Australia aren’t the first team to be humbled by India on their own shores, and they won’t be the last.
But the manner of their latest disastrous collapse, bowled out for 91 in the 33rd over as Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja again ran amok to set up victory by an innings and 132 runs, should spark grave concerns for Australia for the next three Tests. Changes in approach, and personnel as well, will be top of the agenda.
After playing second fiddle to player of the match Jadeja in the first innings, the afternoon of Day 3 was Ashwin’s time to shine. Once again the visitors were simply unable to make head or tail of his variations, four batters trapped LBW and Usman Khawaja caught at slip to finish an ugly first Test in India.
Only a debut seven-wicket haul from Todd Murphy, and a fighting unbeaten 25 from Steve Smith, could be taken from a horror day as positives.
Australia’s total was their second-lowest ever against India – and after all the talk of pitch doctoring in the lead-up to the Test, the surface had little if anything to do with it.
Indeed, disciplined half-centuries from Jadeja (70) and Axar Patel (84), plus a freewheeling 37 from Mohammed Shami as he made the most of an ugly drop from Scott Boland early in his innings, proved the pitch was far from the raging turner it was predicted to be.
Resuming at 7/321, Australia would have hoped to quickly wrap up the rest of the tail when a Todd Murphy peach caught a shouldering-arms Jadeja by surprise.
But with three sixes, Shami had other ideas, adding 52 with Patel before a top-edge gave Murphy his seventh – the 23rd-best figures by a Test debutant and the sixth-best by an Australian.
Patel seemed destined for a maiden Test ton as he and Mohammed Siraj inched India towards 400 – but while the latter milestone was reached, the former wasn’t, Patel losing his shape for the first time as his swing to leg off Pat Cummins saw his furniture disturbed.
Trailing by 223, the task was great for Australia to simply make India bat again: greater still when Khawaja edged Ashwin, who had been handed the new ball, to Kohli at slip in the second over.
Not long after, Kohli spilled a simple chance to reprieve Warner; though with the out-of-form veteran limping to 10 before Ashwin took out the middle man and trapped him plumb in front, the selectors might not be so kind.
From there, it was a procession: Marnus Labuschagne looked solid before being pinned LBW by some extra spin for Jadeja, while Renshaw’s dismissal for 2, once again caught on the back foot and misreading Ashwin’s spin, would rightly have left Travis Head in disbelief at his omission from this Test.
Peter Handscomb and Alex Carey both started assertively with a flurry of boundaries before adding to the carnage, Carey falling for a second time in the match to a missed reverse sweep.
Amid the carnage, Steve Smith once again looked untroubled by the conditions and the bowling, but with wickets falling freely at the other end, India could afford to wait him out.
Cummins feathered an edge behind off Jadeja, Murphy gave catching practice to mid-wicket, and Lyon was comprehensively beaten by a full inswinger from Mohammed Shami that took out leg stump – the first wicket of the innings to fall to pace.
Smith took the red ink after his one mistake, bowled through the gate by Jadeja, was revealed to be a no ball, but it was a small mercy. Boland was trapped LBW by Shami just a few minutes later, and the rout was complete.
RedDukes
Roar Rookie
Probably being a little pedantic here, but you lose a series (or, for example, a match, or a set) 0-4. You can win a series 4-0 though (or 1-0, or 2-0, or, you know, n-0, where “n” is any positive number, if that makes sense).
RedDukes
Roar Rookie
Shami…Siradj……“medium” pace? Sure. If you consider mid-140s to high-130s to be “medium” pace. And Rohit Sharma’s arguably the best Test opener at the moment, and not just in subcontinental conditions either. His 100 in England was sublime. And it was on a greentop too.
Steele
Roar Rookie
My point is that our bowlers don’t get pitches to their liking as often as their counterparts do. They would have liked Adelaide in that series, not one of the other three though.
Clear as mud
Guest
Siraj got one for the match. It was enough
Clear as mud
Guest
Cummins was fearsome in India and Bangladesh in 2017, he was able to get the ball chest and throat high, hitting hands when others couldn't get above the waste he's definitely lost a bit of that. or doesn't want to deploy it still a marvellous fast bowler
Clear as mud
Guest
mmm there wasn't a score over 400 last series we just bowled poorly when they didn't just break up and India refused to bend. good for them.
VSSRAO
Roar Rookie
But England has been doing great in ODIs and T20s for the past 4 years or so!
Ming63
Roar Rookie
Well played India, unbeatable at home and travel pretty well. Australia being ritually humiliated is hard to watch but what is more concerning is the gap that is opening up in world cricket. Aust thumped WI and SA not long ago. India with their huge population and new pathways to discover talent have a deep pool unlike most countries. If you are an Indian fan great fun but less so for everyone else. I am not sure where England fits in this but time will tell.
Censored Often
Roar Rookie
Other than Todd Murphy all players should be banned from wearing the baggy green until further notice. Let them play it their T20 caps (considering that's their main focus in life).
Rowdy
Roar Rookie
It's not a rule, it's a condition; d'oh
Micko
Roar Rookie
Rubbish! Australians want a fair fight. Good enough teams will beat us here: West Indies, South Africa, England, India. Interestingly, only the BCCI have been the only foreign body though that has openly interfered/pressured CA to a specific schedule though.
Grand Panjandrum
Guest
You're fighting a dying argument. I've listened to the podcasts, I've listened to very reasoned and centred people (Adam Collins, Geoff lemon, Gideon Haigh etc) and while all raised half a brow, none have an issue with it, and none certainly trying to equate this to a Bodyline "it's not cricket" line. It's legal and perfectly fine. Australia don't do it not because of any noble cause, but because they aren't clever enough is all
Clear as mud
Guest
simple. hilarious not a great captain, i'll wear that. but we haven't had a decent one for a while, so who was he meant to learn from?
Sgt Pepperoni
Roar Rookie
This isn't an argument. Yes it is!
Ummi
Guest
Don't know what these guys watch on tv.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Except you are not discussing. You rarely do.
Rellum
Roar Guru
:thumbup:
Jb
Guest
You are delusional and you prove it every day
Bikash
Roar Rookie
Aus should make 11 changes in their line-up for next test….find doppelgangers of other 10 indian players (CA has already found 1 for Ashwin :laughing: ) and somehow convince them to play for Australia in Delhi…to take the game beyond 3rd day and have some contest :silly:
Sgt Pepperoni
Roar Rookie
This is a discussion page Don. We're discussing