Jaffer puts India in command

The 29-year-old opener played a series of exquisite shots and reached his fifth Test century off 150 balls with a backfoot punch through the covers for four off spinner Danish Kaneria.

India finished the day on 352 for three and are in prime position to post a large total with Jaffer and Sourav Ganguly set to resume their innings on Saturday.

India captain Anil Kumble decided to bat first on a dry wicket after winning the toss at Eden Gardens but the tourists struck early, with Sohail Tanvir picking up the wicket of Dinesh Karthik with his first delivery of the day.

Jaffer and Rahul Dravid looked comfortable against a Pakistan attack who operated with a struggling Shoaib Akhtar to share a 136-partnership for the second wicket.

Dravid had just reached fifty before he was was controversially given out by umpire Billy Doctrove in the 41st over off Kaneria. Jaffer though continued to take the game away from the tourists and dominated both seam and spin as he marched towards his hundred.

With Pakistan desperate for a breakthrough Akmal missed a chance to dismiss Sachin Tendulkar in the first over after the tea interval, failing to hold on after he mis-timed a cut-shot off a wide short ball from Mohammad Sami.

Tendulkar then reached his half-century off 74 balls with an uppish drive off Tanvir in the 65th over and eight balls later Jaffer reached his 150 with a flick to midwicket off the bowling of Kaneria.

Pakistan did eventually capture Tendulkar after he had made 82 in a partnership of 175 with Jaffer when he failed to pick a googly from Kaneria and was bowled attempting to drive the ball down the ground.

Ganguly protected Jaffer late in the day and added 17 runs of his own before the umpires brought proceedings to an early conclusion as the light deteriorated.