Before this series began, much of the hype surrounded India’s talismanic captain and superstar batsman, Virat Kohli.
He was called ‘the head of the snake’ by some reporters. ‘Get Kohli out, and the entire Indian batting line up will collapse’, said others.
Some went as far to say that India’s hopes in winning a maiden Test series in Australia lied purely on Kohli’s leadership and batting.
The Kohli fandom reached fever pitch when cricket.com.au uploaded a video to Instagram filming him batting in the nets, with the ‘sound on’ emoji placed in the post, encouraging fans to listen to him hit the ball cleanly in the short clip.
Yes, Kohli is an exceptional cricketer with phenomenal talent and an obvious passion for the game, however the Adelaide Test has shown his team do not rely solely on him to win.
This team is not a one-man-band – I know, it’s shocking. Incredulous. Certainly dumbfounding.
Australia paid a huge price for focusing most of pre-match bowling and fielding strategies on taking the Indian skipper’s wicket. Kohli certainly had a quiet match by his own meteoric standards, but what the Aussies failed to realise was just how strong and defiant the rest of this Indian batting line up could be.
The main star and lynchpin of India’s famous victory was the quiet achiever Cheteshwar Pujara, who is averaging a Bradmanesque 97.00 runs for this series so far. Didn’t see that one coming, did you?
Perhaps cricket.com.au should upload a video of his net session next time, or maybe Shane Warne should ask Pujara his favourite dance moves to ‘Wiggle Wiggle Wiggle’. Maybe then this Aussie bowling attack will wake up and realise that there’s a lot more to this Indian team than just King Kohli. Don’t forget Prince Pujara too.
Batting aside, India’s bowling cartel galvanised this victory. They were phenomenal.
Ravi Ashwin looks like a spinner reborn. Ishant Sharma runs in like a thoroughbred stallion – his long, dark, beautiful black locks flowing nonchalantly in the wind as he consistently bangs it in at over 140 km/h.
Mohammad Shami is no taller than the diminutive Ricky Ponting but he is a strong, powerfully built man whose unerring pace and accuracy proved too difficult to get away from.
Jasprit Bumrah has one of the most awkward and unusual bowling actions and run-ups for a fast bowler, but it is remarkably effective and caused plenty of headaches.
These four hunted as a pack, exploited the conditions exceptionally and kept their cool, patience and discipline when under pressure. It was pure magic.
The final scorecard shows that India’s famous win was a team effort. When Kohli failed with the bat, Pujara stood up.
Bumrah and Ashwin took six wickets apiece, Shami five and Sharma three – although the latter deserved more, given his no-ball problem in the second innings.
This game has shown that India have the depth, strength and skill level to deliver when it matters most. Such qualities are the key ingredients necessary to topple the Aussies at home.
Australia fought hard towards the end, but India always had their noses slightly in front and capitalised on the key moments.
The home team now faces an uphill battle for the Perth Test. New bowling plans and tactics will need to be developed for each of visitors’ main batsmen, or else an Indian whitewash could be well on the cards.
Nigel
Guest
Yes but if Kohli gets on a roll god help Australia, if he starts plundering hundreds with a good bowling attack behind him look out. The man has scored hundreds in all conditions, just the Aussies have the wood on him
Nigel
Guest
Yep, you are spot on, I said I will never respect this India team unless they can win a test series in South Africa and Australia. Now if they cannot beat an Australian team minus Warner and Smith and a woeful out of form Starc, they are deep trouble, Australia's batting is just as awful.
Nigel
Guest
Paul summed it well mate. Even in England and South Africa Kohli and Pujara were left to do too much. For once its India's bowlers that won them a test match never thought i would hear those words. Rahane surprisingly is a good player he has made runs overseas but is very inconsistent but Rahul, Vijay, Sharma are sitting ducks that lack patience and technique to play test cricket. That is why its imperative that Pathriv Shaw comes in he at least gets a chance to play against a world class bowling attack.
Rugbyrah
Roar Rookie
India is the cricket powerhouse. Gone are the days when the Windies and Aussies dominated. The money and the talent is all in India and with a billion people India is set to dominate cricket for a long time.
mickey of mo$man
Guest
opposition...? lmfao
anon
Roar Pro
They are just celebrating, trying to get in the heads of the mentally weak Aussie players.
Andre Leslie
Roar Guru
Considering the deficiencies of the Aussie batting lineup... the Indian bowlers will play just as much of a role as Kohli this series, if not more of a role. If they stay disciplined and work together, they have the potential to dismiss the Aussie team sub 300 just about each time. And then, it won't matter how much Kohli gets.
Nuwan Ranasinghe
Roar Pro
Thats true Tapeshwar. Varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav were very strong guys capable of hitting 140+ but they were wild and erratic and lost confidence quickly if they got for boundaries. This current Indian bowling attack is not like that at all which is great.
doug heffernan
Guest
Another talking point: How was their keeper Pant not fined for unsportsmanlike conduct??Talking back to the umpire, contacting the batsmen, sledging using offensive slurs.Kohli should have been fined for his over the top celebrations too and throwing the ball into the ground delibrately.How come the first test wasnt at the GABBA as per usual? Alll evidence that Team India is above the law and will use their bulk to get their way. A blight on the game.
Tapeshwer Singh
Guest
India boght express pace before,yadav and aaron were as quick as anyone,especially aaron .What this bunch has is pace coupled with accuracy and skill
Kopa Shamsu
Guest
what cheating?
anon
Roar Pro
His average in Australia is still in the 50's. Look, if he still can't post a decent innings after the Sydney Test I'll happily sink the boot in. But he has time to turn things around against Australia and I back him to do so. The guy is a proven winner, has no fear of Australia (T20 WC 2016 his innings against Australia was one of the best I have ever watched). I love his attitude. Love his style. Such a pure cricketer, a proven winner, aggressive and in your face. We need MEN like Kohli.
Nuwan Ranasinghe
Roar Pro
Yeah easily their best crop Harvey. Each bowler offers something different too which provides great variety in their attack as well. There were moments when Australia looked like getting away but India's bowlers just kept sticking to their plans and bowled great disciplined lines and lengths the whole time.
Nuwan Ranasinghe
Roar Pro
Gotta respectfully disagree with you on this one mate. I really don't think you were watching this game. Did India crumble? No they did not. You won't believe this but they actually won! Crazy right? Who would have thought. Did the conditions suit either team? No. But its obvious that India tamed this Adelaide pitch better than Australia, and they deserve that praise because they're the ones playing away. India had 3 individual 50+ scores compared to Australia's 2, with one of them being a ton, so this again tells a story. Did Ashwin need to score a ton in India's first dig just to prove to blokes like you that he's capable of batting? No he doesn't. He played the ideal anchor support role for Pujara to allow him to bat freely. Thats what a number 9 bat ought to. Especially given India's dire situation in their first innings. I really think you're downplaying this India victory at Adelaide way too much mate. This is a HUGE win for India and they deserve to be praised highly for their efforts. They have proved to the haters and doubters that they can win in Australia and they have done it handsomely. Yes they lost in England and SA but they are still the Number 1 ranked team for a reason. I'm excited to see where this series go now because this is the first time in a long time that any Asian team is giving the Aussies a run for their money in the Test arena in their own backyard. Bring on the second Test!
Paul
Roar Guru
Yep Kohli's will to win has resulted in him scoring less than 100 runs in his last 4 Tests against Australia. The margin flattered us. So no credit to the guys who gutsed it out? That's a very sad/ignorant comment
Paul
Roar Guru
We were watching a different game for sure. "Even Ashwin hung around for 80 balls".This guy has more Test centuries than 9 of the Australian side and all he could do was hang around???? As for the rest of the order, how are they going to fix the way they bat,when they've had 10 Tests against SA, England and now Australia and they have not done so? The only thing Kohli can confidently know is he captains a team that will ONLY do well when conditions suit them but crumble when real Test pressure is put on them. I just hope our half a Test side is good enough to beat them.
Jacko
Guest
And Aus is hiding behind Smith and Warners cheating...
anon
Roar Pro
I love Kohli's attitude, will to win, how he gets under the skin of opponents. Psychological tactics are an important part of any sport. The Aussies would rather be viewed as beta males than hard edged professional sportsmen. Our cricket team is following a similar trajectory as the Wallabies. Unfortunately for us the Pacific Nations don't play cricket. Sure, we probably win with Smith and Warner, but we are hugely dominant in Australian conditions and India have historically struggled. The margin flattered us due to the tail wagging. Smith will be 30 by next year's Ashes, Warner just turned 32. Even if Smith sticks around until 35, I don't think you'll be able to rely on him averaging 60. He will drop off or slump at some point.
Sumit
Guest
I can remember 100 from Pujara at joburg on a lightning quick deck against Stayn and co. Also 100 on a green seamer. He can bat.
Harvey Wilson
Roar Rookie
Dare i say India's fast bowlers are the best ever to tour here. Finally, they have some express pace. Well done to Ashwin to for overcoming the Australian conditions. How many high quality spinners have come and failed here.