Indians gear up for fight Down Under
As Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men made their way into the international terminal exit at the Canberra International airport, they would have surely felt at home. Why? While there would be a considerable amount of Indians cheering them on from the stands as they play their first tour game at the Manuka Oval in Canberra, the Dhoni’s devils will be aware that they are up against one of the weakest Australian line-ups in recent memory.
Moments of brilliance have led to phases of shoddy shows on the field, and the seven-run defeat at the hands of New Zealand will give sleepless nights to Michael Clarke and his team. The Australian selector will know that the loss in Hobart was Australia’s 16th since 2008 which meant that only West Indies (who have forever been on the crossroads) and Bangladesh (who continue to baffle the purists with their ordinary outings) have lost more Tests.
The series between the two sides will nevertheless be a high-voltage series, with both sides trying to outdo one another.
Test cricket, since its inception in the 19th century, have always been about battling the odds. While India hopes to fit in 11 fit men for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, their opponents will be vying for 11 men who FIT into the scheme of things. The performance of the top-order is a worry for the Aussies as no one after the axing of Simon Katich has played to the potential and the debut century of David Warner should bring the smirk back on Clarke’s face. The consistently inconsistent form of Philip Hughes continues to baffle his teammates and the paying public.
Clarke has plenty to worry about. The patchy form of former skipper Ricky Ponting notwithstanding, the hosts’ biggest worry has been the No.3 position in the batting order. With Ponting shunted down the order, Usman Khawaja has not exactly set the house on fire. Australia’s misery does not end there. Mr Cricket —– Michael Hussey too has been found wanting, with scores in his last seven innings reading —–1, 0,29,0, 15, 8 and 0. More than the scores which are pathetic for the calibre for Hussey, it is the mode of dismissals that would worry even the best of the batters.
Literally every Australian batsman has been found wanting when it comes to the moving delivery, a chink in the armoury that would be exploited by their opposition.
The once No.1 ranked side have been blessed with regular production of good bowlers in the form of Nathan Lyon, James Pattinson and Mitchell Starc, but to bowling to the likes of Virender Sehwag, VVS Laxman, Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid is a different breed of beast altogether.
The Indians, who were thrashed by the Englishmen, arrive on the backdrop of victories against a second-grade West Indies side, but a Test win is a Test win. The Indians have batsmen who are capable of turning the tide in their side’s favour. India has Sachin Tendulkar who has amassed a behemoth 3151 runs at 60.59 against the Aussies in 31 matches while VVS has accrued 2279 at 55.58 from just 25 Tests.
The likes of Dravid (1949 from 28 games) and Sehwag (1513 from 16) add not just meat, but plenty of weight to the Indian arsenal.
The return of Zaheer Khan and the influx of pacers such as Umesh Yadav lend solidity to India’s cherry-hurling department.
While Dhoni will be praying that he gets a fit XI that takes the field on December 26 in the first Test, Clarke will be hoping for a change in fortunes as his side looks to save a crumbling empire that is fast losing its last assortment of bricks.
