Australia’s warm-up for the Ashes and India’s warm-down from the IPL coincided with the World Test Championship final, a contest to determine once and for all which is the greatest Test cricket nation.
(By ‘once’, I mean ‘it happened previously but New Zealand won it, so we should probably just ignore that’ and by ‘for all’, I mean ‘the entire idea could well be killed off by the ICC in favour of, I dunno, a second T20 World Cup, so whoever wins this one may hold the mace-trophy in perpetuity’.)
Here’s the report card for the World Test Championship final between Australia and India.
Grade: C
India strutted to the middle of The Oval full of intimidatory tactics. They omitted the number one Test ranked bowler, Ravichandran Ashwin, from their starting XI, presumably as an act of swaggering bravado. (BRavido? No.)
Don’t even need the best bowler in this format to beat you lot, they were saying. Magnificent stuff.
And justified too, as they swiftly got rid of not just Usman Khawaja, Australia’s most prolific batter during the two-year qualifying period, but also the number one ranked Test batter, Marnus Labuschagne (also pending retiree David Warner).
Unluckily for India, however, Travis Head and Steve Smith then put on a 285-run partnership. Head scored 163 from 174 balls in a typically thrilling and terrifying knock. Fun, yes. But fun in the way that surviving a home-made rocket launch is fun.
Still, when are we going to have a conversation as a cricket nation about Head’s inability to convert 150s to 200s?
Smith’s more sedate innings saw him bring up his 31st Test century. As an indicator of how impressive a feat this is, think of it as one Test century for every day in October – a month in which Australia traditionally plays little to no Test cricket! Astonishing.
Now he just needs to put his head down and knock off the other months.
Grade: A
India wrapped up the Australian innings for 469 during the middle session of the second day. A good fightback, after Australia’s Day 1 dominance.
The highlight of India’s recovery? Captain Rohit Sharma’s employment of a fake T signal.
While pondering a review, Rohit moved one hand at right angles above the other, seemingly in preparation to call for DRS. However, and this is crucial, the top hand at no point touched the bisecting lower hand, instead hovering sultrily above it.
This was highly confusing to both the umpires and Australian batters, as one might imagine. But imagine how much more confusing it could be. How close can he get his hands together without touching? Will there soon be an umpire’s review to determine if Rohit asked for a player’s review? God, I hope so.
A superb innovation from the India skipper, to go with his splendid behind-the-back T-making on day one. Pat Cummins must feel like a fool to be so emphatically outmanoeuvred by his counterpart in this area.
Oh, sure, Cummins dismissed Rohit for just 14, plumb LBW when India came out to bat. So plumb, in fact, that Rohit didn’t even bother making a fake T. Still, cold comfort for Australia’s captain.
Grade: D
Australia arrived at The Oval on the third day keen to wrap up the India first innings and build an insurmountable lead.
However, despite some bullying from Cummins that saw him pepper Shardul Thakur with painful blows to the hand and forearm (“Get ready for a broken Thakur arm”), the number eight and Ajinkya Rahane put on a century stand to drag India within eight runs of an irrelevant follow-on mark.
But after that partnership was broken, Australia moved swiftly through the tail. When Cameron Green trapped number eleven Mohammed Siraj, India were all out for 294, and the Australians started running off the ground to prepare for their second innings – only to have to run back on the ground when the seemingly desperate review that was taken only because India had one remaining turned out to be valid.
“We have a clear spike on UltraEdge. Australia, I’ll need you to reverse your departure to the dressing room. You’re on screen now.”
Virat Kohli. (Photo by Alex Davidson-ICC/ICC via Getty Images)
Grade: F
Australia’s second innings was mostly uneventful, Smith’s comically wild slog at Ravindra Jadeja notwithstanding. Cummins’ declaration at 8/270 set India 444 to win, which meant all four umpires began the innings with one leg off the ground. A lovely nod to the memory of David Shepherd.
A less lovely nod, at least from the perspective of India fans, came when the freewheeling start to the innings by Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma was ended by third umpire Richard Kettleborough’s decision to say ‘yes’ to an appeal for a low catch from Green.
You can see why the India fans thought it was not out. After all, replay after replay showed clear signs of Green in contact with the red ball. But this was not enough to sway Kettleborough in Gill’s favour.
The decision enraged India supporters at the ground. The ones on social media were predictably chill about it, of course.
‘The umpire’s decision is final,’ was the sanguine consensus online. ‘A shame for Gill, obviously, but sometimes the breaks don’t go your way,’ offered other passionate fans. ‘A tight call and therefore ultimately one best left to a neutral, highly skilled umpire,’ suggested the rest.
Elon Musk’s Twitter, as ever, a haven for common sense and nuanced discussion.
At the ground, however, the India fans began chanting ‘cheat’ at Cameron Green, eliciting a tiny tear from the enormous puppy dog cricketer. As the song goes, ‘It’s Not Easy Being Green (And Being Called A Cheat By Enraged Fans Of The Opposition For Appealing For A Low Catch That The Third Umpire Then Confirms That You Have Caught)’.
Boy, Kermit nailed that.
Grade: B+
With 280 runs needed on the final day, and Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane still at the crease, India remained a chance to send the match deep into the final session and perhaps even pull off a stunning victory.
Fortunately, however, Scott Boland – a great Australian who cares about what time we all get to go to bed – dismissed both Kohli and Jadeja in the same over, allowing the rest of the bowlers to mop up the tail and give Australia victory and the title of World Test Champions by an emphatic 209 runs.
Such was the margin of victory, Cummins could have even let Shubman Gill come out and have another hit, if it was that important to him.
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