The third Test at the M.A.Chidambaram Stadium has produced the same amount of excitement which used to prevail in the mid- seventies and eighties for Test matches. As soon as the Indians bowled the Australians out in Kolkata, the mad scramble started for tickets in Chennai. The Chidambaram Stadium has always been a venue where extraordinary feats were witnessed. It is only fitting that the sporting crowd of Chennai gets another opportunity to enjoy what would be another gripping contest as both the sides will fight it out for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Three changes have been made in the Indian ranks which is a first of its kind because the norm was always to stick to the winning combination. Then, of course a lot of incredible events have taken place over the last three days in Indian cricket. The spin department has been strengthened further with the inclusion of Bahutule and Kulkarni with Raju getting the chop. Both Raju and Sanghvi have enough reasons to be disillusioned with the system but the bottom line is about results in this game. Kulkarni has come into the side because of his performance against the visitors in Mumbai. Bahutule has been on the verge of getting into the side on a few occasions and for a man who was dropped from his state side at the beginning of the season, he will be very pleased with his progress.

The pitch at Chennai will probably aid the spinners sooner rather than later. The toss will play a major role because the spinners get bounce at Chennai along with turn. So far the visitors have crumbled under spinner friendly conditions except in the first Test. The visiting batsmen will have to work out a strategy to not only survive but also dominate the Indian spinners. It will also be interesting to see how the visitors recover from the reverse they suffered in Kolkata. Australia are in an alien situation as they have been thumping their opponents in recent times. The fact that the batsmen did not survive even seventy overs in the last Test will weigh very heavily in their minds. It will take all the mental strength the Australians can muster to win the final Test of the series.

As far as the hosts are concerned they have to remember the significant words uttered by their coach, John Wright. Ganguly's gang must ensure that they are not complacent and get into the final Test with purpose and resolve. They have stopped the winning streak of Australia with a magnificent victory but the onus is on them to win the series. Ganguly has been provided with the luxury of four spinners and he also has a lot of variety to boot. It is imperative that the Indians once again put up a good batting display in order to enable the spinners to bowl them to victory.

The home team has everything in its favour with all the batsmen finding form and Harbhajan Singh emerging as a leading strike bowler. Psychologically the balance has shifted in favour of the Indians on the eve of the decisive Test. On the other hand, the Australians have to fight against all odds to achieve their ambition of winning a series in India after a long gap of thirty years. The Australians may find the heat and humidity in Chennai a bit too much to handle. Given the various circumstances, the game promises to be one hell of a Test match as both sides cannot afford to falter at the final hurdle. Whatever transpires in the next five days, this will go down as one of the most memorable series in recent times.

© Woorkheri Raman