My first trip to Australia with the Indian team came way back in 1977 when none of the players who played in the just concluded series were even a twinkle in their parent’s eyes.
That was the first year too where most, if not all, the star Australian players were signed up by Kerry Packer for World Series cricket. The Australian team that we played was thus mostly a second-string team with the exception of one Jeff Robert Thomson, quite simply the fastest bowler I squared up to in my career. Australia had recalled Bob Simpson, who had retired about 10 years earlier.
Australia celebrate their 3-1 series win over India.Credit: Getty Images
That series also went down to the wire, with Australia winning the first two narrowly and India coming out on top in the next two Tests before Australia prevailed in the fifth and final Test match, winning by 45 runs after setting us 490 in the fourth innings. Subsequent tours to Australia were either three- or four-Test series. So after 47 years Australia and India played a five-match series and what a humdinger of a series it was, just like the one played way back then.
When the schedule was announced, it appeared the Aussies had decided to put India in the wringer by playing the first three Tests on pitches that suited their pace bowling strength.
However, they seemed to have forgotten that there was a Jasprit Bumrah the world’s best all-format bowler in the Indian ranks. He wrought havoc in the Australian ranks and with Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul putting on a record double century opening partnership, the Indians piled up nearly 500 runs in the second innings and went on to win the game by 295 runs.
That win seemed to have galvanised the extended support staff of the Australian cricket team, the Aussie media. Suddenly stories started to appear in the media about stuff that was fanciful to say the least. It was amusing to those who follow the Indian team and who know that not many even read the papers being engrossed as they are in their handheld devices.
India star Jasprit Bumrah was crowned player of the series.Credit: Getty Images
The Indian team is well aware that once such stories appear, that indicates that the opposition is rattled. The stories kept changing every day and provided more amusement to those of us who have been to these shores before.
The absence of Bumrah on the final day of the series was felt by the Indians when even one short spell of five overs could have helped turn the game around. In his absence Usman Khawaja, who has looked totally at sea against him, was suddenly dancing down the pitch to the other bowlers. His partner, the young Sam Konstas, threw the Indians off with his unorthodox approach in his first innings, but then found out Test cricket runs are harder to get than the headlines with some antics.
That said, what Kohli did with the shoulder bump is simply not cricket. Indians are not shy to retaliate if provoked, but here the provocation was simply not there. The one thing that players learn with experience is that it’s futile to try and get back at the crowds, who have come to have a good time, so booing players is never personal but just a way to entertain themselves. To react to that doesn’t do the player any good, and in fact does more harm.
Kohli must understand that whatever he does to react to the crowd actually puts more pressure on his teammates, who also then become targets of the spectators.
Responding to crowd taunts: Virat Kohli and his apparent sandpaper gestures.Credit: cricket.com.au
With his continued failures to avoid nibbling at the deliveries around the off-stump, he failed to make the contribution that could have boosted the total. The skipper, Rohit Sharma, was out of his depth and having taken the brave decision to step aside, because of his form, he has also raised big questions about his future in Test cricket.
Now that India has failed to qualify for the world Test championship final and the new cycle for the WTC starting with the tour to England in mid-June, it won’t be a surprise if the selectors take the bold decision to start the qualification process by looking for players who would be there for the next final in 2027.
Australia, well led by Pat Cummins, were deserving winners. Cummins led from the front with both bat and ball. Whenever a breakthrough was needed, he would come up with a spell that would put the skids under the Indians and his batting, whenever Australia were short of runs, was frustrating for the Indians.
It’s been a real pleasure to be here to witness first-hand such a riveting series. This series showed why Test cricket is the ultimate format of the game.
Test cricket is alive and well.
Sunil Gavaskar played 125 Tests for India and scored 10,122 runs.
