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New captains were behind two thrilling Brisbane Tests

Bob Simpson's resignation and return to cricket were the catalysts for two thrilling Tests between Australia and India.
Expert
16th December, 2014
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It has been a skippers’ Test series so far. The rival captains Michael Clarke (128) and Virat Kohli (115 and 141) scored three centuries between them in Adelaide last week, and the future Australian captain Steven Smith chimed in with the highest score of the Test.

Smith carved 214 runs (162 and 52) without getting out even once.

As the second Test starts in Brisbane, I remember two thrilling Tests between Australia and India in Brisbane in which Australia was led by replacement captains.

The third Test in the 1967-68 series in Brisbane was a cliffhanger, with the result in doubt until the final hour.

Arriving in Australia only two days before the Test, stroke-player ML Jaisimha proved himself a hero by scoring 74 and 101 to almost snatch a win for his team.

Australia was captained by a new captain – Bill Lawry, who took over from Bob Simpson.

Explained Simpson in his autobiography Simmo, “I felt 1968 was an ideal time to retire for during the following eighteen months Australia would make a tour of England and then play a home Test series against the West Indies. A new captain could settle in and I could begin life on the outside again by signing myself up for some lucrative newspaper contracts.”

Australia made 379 as Doug Walters top-scored with 93. Rusi Surti, skipper Nawab of Pataudi Jr, and Jaisimha hit fifties after India was three down for 0.

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EAS Prasanna (6/104) bowled his off spinners with deadly effect. Australia scored 294 and set India an improbable win target of 395. Opener Farokh Engineer was out for a duck but his opening partner Abid Ali attacked vigorously to hit 47; his first 10 scoring shots were 4, 3, 2, 4, 4, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4.

A 119-run stand between Jaisimha and Chandu Borde took India to 5 for 310, only 85 needed for a victory. But Bob Cowper dismissed both of them and India lost their last five wickets for 45 to lose by 39 runs. India had come close to her first Test win on Australian soil.

It was a debut to remember for Australia’s pace bowler Eric Freeman. His first scoring shot in Test cricket was a six off Prasanna. He then took the wickets of openers Engineer and Abid Ali in his first 10 balls.

Now to 1977-78 and the fascinating Test series between Australia and India which started in Brisbane.

Bob Simpson made a successful comeback to Test cricket as captain because 12 of the players who had played against England in 1977 – including skipper Greg Chappell – had joined World Series Cricket.

The popular turbaned Indian skipper Bishan Bedi started weaving his left-arm spin magic on the opening day of this Test by taking 5/55 as the mostly rookie Aussies were bowled out for 166.

Peter Toohey was the only one to read Bedi’s spin, scoring 82. Australia hit back with fast bowlers Jeff Thomson and Wayne Clark and India trailed by 13 runs.

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India’s medium-pacers Madan Lal and Mohinder Amarnath took early wickets and the home team was 3/7. Simpson (89) showed his experience as he added 93 runs for the fourth wicket with David Ogilvie (46) and 84 runs for the fifth wicket with Toohey (57). Madan Lal bowled at a steady pace to grab 5/72.

Set 341 to win, India started confidently with opening master batsman Sunil Gavaskar recording the only century in the match. At 5/243, India seemed cruising towards victory.

With only 98 runs needed, the Aussie speed trio of Thomson, Clark and Alan Hurst got among wickets. Bedi fought until the end, hitting an unbeaten 26 at number 10. India, however, fell 16 runs short of its target.

Simpson wrote in David Lord’s World of Cricket Monthly (January 1978), “This Test will go down as one of the greatest of all time. For excitement and drama, it would rank with the Brisbane tied Test against the West Indies in 1960-61, the Adelaide draw and the final Test of the same series. It is also up there with the memorable Manchester Test of 1961 when Richie Benaud, with some magnificent bowling, snatched victory for Australia.”

Will the Brisbane Test produce as much drama as in Adelaide last week? Will Shaun Marsh be an adequate replacement for Michael Clarke? Will the Marsh brothers Shaun and Mitchell become the future Chappell brothers?

Will Josh Hazlewood, 23, produce enough firepower as a pace bowler to trouble the Indian bats? Will Mitchell Starc be an adequate replacement for the injured Ryan Harris?

Will Ravichandran Ashwin replace Karn Sharma as India’s spinner?

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Will it be for the first time that three Mitchells (Johnson, Marsh and Starc) represent Australia in the same Test?

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