As both teams ready themselves for the Boxing Day Test this weekend, it would be wrong to completely write off India’s chances. True, they had an unbelievable and devastating session at Adelaide, but a good start to the next Test will go a long way in helping them find a way to compete and challenge Tim Paine’s men.
At present, all attention is on the selection of the India XI in the wake of two forced and one possible change. The much-publicised departure of Virat Kohli automatically creates a gap in the middle order. On the positive side, since Kohli had announced his decision to leave many weeks ago, I am sure a plan was already in place, and according to reports, the replacement will be KL Rahul.
He is a calm, steady individual who rarely shows signs of panic, qualities that are augmented by his aggressive repertoire of strokes. Rahul will be a great addition to the side for the steadiness he brings to his game.
The other change, necessitated by the injury to Mohammed Shami, is a forced one. Navdeep Saini and Mohammed Siraj are the options the Indian selection team have to pick from and it would be interesting who they go with. I am also told that T. Natarajan is in Australia as part of the Indian set-up. He was very impressive in the T20I series and a left-arm pacer might add some variety to the pace attack, Moreover, Ravichandran Ashwin would not mind the rough patches Natarajan will leave as the match progresses. Ravindra Jadeja as a replacement for Shami is another option but that would limit the pace options. Shami will be missed for his metronomic seam-up consistency, his seam position is at present the best in world cricket.
There is also talk of Shubman Gill coming in for Prithvi Shaw, and I am curious to see how that one goes. If Shaw is replaced on the basis of one Test, it would suggest that his was a flawed selection in the first place. He is still a young cricketer, and while there is some concern about his approach, defence, and mindset, dropping him without at least giving him two Tests might not send the right message, even though I can understand the strong push to play Gill.
India might take a leaf out of Justin Langer’s book. The Australia coach has stuck with Joe Burns and a small but solid dividend came in the form of the opener’s assured knock in the fourth innings.
There are also murmurs of fitting Rishabh Pant into the side, but once again, replacing Wriddhiman Saha after just one Test would be a surprising decision.
India must remember they were in good positions in the first two days of the Test match and what they need to do is find a way to be more positive and proactive against the relentless pace attack they will face. Singles and an intent to score has to be there, and small changes might go a long way. Cheteshwar Pujara for example had only twelve singles in his 160-ball vigil in the first innings.
Australia will not have many selection issues, with the playing eleven remaining unchanged. There was talk of David Warner being fit and ready for selection, but he still has some way to go.
The quality of Australia’s bowling performance papered over the substandard batting that the hosts displayed in the first innings at Adelaide. The team will be keen to correct that and some work in that direction must be in progress.
We’re halfway through the India tour and much has been written about how there’s not enough needle and aggression between the two sides, and that the friendliness is taking away from the contest. As long as players are doing what comes naturally to them, and as long as they are abiding by the watchful eye of ICC and the increasing scrutiny of cameras everywhere, I do not think there is a problem. It’s hard to please every commentator out there, and it is the players’ prerogative to conduct themselves in the way they feel they should. Things might have changed over the years, and to expect teams to live up to stereotypes is unreasonable.
