India v Australia, Third Test, Chandigarh

First topic message reminder :

1st Test
Fri Feb 22 - Tue Feb 26
04:00 GMT | 09:30 local
12:00 WST | 14:30 CST | 15:00 EST
MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai

2nd Test
Sat Mar 2 - Wed Mar 6
04:00 GMT | 09:30 local
12:00 WST | 14:30 CST | 15:00 EST
Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad

3rd Test
Thu Mar 14 - Mon Mar 18
04:00 GMT | 09:30 local
12:00 WST | 14:30 CST | 15:00 EST
Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh

4th Test
Fri Mar 22 - Tue Mar 26
04:00 GMT | 09:30 local
12:00 WST | 14:30 CST | 15:00 EST
Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi


India:
Shikhar Dhawan, Murli Vijay, Virender Sehwag, Cheteshwar Pujara, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, M S Dhoni (c),
Rabindra Jadeja, Bhubhneshwar Kumar, Ravi Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha, Harbhajan Singh, Ishant Sharma, Ashoke Dinda

Australia:
Michael Clarke (c), Ed Cowan, David Warner, Phillip Hughes, Shane Watson, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith, Matthew Wade, Glenn Maxwell,
Moises Henriques, Nathan Lyon, Xavier Doherty, Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle, James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Jackson Bird

Maxwell almost had Pujara there, a very close LBW appeal that looked good but the umpire thought otherwise.
India 15 without loss after 2 overs.

Seems like the umpire was right after all on that Pujara call, seemed like a very soft edge on that on snicko

Maxwell gets Vijay, attempting a reverse sweep. Absolutely needless. Very silly from Vijay. Terrible start for India this. 19 for 1. Will it be Kohli or will it be Rahane in at 3. Would like it to be Rahane, don't think unsettling a set middle order would be a good idea here, but it indeed is Kohli walking in.

India 51-1 after 9 overs. Think Watson should bring one of his seamers on from one end so that the flow of runs could be controlled.
Yes, he's doing just that, Mitch Johnson replacing Maxwell.

India would dearly love Johnson to put on his profligate self version today. Otherwise he could be dangerous on this track.

Johnson has not been able to find his line as yet, the Indians would hope he stays the same for the rest of the game.

The required runs are now down to double digits.

The last over before tea, Cheteshwar Pujara showing both the conventional and innovative sides of his batting to collect 3 boundaries of the struggling Mitchell Johnson, and India go to tea at 72-1. Its been a very positive approach from the Indians, nothing too risky, but they put away every loose ball and didn't miss out on any available scoring opportunity.

50 for Pujara.

Kohli gone. India need another 32.

With 28 needed, Sachin gone lbw.

Rahane givesit away with a reckless shhot still need 27.

Its been a dreadful debut test for Ajinkya Rahane. He was troubled by the short ball in the first innings and didn't look that against Lyon either, but the 2nd innings was even worse. Coming into a situation that needed him to show good temperament, he played an absolutely reckless and utterly irresponsible shot to throw his wicket away. Cheteshwar Pujara is playing so well, India didn't need another quick wicket after Tendulkar and Kohli got out in quick succession.

India 140-4. Need another 15 runs.

Pujara wants to finish it quickly, 3 consecutive boundaries, and the scores are level.

Yes, India have done it, whitewashed Australia 4-0, first whitewash for Australia in 44 years.

The skipper has finished things off with a boundary. What a relief for the captain. He has started the process of putting together a a new look side, and they have had a fine start. The youngsters performing well, Vijay, Pujara, Kohli, the skipper himself, Jadeja, Ashwin, Kumar and even Ishant Sharma contributing well.

Dhoni batted well in this series, played one of the knocks of the series, led well and has a fabulous outcome to show for all his efforts.
The only thing Dhoni didn't win was the toss!.

Ravindra Jadeja takes the man of the match. Really proving himself at test level, answering his cricket with his performances.

Ravichandran Ashwin's the man of the series. Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara had outstanding series with the bat, but good to see the bowlers getting recognized in this batsmen's game.

Credit to Lyon for 5-fer in first innings, good comeback for him...however surely Maxwell's test career is over!

Maxwell actually could be a good investment for Australia. But he can't bat in test cricket for now, simple as that. He can play his shots, but has no sense of discretion. The support system should look after his bowling, he is not like a ODI spinner, he can turn the cricket ball, and when he gets the landing right, he can get the ball to grip and bounce off the pitch. For me, his bowling looks a great deal more promising than his batting at this level. Nowhere near a finished product, but not a lost cause in my view.

I would have given Khawaja a go in this final test and dropped Phil Hughes to be honest..

Everyone else got an opportunity, perhaps Khawaja should have been given a chance as well. Hughes did score 69 in the last match, but he lived dangerously throughout that innings, and his serious before that knock was absolutely awful.

Congrats msp and kumar. (take your pick!)

Your guys did the job very well. Our lot is in turmoil!

You should hear all the sports reports today - things are looking very dire for the Ashes series. I've never known our team to be so fragmented. No idea who will sink and who will float to the surface. Even if I did; I'm sure the selectors and everyone else would have a different view.

Just had Mike Hussey on the 7:30 Report. Surely not???
Warne got stuck into the team earlier on today...

Its going to be interesting in the ashes coming up.. Two teams with a lot to prove

oh mysti. I hope you don't have to - but you can 'cut and paste' my post above if you need to.

I remember being on the old 606 in the days when there were about 30 Indian posters... it was coming from all sides... before, during and after matches. However, in the end, whether your team won or lost... you either had to leave:
1) a short message of congratulations to the victors, or
2) thank those who offered theirs.

It was really tough sometimes!
Should be a gripping series either way, mate.

Hope so mate...

I miss the crazy Indian fans tbh!

nm2878, neu4trl... and Rex!

I really do despair at the BCCI. A fantastic 4-0 win over Australia, surely India need to follow that up quickly? They won't be able to, they apparently don't play test cricket again till October 2014!

Duty281 wrote:I really do despair at the BCCI. A fantastic 4-0 win over Australia, surely India need to follow that up quickly? They won't be able to, they apparently don't play test cricket again till October 2014!

Not exactly duty, India don't play home test till October 2014. There are away tours of South Africa, New Zealand and England in between. There is a small window available between end of July and early September this year, but the problem during that time is that it rains big in the south of the country, and in the north it will be absolutely hot and humid. A couple of home tests in august could be a good idea if they could find the right venue.

msp83 wrote:

Duty281 wrote:I really do despair at the BCCI. A fantastic 4-0 win over Australia, surely India need to follow that up quickly? They won't be able to, they apparently don't play test cricket again till October 2014!

Not exactly duty, India don't play home test till October 2014. There are away tours of South Africa, New Zealand and England in between. There is a small window available between end of July and early September this year, but the problem during that time is that it rains big in the south of the country, and in the north it will be absolutely hot and humid. A couple of home tests in august could be a good idea if they could find the right venue.

Sorry about that then. Sky Sports either got it wrong or I misheard it.

msp83 wrote:

Duty281 wrote:I really do despair at the BCCI. A fantastic 4-0 win over Australia, surely India need to follow that up quickly? They won't be able to, they apparently don't play test cricket again till October 2014!

Not exactly duty, India don't play home test till October 2014. There are away tours of South Africa, New Zealand and England in between. There is a small window available between end of July and early September this year, but the problem during that time is that it rains big in the south of the country, and in the north it will be absolutely hot and humid. A couple of home tests in august could be a good idea if they could find the right venue.

Yep, if not for anything else just so that SRT can complete his 200 Tests and we don't have to carry him to SA.

Headlines Today were reporting the other day that BCCI are planning to have one against SL in August.

Can't they find any other team other than Lanka? They are scheduled to play 2500 ODIs against them this season, and another 3000 next season!. At least it will be a couple of test matches, thank the heavens for that if that happens. The SLC might want another ODI tournament involving India Sri Lanka and anyone else who can hold a bat and bowl a ball.

When is the Asia Cup, msp?

Linebreaker wrote:When is the Asia Cup, msp?

Don't have a clear idea, LB. But the last one happened in 2012, so the next has to be in early 2014.

msp83 wrote:Can't they find any other team other than Lanka? They are scheduled to play 2500 ODIs against them this season, and another 3000 next season!. At least it will be a couple of test matches, thank the heavens for that if that happens. The SLC might want another ODI tournament involving India Sri Lanka and anyone else who can hold a bat and bowl a ball.

Well, it should be a crap bowling attack so that SRT can go out on a high

Well I don't know whether india will take on SL this august. Regarding Sachin I was reading an article by R.C. Guha. He told that this time sachin should give up cricket like that of gavaskar and merchant. It is better to leave when people ask why?, then when people will ask Why not? I too agree with GuhA. It is clear that he is not having the same temperament as was there during late 90s or last decade. So we,should look up someone who could take his boots.

Don't think its a question of temperament or attitude with Tendulkar. Its more a case of the age catching up with his body and performance. We really can't expect him to maintain his old level of consistency.
After his struggles in 2006, I had thought that perhaps it was time for Sachin to leave . It irritated me no end when he traded a lot of his flair for a game of accumulation, He was fighting one injury or the other every day. But then Sachin came back. He rediscovered some of his old flair, but retained his new found additional solidity. Then he produced absolute quality cricket for another 3 years. Even when his standards slipped in 2011, he could come up with a significant knock every now and then. 2012 was a pretty poor year where he struggled in Australia, against New Zealand and England at home. There was no flair, no accumulation.
But the Sachin in the Australian series looked a lot better. The Chennai innings was a throwback to the glorious past and he made a couple of other decent contributions as well.
I don't think throwing in a newbie to face up to Steyn, Philander and Morkel in their own backyard would be a great idea, particularly so after Ajinkya Rahane's nervy test debut that made him look a far worse player than he actually is. If the alternative then is Rohit Sharma, I would rather have them calling Shastri or Sunny back in from the TV box.
Think Sachin should stay on till South Africa. He may not make many there, but his presence could make a difference.
This is not like the earlier stubbornness, the team has already undergone a significant change, Sehwag and Gambhir are out although the latter has a chance to be the reserve opener to start with, Zaheer is gone, Kohli and Pujara have established themselves, India have a decent all-round option at least for sub-continent conditions. Other than Dhoni, that batting lineup is rather short on experience. Dhoni's defense won't be his best friend in South African conditions. So Sachin's experience would count.
That's if he's willing and ready.
But if he want's to leave early, then so be it, and I hope the BCCI would give his replacement enough of an opportunity to find his feet in international cricket.
If its going to be Rahane they are grooming for the challenge, then let him play as much ODIs as possible. Since Gambhir is dropped from the test side, he should also be dropped from the ODI side as well where his performance has been patchy of late, get Rahane and Pujara to open with Kohli in at 3.

I am sorry to use the word 'temperament' in my previous comment but not looking at the history, i would say he has scored some brilliant 100 in the Ranji but he could not get par the highest double figure even once here in India in the recently concluded series. I am a big fan of Tendy but I fear that if his bat didn't work then surely it is going to be a big problem In SA. Scoring 30 or 40 will just not take the team to worthy total. Here in India we were having a bowling strength that could demolish any batting line up on turning tracks but this would not be handy in SA.

Hopefully Umesh Yadav will stay fit and firing. And unlike many, I am not opposed to playing Ravindra Jadeja at 7 even in South Africa. Yadav could come in for Ojha, Dhawan back in for Rahane with the latter remaining in the squad, and unless no other pacer, tried or new, would emerge, Ishant Sharma to stay in with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yadav.
May not be much of a match for South Africa, but that has the makings of a good side that can fight it out in away conditions in the future.
Either ways the selectors have to have a chat with Sachin, if he's not planning to stay on, then they have to expose Rahane to as much international cricket as possible even if that's not exactly at test level.
If Sachin leaves now, Rahane to bat 4.
Pragyan Ojha, Wriddhiman Saha, couple of pace backups, an opening backup possibly Gambhir, could constitute the rest of the squad.

There is every chances that the South Africans could dominate them, but I am sure that core side is the one to take India into the future, and given some time, it won't be a very bad future.