India is No. 1
K.R.Wadhwaney
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Me e r u t ' s
B h u v n e s h w a r
Kumar bagged
three centurion in
eight innings Steve
Smith Bradman's
(17) dismissal in the second innings.
The skipper went for a pre-determine
shot, the ball swerved a bit, stood up,
and hit inner edge before uprooting
bails.
It was a beautiful ball. Smith's early
walk back rendered lesser fries in
dress room, 'self-sledged, brain dead'
and care-worn. They did not have a
stomach to bat as Indians were
ferocious tigers. Earlier, Umesh
Yadav bowled an inspired spell. He
was teasing and tormenting the
Australian openers with a lively overs
to raise a possibility of the debacle of the side. The tourists were in a state of
disturbed heart and panic. Most of the
batsmen were completely befuddled.
The 'complete' player of the series
and now a responsible all-rounder,
Jadeja, and a regular 'mover and
shaker', Ashwin, excelled in mopping
up operations to push the visitors
further Down Under. . The march to
middle and retreat to pavilion was un-
Australian-like. They were dismissed
for 137 leaving India to get merely 106
to win the Test. The track was worn out
in sessions of 10th and 11th but the
target was too small The real
heroes of the
decisive turn
around of the
intricate plot
were, however,
maverick Jadeja
and resolute
Saha, whose
work behind the
stilts and batting.
His doings had
the stamp of
maturity. His
d e t e r m i n e d
defence and
style of compiling
runs were
delightful. Jadeja
was not a stylist
but the ball raced to the boundary
behind or he sent it in stands, to the
great delight of spectators. He had no
prescribe canonical way to execute his
shots. His forte was composition and
not the grammar. He was not
governed by batting fundamentals. His
aim was the minimum effort, the
maximum effect. His assets were
balance and natural instincts.
The pair first extricated the side
from 'danger of death', took the team
to safety with a lead and then placed
the team in the position to rejoice. The
lead had a 'twin edged' effect on contesting teams: India was
rejuvenated and their body language
suggested their 'killer intent'. In
contrast, Australians were mighty
demoralized and dispirited. As usual,
the crowd's behaviour was of mob—
ecstasy one moment and loud
appreciation of the home team. A
group of cricket followers from
England expressed restraint and
adhered to cricket etiquette.
India stayed undisputed
king, number one. They won
seven successive series and
emulated Australia and the
West Indies. Team India
finished No 1 in ICC
rankings for second straight
year, got ICC's mace and
cash award of $ 1 million.
India achieved four
consecutive series wins
against Australia at home.
Before the start of the series, the
general view was: India top-dog and
Australia under-dog. The prediction
went haywire. Both teams were evenly
matched, evenly motivated and evenly
placed even in spin department. Offspinner,
Lyon, was no inferior to
Indian spinners in any sphere.
India won the fourth Test by eight wickets and four-match series 2-1
against Australia
The 2017 February-March series
that India won 2-1 against another
powerful Australia was one of the
most throbbing, exciting and
memorable extravaganza events in the
long and enduring history of Test
cricket. India lost miserably first at
Pune, came back roaring in the second
at Bangalore to make it 1-1, the third
at Ranchi was drawn and the fourth
India convincingly and emphatically
won by eight wickets at Dharamshala
to make a loud statement that it had
rightly bagged 19 Tests without loss
before the start of the much soughtafter
contest. Every Test was different
providing a high-voltage competition,
controversies and drama without a
dull moment. Every mach provided
thrills and pathos to all—players,
officials, spectators on grounds and on television sets. Every match sent
shock-waves as if it was an instant
game of 50 overs or 20.
From Test cricket point of view, the
series provided every thing—brilliant
batting, outstanding strokes, sixes,
ups and downs, severe swing and
seam pace bowling, a barrage of
bouncers and bumpers, subtle spin,
including Chinaman, first class fielding,
sledging, gamesmanship, collapse,
recovery, stonewalling and drama.
The Decision Review System (DRS)
provided all the needed lustre. There
was also barracking , although largely
partisan, and hullabaloo.
The series was as dramatic as two
'tie' Tests between West Indies and
Australia at Brisbane in 1960 and
between India and Australia at
Chennai in .
India stayed undisputed king,
number one. They won seven
successive series and emulated
Australia and the West Indies. Team
India finished No 1 in ICC rankings for
second straight year, got ICC's mace
and cash award of $ 1 million.
India
achieved four consecutive series wins against Australia at home.
Two champion batsmen with
strong personalityes, Virat Kohli and
Smith, were rival captains in three of
the four Tests. Kohli suffered a
shoulder injury in the penultimate
game. He was unable to play. He was
replaced by Rahane, although his presence from the pavilion was
noticeable.
Had he been on the ground, some
more gamesmanships, dramas,
taunts and sledging might have taken
place as both captains are aggressive
by instinct. Barring Richie Benaud,
most Australians as captains in India
have been known to be bad losers.
They are as bad as England teams.
Smith is no different. His lips twitch
and queer under pressure and his red
face becomes more red in difficult
situations. The tattoo-master Kohli is
always ready with gestures. Also both
have 'love-hate' relationship, although
both are great admirers of each
other's prowess and perseverance.
Sadly, the series turned out to be
controversial and awfully difficult.
This
divided the teams. Australians
behaviour on ground and off left much
to be desired. The friends have turned
foes. Kohli has gone saying so in his
usual unambiguous style. He 'unfriends
the Aussies for good. Smith
said:"...at times, I lost control over my
emotions. I apologize for that".
Apart from a rip-roaring series' win, Team India's gain are many. There
was mistaken impressive in Indian
corridors that India was a team of
two—Kohli and Ashwin. India won the
series without Kohli playing the last
Test and Ashwin (82 wickets) has a
strong rival in Jadeja (71 and bulk of
runs in exacting situations.
Lokesh Rahul is an excellent
opening batsman—a solid defence
and wide range of strokes in addition
to his temperament. His five 50s in the
series bears the testimony of his skill
and ability.
Umesh Yadav with 30 wickets is
pacy enough to cause concern to top
batsmen. Pujara is a durable one drop
batsman, though he takes time to
settle down. The arrival of the first
evern Chinaman in the side, Kuldeep
Yadav, took four wickets for 68 in his debut Test. He was third 'Chinaman
exponent to claim four wickets. The
batsmen played one way, but the ball
breaks the other way. should lend
variety to bowling unit. He has sparks
but he needs to be groomed
meticulously. Stumper Wriddhiman
Saha secured 441 runs in 10 outings
with two defiant 50s. He also grabbed
25 catches.
Two champion batsmen
with strong personalityes,
Virat Kohli and Smith, were
rival captains in three of
the four Tests. Kohli
suffered a shoulder injury
in the penultimate game.
He was unable to play. He
was replaced by Rahane,
although his presence
from the pavilion was
noticeable.
The origin of the term dates to the
1930s when Ellis Achong, a West Indies
spinner, with Chinese roots, bowled a
left-handed 'googlies' to dismiss
England batsman Walter Robins who
said: "Fancy, being done by a bloody
Chinaman".