The Poem that is Cricket.

19th December, 2020– India start their Day 3 of the first test in the iconic Adelaide Oval in the infamous Pink Ball Test match, 62 runs ahead of Australia with 9 wickets in hand; virtually in the driver’s seat and whole of India is expecting for some heavy weight batting. From a score of 9/1, the next 45 minutes turned out to be one of the best displays ever of pace bowling which meant India hung their head in shame with their lowest ever total of 36-9 and a broken wrist of Shami meant, 36-all out. Australia cruised to victory in the afternoon session with 8 wickets in hand. With the talismanic Kohli preparing to catch his home-bound flight, it was a day to forget for the team and for the fans. What is most difficult to exhibit during these times is to repose the faith shown in these men who are playing at the highest level.

The story moves from the iconic Adelaide to the gigantic Melbourne. With Kohli leaving and Shami injured, Prithvi Shaw in complete loss of control of his game, the responsibilities were rested upon the timid yet the resilient Ajinkya Rahane.

26th December, 2020– Favorites Australia win the toss and opt to bat first and India have this task of catching up. Australia are 38/3 and suddenly they feel like crumbling under the pressure of their own expectations. Crawling here and crawling there, they scratch to 195 and India has 12 overs to negotiate. End of Day 1 and they are 36/1. 159 runs behind. Resting on the shoulder of Rahane- our mighty little captain and the late resurgence of the fieriness of Jadeja meant, India took a lead of 131 runs and was in complete control of the proceedings from there on.

29th December, 2020- Australia have somehow scraped to start their Day 4 with 5 runs in the bank an 4 wickets in hand. Cameron Green and Pat Cummins (we must start calling him legendary) sort of put up a fight but it wasn’t for long and India had to chase down some meager 70 runs to win and level the series. While it was being done, we had Rahane at one end and a very vibrant and young Indian player from Chandigarh at the other, Subhman Gill. The comeback meant, it was time for the Australians to fasten their seat belts. With their batting being heavily scrutinized with 3 consecutive scores of below 200 or just touching 200, Smith- the more than equivalent and even better than Kohli (as the stats suggest) was under the pump along with their openers and the story moved to Sydney; series leveled at 1-1.

7th January, 2021- A new year and a new start. With Kane Williamson reaching the ICC Numero Uno position in Test Batting and so his ever so gentleman team for the first time in their cricket history after thrashing Pakistan left, right and centre all the focus was back on the Border-Gavaskar trophy. Another day, another toss and Mr. Tim Paine had no hesitation in again choosing to bat first with their young gun- Pucovski and the experienced David Warner (who wasn’t 100% fit to play the match) coming out on a cloudy morning. Losing Warner early, play was lost for almost 40 overs that day with Australia reaching 166/2 at end of Day 1. Will Pucovski, making his debut in this famous Pink Test makes a gritty 62, thanks to Pant dropping him twice. Smith on Day 2 scored his 27th Test ton, quickest after Bradman and made a heavy statement. India came back all guns blazing and Australia ended up scoring 338, much below anyone’s expectations. Jadeja and Bumrah with crucial spells and able support from Siraj and Saini (on debut) tried to fill the void in the absence of all major font-line bowlers. India this time more confident of their opening partnership with Rohit Sharma and Gill, made a good start followed by both of them failing to capitalize on the start meant, India finished their day on 96/2. Pujara and Rahane, the two most able batsmen of the team will start fresh on Day 3.

Starting Day 3 cautiously, India suffered a not-so-surprising collapse from 195/4 to 244/10. Two poor shot selections by Rahane, trying to cut Cummins on a ball too close to the body and a rash shot by Pant 2.5 stumps away from his off to Hazlewood meant, Australia found their opening. Pujara trying hold one end up, gets a screamer from Cummins as he admitted that it was the best ball he had faced to get out in this series (disagreed, the best is still the one he got in Adelaide), meaning India were 195/6. With the scoreboard not moving at a great pace meant, Jadeja was left to do some late damage control. Two additional run outs and a broken thumb of Jadeja on a sharp rising delivery meant, India were already looking at the end of the tunnel. Australia end the day ahead of India by 197 runs with Smith and Labuschange set at the crease.

Australia was all over making merry on Day 4 on an extremely docile strip with almost nothing in it for the bowlers as the game progressed. The sun being out for most part of the Day 3 meant, the juice had emptied and batting had become easier. Amidst the controversy of racial abuse subjected towards Bumrah and Siraj at the end of Day 3, followed by one targeting Siraj minutes before tea on Day 4 saw the authorities asking a group of young lads to leave the ground as directed by the umpires. CA at the end of Day 4 admitted looking into the matter with authentic investigation and prosecution. Australia declared at Tea on Day 4 at 312/6 with a lead swelling upto 406. After tea on Day 4 the equation stood: India requires 407 to win from a maximum of 137 overs. India finished their Day on the score of 98/2, nullifying 34 of the 137 overs with both Rahane and Pujara at the crease once again. People were already on the front foot predicting how quickly can the Aussies wrap this up?

The writing was on the wall, and given the optimistic and pragmatic fan I am of the Men in Blue, I felt these were the chances of the variety of results at the end of Day 4- Australia win-75%, Draw- 25%, India win- 0%. India had been criticized specifically with the way they have fielded, dropping catches and Pujara’s style of playing. Failing to rotate strike adds the pressure on the batsman at the other end and this is something that he personally needs to address despite the entire team and management giving full backing to his style of playing. Hanuma Vihari, someone VK had personally mentioned and expected to stand tall during this series had failed miserably till Day 5 of the Sydney test.

India begin their Day 5 with 97 overs of survival. It was all about survival on this day and the statisticians were all over trying to figure out how long has India batted on the 4th innings of a Test match and what were those results. Australia taste success in the second over of the day when Rahane played the ball straight into the hands of Wade at Short Leg and Nathan Lyon, the main predicted tormentor of the final Day had arrived. And then comes the first surprise of the Day- Mr. Rishab Pant is sent ahead of Vihari; he plays the way he knows best and suddenly India has reached 206/3 by Lunch. Pant had scored 70 odd runs by then. Pujara still playing the way he does best, blocking. India comes after lunch, Pant goes all boom-boom with 10 overs before the second new ball is available. The last over before the new ball, Pant has scored 97 of 117 and has single-handedly destroyed Lyon’s supremacy, steps out, the balls pitches and turns more than Pant expected, Pant fails to reach the pitch of the ball and Cummins takes a catch. India 250/4. With Vihari coming in and Jadeja not being expected to play, it was Pujara, Vihari and Ashwin who were there. Just when it looked like Pujara is eyeing his first 100 of the tour, hitting Cummins for 3 consecutive boundaries, Vihari damages his hamstring employing a stoppage of play for some good time. Hazlewood pitches a dream of a delivery, which straightens just that bit after pitching right on the seam and Pujara is castled; he looks back at Vihari, long and hard with some steel like expression as he walks off and India is 271/5. All that hope of the the most improbable result of an Indian victory was flushed and Vihari and Ashwin had 44 overs to spend. The Australians might have felt they had their game. It was all about one more wicket. Out comes Australia after tea and Starc and Cummins give everything in the text book that is dedicated to the name of short pitched balling, targeting the ribs of Ashwin. And boy did he take some blows. Vihari had just one job and that was to stay there for as long as possible. Ashwin had just one job and that was to see off Lyon for as long as possible. Denying singles, doubles and anything between 1-3 runs, they produced a partnership that will go down in the pages of history. From 271/5 they finished at 334/5 adding 63 runs between them batting for 43.1 overs to be precise denying Australia any more openings.

It was Australia’s turn to drop catches and they did with all their glory with the captain involved thrice in one single day. Tim Paine was too focused on sledging clearly and some of the banter between him and Ashwin have already become fan favorites on social media. Substitute fielder Sean Abbott too dropped Ashwin which added to their woes. India sure rode on their chances, but it will still be a hard pill to swallow if told that a full blown Australian attack managed to pick up just 3 wickets on day 5 Sydney pitch bowling 97 overs. At the end it might have been a drawn test match on paper but it is a win for a team which have been depleted of its cream players due to injuries. Constant and substantial. The grit, determination and resolute is of absolute importance, is what Vihari and Ashwin showed today and that is what made everyone believe once again in this beautiful sport. I have always maintained that Cricket is a game of glorious uncertainties and today was a sheer example of this philosophy. As Australia becomes ready to welcome the Indians in their Gabba fortress, what’s in store is much beyond anyone’s comprehension which now the Australian’s too might have known. With Paine’s captaincy now under the radar and their own issues to handle, the Border-Gavaskar series, 2020-21 has now reached its boiling point. Test Cricket is the best teacher of how to live your life, coming full circle from 36/10 to a chance of wining the series 2-1 again, it is a sheer lesson on how never to give up in difficult and the most trying times of our life.