The perfect advertisement for Test cricket
Partab Ramchand - 23 March 2001
Coming from a match down to win a three Test series is not unique.
It's been done six times before, five in the last six years. And yet
there is something very special about the Indian triumph in the just
concluded series.
After all, it is not every time that a side wins a series after losing
the first Test by ten wickets in three days. And for good measure,
being outplayed till midway through the third day of the following
Test. But in this particular case, there was something more. This was
to be a mismatch between an Indian side that seemed to have given up
the winning habit - except against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh - and an
Australian team which was on a roll having won a world record 15
consecutive Tests coming into India.
On the eve of the contest, only the margin of Australia's victory was
being discussed. The most popular predictions were 2-0 or 3-0 in
favour of the Aussies. Hardly anyone gave the Indians a chance. The
batting was vulnerable. Oh, the middle order seemed capable but there
were doubts whether the opening pair - whoever the two were - would be
able to successfully combat McGrath, Gillespie, Kasprowicz and
Fleming. There was also the problem where to fit VVS Laxman in - at No
6 or back at the slot which he disliked - opening the innings. There
also seemed to be a big question mark about the wicketkeeper - who he
would be and whether the one picked was Test material. As regards the
bowling, there was unanimity only on the point that it was woefully
inadequate to restrict the fleet footed Australians, let alone bowling
them out. Of course there was never any doubt that Sourav Ganguly
would be worsted in any tactical battle with Steve Waugh.
So, on every count the Australians were the clear favourites. And yet
when the series ended on a hot and humid afternoon in the cauldron
that was the MA Chidambaram stadium in Chennai, India were the totally
unexpected victors by two matches to one. So how did this
metamorphosis come about? Where exactly was the turning point? When
exactly did the Australians falter?
Some of the answers are well known. And some of the feats are now part
of cricketing folklore. VVS Laxman's stupendous form with the bat
including his innings of 281 which turned the Kolkata Test - and the
series - around. The bowling of Harbhajan Singh which culminated in
the young off spinner finishing with 32 wickets in the series - 28 of
them in the last two Tests - and exposing the vulnerability of the
Aussies to off spin bowling. The record fifth wicket partnership of
376 between Laxman and Rahul Dravid which sapped even the super fit
Australians.
All this was certainly welcome but in the larger context of
refurbishing the image of Indian cricket, the contest played a pivotal
role. The series - particularly the last two games - was the perfect
advertisement for Test cricket. The match fixing scandal - and its
fallout which was severe in India - had a grievous impact on the game
in the country. Questions were openly asked whether the game in India
would be the same again, whether interest in cricket would continue to
be sustained at the level it was before the controversy broke. In that
context, there is little doubt that the enthralling contest, full of
pulsating cricket and maintaining high standards, the see-saw battle
for honours, the superhuman feats and the Indian victory over a team
rated as inarguably the best in the world will go a long way in
rekindling interest in the game in this country. In short, the series
was just what the doctor ordered.
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