day, and that doesn't happen too often in modern Test cricket.