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Opinion
On paper, Australia dominated the first Test against India. In reality, it was anything but and the Border-Gavaskar trophy is still well and truly alive.
With the exception of a few hours where India fell in a heap, there wasn’t a whole lot between Australia and India in the first Test, and that could be a cause for concern for an unchanged Australian side. In fact, you’d almost say India had the better of the match right up until their second dig started.
Now, Boxing Day is upon us and once again and despite there being no Virat Kohli, there doesn’t appear to be a gigantic difference between the two sides on paper.
Australia may traditionally have the wood over Australia, but of all the pitches in the land down under India would like to play on, Melbourne is pretty close to the top of the list.
Seething from their dramatic collapse in Adelaide despite taking a first innings lead, the tourists will be out for revenge, and they have the side to get it.
The fate of the series, whether it moves to Sydney, Brisbane or stays in Melbourne, is still up in the air, but after a tumultuous year, a Boxing Day Test with no clear favourite and no clear winner in front of 30,000 fans is exactly what Australians need.
And it’s exactly what world cricket needs.
Of course, there is still plenty hinging on what sort of pitch the Melbourne Cricket Ground will be able to serve up for this second Test of the series. The ‘G has come under fire for its somewhat docile pitches in the recent past.
The threat of Melbourne landing two Tests is just as much a worry for cricket fans as the current umpiring in the Big Bash League.
But back to the topic on hand, and the Australian batting order is still brittle at best. Sure, India crumbled in a heap in their second innings thanks to some excellent bowling from the hosts, but that doesn’t mean the trend and tone for the entire series has been set.
Umesh Yadav forms part of India’s impressive pace battery. (Photo by Peter Parks/AFP via Getty Images)
If you cast the mind back just a few hours earlier, Australia had been skittled for a sub-200 score. That was in reply to India’s 241, and even that was only the cause because Australia wrapped up the middle order and tail at a rate of knots.
Now, sure, you can look at it and say Test cricket is won on moments like that, and there is no disputing that. It’s won on the big plays, the big swings in momentum and the patience to keep working away and waiting for the breakthroughs.
But that doesn’t mean Australia should be overly thrilled with their performance in the first Test.
An unchanged XI means Joe Burns will be at the top again with Matthew Wade, who both saw off the new ball in Adelaide, but little else.
Marnus Labuschagne gave chance after chance in his innings, Steve Smith’s form hasn’t been at its best for 12 months, and the rest of the middle order is shakey, save for Tim Paine’s excellent innings which kept the Aussies in the match and away from a similar fate to that of the Indian second innings.
Now, because of the eventual size of the win for the Aussies, those issues, the cracks if you like, will be papered over and a fired-up Indian side get another chance at the same batting order.
Really, the biggest question for India is whether they can avoid a second innings calamity, and whether they have enough runs in them without Virat Kohli.
One would expect the MCG’s pitch to suit them quite nicely. Someone like Cheteshwar Pujara thrives on decks like this, where he can take his time and grind out a big score.
Ajinkya Rahane will need to stand up in the absence of his skipper too, and while there could be changes to the remainder of the Indian side, it’s a concern for the Aussies that Ravichandran Ashwin is in form.
What is most intriguing is that this match appears to be shaping up as a battle of the bowling attacks. A battle of the bowling attacks at the lifeless creates a weird dynamic where patience, consistency and building pressure will be rewarded.
The Australian media have been very happy to write off India after their skittling in the second innings at the Adelaide Oval, but this series is anything but a certainty.
Boxing Day is upon us, and a match which could go either way is exactly what the doctor ordered.