A ball hadn't been bowled when the frenzy for the India-Australia Test series had been stirred to fever pitch – detailed build-ups across media platforms, breaking down key match-ups, tracing the genesis of this renowned rivalry, and much else.
A lot has changed since then. For starters, the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala, with the backdrop of the Dhauladhar range and its brown-hued peaks adding to the venue’s charm, was supposed to play host to the third Test.
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Now, of course, that privilege belongs to the Holkar Stadium, located in the heart of Indore. But more importantly, a combination of bad batting and injuries to a few protagonists in the Australian camp has resulted in the expectations of another memorable series swiftly dwindling. With the visitors not being able to play their part so far, it has taken under six days for India to take a 2-0 lead in this series.
For all the riveting contests that the two countries have produced since the turn of the century, there have also been some forgettable one-sided duels – the Australians winning 4-0 in 2011/12 and India exacting revenge with the same scoreline in 2013.
{{/usCountry}}For all the riveting contests that the two countries have produced since the turn of the century, there have also been some forgettable one-sided duels – the Australians winning 4-0 in 2011/12 and India exacting revenge with the same scoreline in 2013.
{{/usCountry}}Not that Rohit Sharma and the Indian players are expecting things to seamlessly fall into place over the next two Tests. With the pitch in Indore for the game starting on Wednesday likely to be similar in character to what we have had so far – the surface has patches of grass through the middle but looks extremely dry on the fuller lengths – the India skipper was conscious of their batting line-up being susceptible too.
“That’s the beauty of this game and the pitches we are playing on. A collapse can happen to us as well, not just them. I played 200 balls (in the first innings) in Nagpur and never felt set. It just takes one ball to grip or keep low and you are out,” Sharma told reporters on Tuesday. “On pitches like this, you are never in. What has happened to them can happen to us. We cannot take things lightly. Yes, we have quality spinners who can change things around just like that, but that does not give us the guarantee of winning the Test or rolling them over in one session. We have got to keep the discipline going.”
In Nagpur, the hosts were 240/7 with a lead of just 63 runs when Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel’s 88-run partnership put the game beyond Australia. In Delhi, India were in a deeper hole at 139/7 when Axar and R Ashwin revived the innings.
The Aussies will hope to prey on that shakiness at the top, exacerbated by KL Rahul’s string of low scores. While the 30-year-old opener has been removed from the vice-captaincy and did not take part in the optional session on match eve – Shubman Gill, on the other hand, again had a long session – Sharma provided no hints on his opening partner for the game.
“Rahul’s removal as vice-captain doesn’t indicate anything. As far as Gill and Rahul are concerned, that is how they train before any game. Today was an optional training session for the entire group. Whoever wanted to train came for it. As far as the XI is concerned, I would like to do it at the toss. I prefer it that way considering last-minute injuries are a possibility,” Sharma said.
While his Australian counterpart, Steve Smith, also said he will wait till the toss before naming the team, he hinted at the return of Mitchell Starc and Cameron Green. Both players missed the first two Tests due to finger injuries. More than the personnel though, the emphasis within that Australian dressing room is likely to be on trusting the plans they’ve formulated in the extended break between the second and third Tests.
“In the second innings in Delhi, a lot of us went away from our plans and got undone. We can hopefully apply pressure on the spinners and post good totals on the board. That’s the key for us. Hopefully, we can put that into practice in the middle and execute under pressure,” Smith said.
Smith has himself been guilty of veering away from plans that have yielded success in the past. On the 2017 tour of India, he was the leading run-getter of the series with 499 runs in four Tests at an average of 71.28. His highest score in this series is 37. He was dismissed playing a sweep – not a shot that you readily associate with him – in the second innings in Delhi.
“In India, starting your innings is the most difficult of probably anywhere in the world,” said Smith, explaining the complexity of scoring Test runs in India. “When you do face 30-40 balls, you can get a bit of a read on the wicket. There are always some surprises. Some balls will skid. Some balls will spin. There is certainly always something happening. You've got to be really focused,” he said.
If the Aussies can overcome some of these challenges over the next five days – a five-day Test itself would be a considerable upgrade – they may just infuse some of the excitement back into this series.