KOLKATA: On a murky Tuesday when the sun sat lazily behind the clouds all day, VVS Laxman and Mahendra Singh Dhoni lit up the Eden Gardens with big hundreds as India achieved their first goal of putting up a mountain of runs in the second Test.

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By stumps on the second day, drawn 50 minutes prematurely because of insufficient light, Dhoni's bowlers pushed the West Indies further down disaster lane, reducing them to 34 for 2 in pursuit of an imposing 631 for 7 declared.

The declaration could have come earlier, to give the West Indies a few more overs ahead of the inevitable early closure. Once it did, 10 minutes into the final session, Umesh Yadav squared up Adrian Barath with his second ball to have the opener snapped up by Virender Sehwag at slip. The newly-married Ravichandran Ashwin then induced an inside edge from Kraigg Brathwaite, which was comfortably pouched by Gautam Gambhir at short leg.

Laxman and Dhoni batting in tandem is a formula guaranteed to entertain. Their styles are as different as chalk is from cheese, but the runs flow from both ends all the same. If Laxman's blemishless unbeaten 176 (280b, 12x4) was steeped in purity and elegance, the skipper's 144 (175b, 10x4, 5x6) was built around doses of good fortune (twice 'out' caught-behind off no-balls) and unorthodoxy which is a Dhoni patent.

The beauty of Laxman's batting is the ease with which he scores at a fair clip without taking any risks. The second new ball troubled him a couple of times on the morning of Day 2, particularly one from Kemar Roach which took the inside edge on way to the fine leg fence. A wristy flick to mid-wicket and a controlled steer to the point boundary, though, settled him down. And before anyone knew, Laxman had raised his 17th Test ton with yet another delightfully caressed boundary to mid-wicket.

Five of those 17 have been scored at the Eden, where he aggregates 1217 runs in 10 Test matches at an average of 110.6. He has struck centuries in each of his last three Tests at Eden and not been dismissed once. Staggering numbers indeed, which even the incomparable Don Bradman would have envied!

Fifty minutes into the morning session, Laxman lost Yuvraj Singh after a sixth-wicket stand of 50. It was a rough one from umpire Rod Tucker, who adjudged Yuvi lbw off Darren Sammy when TV replays suggested the ball would have missed leg stump. But the time he spent at the crease, the southpaw looked anything but comfortable, especially against the short balls.

Dhoni, too, got the treatment as he walked in with the new ball just 10 overs old and doing just a bit. The Indian captain flirted with deliveries leaving the off stump, getting big nicks as many as three times. One (off Edwards' bowling) flew through vacant third slip and twice (off Roach), the ball settled into Carlton Baugh's big gloves only for the fielding team to realize that no-balls had been called. The second of those no-balls was a big one, reminding many of the infamous overstepping by Mohammad Aamer of the spot-fixing fame.

But as is his wont, Dhoni continued to lived dangerously and stroke audaciously. A slapped 4 to the long-on boundary past Edwards, a back-handed reverse sweep off Bishoo, a couple of ferocious upper cuts to the point and third man region stood out. There were five sixes as well, the best of the pack being the one smashed over long-on off Roach.
Dhoni's fifth Test ton - his first since the unbeaten 132 he hit against SA at this very ground in February 2010 - was completed with a timid push to long-off.

By the time Roach was third-time lucky vis-a-vis a 'genuine' caught-behind of Dhoni, the Indian captain and Laxman had put on 224 for the seventh wicket. And all but sealed the Caribbean fate in this series.

Laxman surpasses Gavaskar

* Laxman on Tuesday has surpassed Sunil Gavaskar's record of most runs by an Indian batsman at a single venue - 1122 (ave.56.10) in 11 Tests at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.

* Laxman (Eden Gardens), Azharuddin (Eden), Tendulkar (Chepauk) and Gavaskar (Wankhede) are the four Indians to share the record for most hundreds (5) at one venue.

* Gavaskar is the only Indian to have managed 1,000 runs at two venues. Apart from Wankhede, he has 1018 in 12 Tests at Chepauk.