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Blimey...just flicked back to see Australia making a meal of chasing 34 to win. Warner another fail (is that a strong hint that his time is all but done ?)

But also Smith Khawaja and Head gone...29/4 and extras has made 14 of them !

Only need five more so no problem...but SA might wonder what might have been if they'd been able to produce a bit more resistance in that awful second innings.

Supports kingraf's pitch assessment , I guess

Was a very good stand between Handscomb and Cummins and this is s better score than I'd expected after Khawaja fell. Need a few more yet though , I reckon.

Not sure why Murphy came in ahead of Lyon . All I've seen of him so far says "bunny". Lyon is a ten , really - but he has experience at least,

Jadeja not easy to play on these pitches ; not that this one has been particularly treacherous today.

235/8. Handscomb has at least justified his selection with this vital 61

Thought it was all done at 256 but Jadeja has overstepped...beyond me why a slow bowler should ever do so . Cost him a wicket last week too , I think.

Didn't cost many as Shami has cleaned up Kuhnemann. 263 it is - a decent score for Australia (though they will have to bowl really well to stop India going big on this , I think.)

Four wickets for Shami . Did Australia make a mistake in leaving all their pace bowlers except the skipper on the bench ? Guess we will find out tomorrow...

Good efforts from Khawaja and Handscomb have given Australia something to bowl at, but agree it's unlikely to be enough.

Curious to see who shares the new ball with Cummins, as India begin with 9 potentially awkward overs.

Well that was interesting....Kuhnemann given the new ball , and one ball kept extremely low and went for four byes. Batting last might be a serious issue for India.

No blazing start here. Both bats watchful , 13 from 4 overs.

alfie wrote:Well that was interesting....Kuhnemann given the new ball , and one ball kept extremely low and went for four byes. Batting last might be a serious issue for India.

No blazing start here. Both bats watchful , 13 from 4 overs.

Presumably to turn the ball away from the right handers, Alfie? Agree a big call to give him the rock right away! Albeit I don't think I'd have given it to Lyon anyways, so maybe going with the conventional matchup of the two newbies was the call...

And from what little I have seen this morning, 260 while a touch under par, is certainly a score that has Australia in this game unlike the 170 of the first test. Pressure on India to bat, and bat big in this first dig, don't think they're going to want to be chasing much near 150 in the final dig on this if we reach there!

Well negotiated from the Indian openers, with a rare Michael Gough error happening in the last stages. 

Couple of balls grubbering, that'll keep Australia interested, but for now India are ahead. Bat the day tomorrow and they should win the test.

Suppose someone had to take the other end to Cummins . The new boy looked OK. India not racing along (they don't believe in Bazball) , just 21 scored. But no wickets lost , though enough balls keeping low to suggest this isn't going to be easy batting. Perhaps as the ball gets older it will be easier but tomorrow will be a very significant one ...not that I will be able to see much of it as I'm back on the field myself this week.

Australia are certainly in the game this time - at least for now.

In other cricket news, Nepal blasted 23 off their opening over in an ODI chase v Scotland. That's the highest ever score in the first over of an ODI innings. And Nepal did manage to chase down 275 to beat Scotland in their 26th (of 36) game of the ICC Cricket World Cup League 2, as they keep their slender World Cup ambitions alive.

The result doesn't matter too much for Scotland as they're already through to the summer qualifying event.

The pitch is low bounce, spinning a bit by Indian standards and still not too many deliveries jumping off a length.
Outfield smaller and fast and value of shots.
Overall batting easier than in T1.

Aus has again a sub-par total....and their selection of 3 spinners +Cummins is not the right one.

If any one of Starc or Hazelwood is fit.....there is reverse, skid on these pitches which together with Low-bounce makes anyone operating in the 135-145 kph withing the stumps a hard bowler to negotiate.
Look at Shami...he has 75 wickets in India at 20 runs apiece.

They should have tasked Smith+Manus to take the 3rd spinners duties.

India is one Seamer too many and one batsman short again.

Axar is not getting a decent long spell as the 3rd spinner and 5th bowler....especially given that Shami is eating up wickets.

Pitch will be good for batting still....and start breaking up on D3 ...and then we will see balls jumping off a length.
India needs to get at-least a 100 runs lead and they should be able to.

Another good day in office for India. Having lost the toss, they bowled the opposition out for 263, and and didn't lose a wicket in the rest of the day... Australia have done better than in the first test where they lost the test in the first innings on day 1 itself, they are very much in here, particularly considering Kohli and Pujara both haven't been anywhere close to their best for a long time, and that Rishabh Pant is missing from the Indian lineup.
But I am not really sure about the Australian selection... An Australian with only 1 quick bowler? When was the last time you saw that before? And that too on a pitch that surely isn't a minefield. Starc seemingly not quite there and Hazlewood unfit. They could have continued with Boland, or even given the seemingly Lee-esk Morris an outing. With Green not available, this doesn't seem to be a smart choice. Kuhnemann didn't seem anything special, at least as of now...

So finally, Australia have turned up. They seem to have put up a score of sorts on the board yesterday, but with a brilliant morning performance led by Nathan Lyon, they are making that effort look a lot more worth than it did yesterday. India struggling their way to 88-4 at lunch. Rahul and Rohit managed fine in the first half hour or so against Cummins and Kuhnemann, then Lyon came on. First he got Rahul LBW, then cleaned up Rohit. 2 balls later, he had Pujara LBW in the same over. Pujara bagging a duck in his hundreth test match... Then Shreyas Iyer fell to Lyon through a freak catch from Peter Handscomb. Kohli and Jadeja surviving to lunch...
The one thing the Australians were terrible at were thereviews. They really wasted all their reviews. None of the 3 they lost, looked anything like out on first look. And they didn't take one against Pujara first up, though it looked more possible than the 3 they wasted. They didn't probably take it because by the time they had already wasted 2, and Pujara as usual, was a long way down the wicket, though not long enough as it turned out to be. But no damage done as Pujara fell in the next Lyon over...

In the mean time, David Warner is out of the test with concussion, and Matthew Renshaw comes in as substitute

Wow. Australia bouncing back after that horrible first Test to have a huge advantage at present, India still behind by 84 and only three wickets left at tea. Would want to get a solid lead because second innings I could see the tourists shot out pretty quickly in this as it gets lower and trickier. But if they can clean up the Indian tail they have a real chance of evening this series ...I wouldn't fancy batting on day four on this !

Hmm. Axar and Ashwin dragging India back into this match ...partnership now worth 91 in smart time.
Lead down under fifty and Australia could be under pressure batting again. India still have to bat last ; but if they can give themselves time and a reasonable chase I'm not sure Australia have the bowlers to take them. Bit too dependant on Lyon ? (I know Murphy got seven last week. But that was first time they'd seen him)

Fifty for Axar he hasn't taken a lot of wickets yet , but his batting contributions have been vital

Interesting. : Cummins bowling five overs before the new ball is due ? Only pace bowler they have...not sure what is going on here...

Deficit down to 31. New ball in two. This stand has really swung the game back in India's favour... OK they have to bat last : but can Australia handle the conditions to give themselves a chance in a single innings shoot out ?

And can they get these two out before conceding a lead ? India scoring at will now : hundred partnership and only just 20 runs behind...

Really good game this one. It looked like Kohli and Jadeja might get India to parity and beyond, but in fact it's Axar mixed with a bit of Ashwin. Might even get a half-decent lead.

Warner's concussed, so Renshaw will be batting in his place later on.

Oh nice catch ! Renshaw leaps at short mid wicket to snare Ashwinfor a vital 37...

Important wicket for Cummins with the new ball and India still trail by ten...

Going to be a one innings battle , eh ? Axar might look to have a whack now...

New ball does the trick. Australia have a lead of one and, like India yesterday, an awkward mini-session to get through.

Good little mini session for Australia - attack definitely the best form of defence on this wicket, and they’ve reasserted themselves after that Axar/Ashwin partnership. Gotta think India need a chunk of wickets in the first session tomorrow or else the game will really start to get away from them having to bat last on this wicket

Very interesting. Negotiated that last session well , lead of 60 odd ...but is batting getting easier after the first session today ? (Wasn't able to watch earlier on)

Big first session tomorrow . Get one of these and Smith and things could still change fast. But whatever happens , way more of a contest than was in prospect given all the problems Australia had coming in to this

Also notable that Head seems to be making a good start on showing the selectors up for leaving him out in the first match. Way to go yet ; but surely he is just a better bat than Renshaw ?

Suppose Warner's injury issues might provide a convenient "soft" way to ease him out of the red ball set up...

The series really coming alive as a contest. Both sides having their moements on the first 2 days. That bit of Bazballing at the end, gives Australia a slight edge. India would have been hoping for at least 1 more... And not so many on the board for sure.
India's batting depth yet again saving them the blushes. Yet another underwhelming performance from the batting unit, yet again needed Axar/Ashwin to save the day from become a total disaster. Kohli looked the best that he has in a while in tests before getting out, and Rohit was comfortable up to that one that got him. But yet again KL Rahul not delivering with the bat. He's not even decent captaincy material, don't think they should keep him as the vice captain in any case. If he fails and the team ends up short in the 2nd innings, this might be it for KL, and he'll have no reason to complain if that happens.
India again missing Rishabh Pant. Srikar Bharat is no match. Very limited batter really.

msp83 wrote:The series really coming alive as a contest. Both sides having their moements on the first 2 days. That bit of Bazballing at the end, gives Australia a slight edge. India would have been hoping for at least 1 more... And not so many on the board for sure.
India's batting depth yet again saving them the blushes. Yet another underwhelming performance from the batting unit, yet again needed Axar/Ashwin to save the day from become a total disaster. Kohli looked the best that he has in a while in tests before getting out, and Rohit was comfortable up to that one that got him. But yet again KL Rahul not delivering with the bat. He's not even decent captaincy material, don't think they should keep him as the vice captain in any case. If he fails and the team ends up short in the 2nd innings, this might be it for KL, and he'll have no reason to complain if that happens.
India again missing Rishabh Pant. Srikar Bharat is no match. Very limited batter really.

Yeah I do wonder whether it is time to pension off Rahul in red ball and pick Gill. The batting line-up is more notable for depth than class these days ...three spinners who can all really bat covering up for top order frailties. Kohli did quite well today ; but it might be getting close to the end for Pujara. And of course they miss Pant.

Game still very even though. Australia have to start again tomorrow . India won't want to be chasing over 200 , you'd think. Moving day tomorrow

I have been harping on, how India makes sub-optimal team selection....and also noting that they got away narrowly in BD and could ride it out in T1 because of one sidedness of the win in T1 vs Aus.

Now Ind are stuck with a Siraj who is useless with the bat and won't be needed with the ball & in his place Ind should have had a batsman
With a WK who looks like a tail-ender
and 3 top order batters in Pujara, Kohli and Rahul who cannot be counted on for a guaranteed even 75 runs and our "WEAK THREE"

And so in this game where Aus just played moderate cricket and fought a bit Ind are up & against it.
Given that they lost the toss have to chase in the 4th inning.

The entire top 6 of India fell to the same ploy that Todd Murphy used in T1.....round the wicket balls pitching on middle and turning in or going straight and they could not get their pads out of the way.
Rohit got his pad but also bat out of the way

That the WEAK THREE play with a small heart, extra safe, trying to protect their wicket and not attack enough doesn't help their cause.

On the field second time India showed signs of panicking at the idea of having to chase too many in last inning and were trying too hard.
Tomm they need to bowl calmly, tight.....rotate 3 spinners intelligently and give 2 over bursts to Shami with old ball after ever 8 or 9 overs

Let's look at the positive side.....Rohit, Iyer, Jadeja, Ashwin, and Axar can be expected to deliver with the bat and upto 260 would be "chasable"......BUT that would put the win probability of India at 30% in my view.

the lower they come  from 260 as the target, higher the probability with about 210ish being the 50-50 case.

Siraj and even Axar have been underbowled at times in the series. But somehow, I feel better to have that 2nd quick option, particularly when bowling first. And Siraj is the 3rd best test quick we have after Bumrah and Shami. While Umesh might be a better slogger, its the job of the batters to really put the runs on the board. But with no Rishabh available, think KPF's option is worth thinking, though I wouldn't quite go there yet. I'd start by dropping KL and bringing Gill in. At least, the opportunities given to him, will be an investment even if he fails at times.
Srikar Bharat has kept well. He has batted in the top order for Andhra Pradesh. The team management seem to rate him highly. But I just don't get the vibe from him, of being a test class player, with the bat... KPF, have you seen anything much of Upendra Yadav? Does keep for India A, and has a good FC recordI haven't seen much of him though... . Not sure Kishan/Samson are really up to keeping at test level.

Should be a great couple of days for this test match with a thrilling conclusion in store. Australia ahead at the moment, but mini-collapses do happen on these types of pitches - we saw India yesterday go from 46/1 to 66/4, and 125/4 to 139/7.

msp83 wrote:Siraj and even Axar have been underbowled at times in the series. But somehow, I feel better to have that 2nd quick option, particularly when bowling first. And Siraj is the 3rd best test quick we have after Bumrah and Shami. While Umesh might be a better slogger, its the job of the batters to really put the runs on the board. But with no Rishabh available, think KPF's option is worth thinking, though I wouldn't quite go there yet. I'd start by dropping KL and bringing Gill in. At least, the opportunities given to him, will be an investment even if he fails at times.
Srikar Bharat has kept well. He has batted in the top order for Andhra Pradesh. The team management seem to rate him highly. But I just don't get the vibe  from him, of being a test class player, with the bat... KPF, have you seen anything much of Upendra Yadav? Does keep for India A, and has a good FC recordI haven't seen much of him though... . Not sure Kishan/Samson are really up to keeping at test level.

In Indian conditions Shami is by far the best seamer....averages 20 odd for 75 wickets
and Umesh is by far the sceond best seamer...both of them use skid & reverse and control the ball quite a lot better than in overseas conditions.
We can let Bumrah rest and play largely overseas tests
Siraj is good in all conditions....but should be used more for overseas conditions.

In these conditions.......2nd seamer and 5th bowlers is largely redundant
and given that we are carrying 3 dead-loads in batting in Rahul, Kohli and Pujara.......and missing Pant....we need to lengthen the batting by having an extra batter
or an extra allrounder like Thakur or Washington if we want a 5th bowling option...although as I said earlier......5th bowlers will largely be redundant .

Re: WK....he has to be a batsman these days .....as good as a specialits batter....if not the most special batter in the side.
Else you can't compete with the top sides.....on the template being set by Eng.....keep going at the opposition and keep scoring runs from almost all the 11 players.
The days of averaging 20 something specialist WK are gone

I have seen Ishan and he is a decent WK......Pant also had the tag of being not clean....but has turned out to be excellent.
Bharat has one inning to score a 25* n.o after tomm and close out a winning chase and become a hero.
Actually he is the one to be sent as a nightwatchman tomm evening.........and can hang in and impress with the bat.
If he doesn't deliver with the bat....in the aftermath of a defeat or flaky win....his will be the head to be chopped first.

I have not seen Upendra Yadav...but for me Ishan is the natural like-for-like replacement for Pant...while Samson has not helped his cause by not keeping wickets for Kerala in Ranji where he plays as a specialist batter

Not going so well for Australia this morning... Head fell early , stumped off Ashwin for 48 though I actually tuned in late and missed it...

But have just seen Marnus surviving an Indian referral for lbw , only for Smith to (unwisely) attempt to sweep Ashwin and being adjudged out on field...was actually only umpire's call , clipping leg - but looked dead live so he can't really complain he wasn't reprieved.

90/3 doesn't look as healthy as 61/1. And the experienced Indian spin pair are looking very dangerous...

And Marnus gone now ...bowled by a grubber...95/4

Ashwin's dominated them and Jadeja's chipped in. 85/2 is now 95/7. Never mind a mini-collapse, this is a total one!

Australia have lost their heads with some of these sweeps.

Oh dear...totally unravelling now. Had to go out for just fifteen minutes...and back to find it's 103/7

So they've lost four for none in three overs...all up to Carey and Lyon to try and extend their 8 run partnership and set India a serious target...

Duty281 wrote:Ashwin's dominated them and Jadeja's chipped in. 85/2 is now 95/7. Never mind a mini-collapse, this is a total one!

Australia have lost their heads with some of these sweeps.

Well they lost their "Head" first thing this morning

But yes , that tactic of sweeping everything can bring runs but boy can it cost you wickets...

Carey gone now too ...the nightmare continues

Going down like ninepins ... Lyon plays on as soon as he tries to play a shot. Jadeja adding to his collection...

TBH , I am not too surprised. I posted last night that if Smith failed a collapse was very possible. But from 85/2 to this is a bit of "reverse genius".

I get batting is difficult on this - and these two bowlers are masters in these conditions. But even so you'd think a bit more common sense might have been displayed ?

And that's all now , Kuhnemann justifying his demotion from 9 to 11 with a dopey drag on for a duck.

53/9 today . Crazy stuff.

India surely won't self destruct chasing 114. And you'd think morale will be at rock bottom as they take the field after that session.

Ha...that will give them a lift ! Rahul a bit stiff there to be caught by a freak rebound off the bat pad fielder...but Lyon will take it

6/1. This is finishing today one way or the other...

Well that was nuts...Rohit was battering the Australian spinners and looking like finishing this early : but he's sacrificed himself for Pujara in a totally scrambled run out. Two flukey wickets keeping Australia "just" alive ...but only just.

39/2 ...76 more required.

I guess Rohit thought it was his error ; but being hard headed I reckon he should have preserved his own wicket as he was in such good rhythm - better for the team. Puts a bit of extra pressure on Pujara now.

Aussies folded meekly with the bat ; but are making India work for their modest target. Kohli was playing well , but has just been smartly stumped(first time in his career !) by Carey off Murphy for a brisk 20. 69/3 so still 46 needed.

Pujara battling a bit but still there on 17 (from 58 balls)

I ,like many , questioned Australia's going with just one pace bowler : but Cummins hasn't even bowled a ball in this innings and seems unlikely to do so - which I guess means they were "right" in this selection , at least

Shreyas Iyer wanted to finish it quickly...came out swinging. Brisk 19 runs added with Pujara but he's gone now... 88/4.

Only 27 left to get so shouldn't be a problem. But Australia might be regretting not managing another fifty or so in that wretched second innings !

Keeper Bharat has a bit to prove with the bat. Would be good for him to get this chase done neatly. Just played an exquisite cover driven boundary from Lyon...probably the shot of the day actually. Good start

97/4. Nearly done.

Edit . Repeated the stroke twice more in one over ...very smooth

Kuhnemann getting it bit battered this innings. Now Head gets the " honour " of bowling at the death , as it were...and Bharat hits him for six...scores level.

All done...comfortable enough six wicket win for India to retain the trophy

Pujara gets to hit the winning boundary in his hundredth Test . Finishes with 31 no - an improvement on the first innings

Well played India

Australia back to the drawing board.

India must be grateful for one of the WEAK THREE anchoring what could have been a tricky chase!

Normally by the time I would wake up during weekend, lunch would over in India
Today I glanced at my phone when half awake to see Aus 7-down for 97 odd
and so I jumped up to turn on the TV and they were 9 down by the time I was watching live
and all out in the blink of an  eye...last 8 gone for 25 odd I heard.

Batting 3rd time Indian top order finally figured the way to handle the round the wicket line of Lyon and Murphy pitching on middle and aiming for pads is indeed to go down the track...and when you do that, the LBW gets nullfied greatly
And also be ready to back off and cut when seeing you dance down, bowlers pulls the length back....and Indians did that too.
And sooner the bowler will come over the wicket and it's bread and butter game thereafter.

Within the Indian top order it was quite evident that Rohit, Bharat and Iyer were far more nimble and faster on their feet....while Kohli and Pujara relatively much slower

Bharat saved his career by playing that 23* n.o and looked organized straight batted in defense and drive and with a handy sweep.

Aussies did not need even their one Seamer and that too of the quality of Cummins
Indians surely would have realized Siraj is surplus and Rahul not gonna cut it in this form
and so Gill to open and SKY in the middle order should be a no brainer decision for the next test

Waking up to see the Aussies he lost 53-9 was simply just very funny - good work India, more of that please

A test nicely poised with Australia slightly ahead, just got turned on its head in a half hour of disciplined and experienced bowling and some absolutely god awful batting! Jadeja and Ashwin did their thing, they were brilliant at that. But the Australian batting, it was just awful, pathetic to even watch. Really expected a tricky chase for India... Australians had a 1 shot gameplan, just sweep and reverse sweep regardless of the line, length or the bowler, and self-destruct! Even Smith and Marnus appeared a bit confused. Even Zimbabwe or Ireland would have attempted something more professional.
Ashwin unleashed his bag of tricks, and Sir Ravindra Jadeja was brilliantly consistent as he always is, and just kept hitting the stumps. He did it for 5 of his 7 victims! Is that a record for a spinner?
And Cheteshwar Pujara got to finish it off. Rohit was brilliant upfront, and Kohli has given me least reasons to worry about his test battership, he did look a lot better in both innings than he has done for most of the last couple of years... I have a bit more expectation rather than hope from him for the rest of the series.
KS Bharat also playing a nice hand at the end, he has shown that he can indeed play a few nice shots, including a handy sweep. Think he'll now get the series...
As for KL Rahul, he was unlucky to go the way he did, but I hope that is a sign from the cricketing gods to the management, he just doesn't seem likely to buy a run in current condition, so cut your losses and move on!

msp83 wrote:
As for KL Rahul, he was unlucky to go the way he did, but I hope that is a sign from the cricketing gods to the management, he just doesn't seem likely to buy a run in current condition, so cut your losses and move on!

Rahul Dravid said, "we trust KL Rahul. This happens to everyone. We'll continue to support him".

I really don't think India need worry too much about selections at present ! Sure , they didn't actually need the second seamer this time - but when your three spinners are more reliable with the bat than several of your batsmen you probably don't need to push them further down the order. A second seamer might have been necessary - as it might be next week : pitch judgements are not always perfect in advance.
Can certainly make a case for swapping out Rahul (though he was seriously unlucky today). Not sure they will change yet ; but if they do bring in Gill that would be my only move to a winning team.

But Australia  Where do you start ? That second innings was just plain awful ; and suggests totally confused minds and a seriously flawed game plan. Second match in row where they have squandered the considerable advantage of winning the toss and just not turned up for their second innings. Not sure they can do much about it : selection so far has reeked of guesswork ... and with the limitations of most of their bats maybe throwing darts at a list of squad members' names would be just as (in)effective...

No Warner : maybe not much loss on recent form ; but if Renshaw is the answer they are asking the wrong question - he looks absolutely clueless. At least sanity prevailed and Head got to play. He is not well suited to these conditions but is just a better player. If Green is near fit he surely has to play next game. Kuhnemann wasn't total rubbish but neither was he the key to unlock the Indian batting - and his selection seemed to have the side effect of pushing Murphy somewhat into the background despite his fine debut. Adds nothing with the bat either.

Presume a similar spin friendly pitch , more or less , next up. May still be a case for Australia to play to their strengths by picking their best bowlers (assuming Starc or Hazlewood is fit) ? I have little confidence it will help much as I reckon the hosts are just too good for them in these conditions , but maybe something like ;  Khawaja/Head/Marnus/Smith/Handscomb/Green/Carey/Cummins/Starc or Hazlewood/Lyon/Murphy or Kuhnemann or Agar or the baggage handler...  and pray .

I don't actually see this Indian side as some unstoppable juggernaut : they're good , but have too many weaknesses to be called great just now. But I suspect that over five days or however long it takes they will always be able to wear down this Australian outfit , even if they do play well for a couple of sessions - as they actually did in this game before folding up.

Might be a different story on neutral ground in the WTC Final in a few months ? We will see. But for now they hold all the aces...

I think it's fair to say India are an unstoppable juggernaut in home conditions. No one can stop them. Especially if the opposition bat with the rank stupidity of Australia.

Jadeja's certainly enjoying himself in this series. His test bowling average is now lower than Ashwin's!

Will be a different story in the WTC, I imagine. Over in England the spinners won't have anywhere near the same potency, and the Australian seamers will be able to harness a big advantage. 

With regards to the WTC final, I was thinking it's a good thing that it isn't England/Australia contesting it because then it would be viewed as a warm-up bout ahead of the Ashes, which wouldn't be good for the ICC's flagship event!

And also about the WTC final - if India win 4-0 v Australia, as looks very likely, then a 2-0 Sri Lanka win over NZ in that two test series would mean a India v Sri Lanka final.

Might well see a 4-0 here ... but Sri Lanka 2-0 over NZ might be stretching things...

Australia v India on neutral ground is the "right" contest after the last couple of years , anyway. The whole WTC concept is flawed ; but it has worked out quite well this time (England got "good" again six months too late !) .

As for this series : Australia's problems not abating . Hazlewood going home injured - and Cummins off home , albeit temporarily , for family reasons. Suggestions that other players "may" be sent home ... variously Agar , Morris , Renshaw , Warner if not fit ... all a bit vague and no word on replacements. Doesn't exactly scream " A Plan in Place " !

Green and Starc fitness sounds more hopeful but we've heard that before. Swepson might be back. Oh , and Murphy has an injury too.  Lord knows who will line up on 1st March but at least losing in three days has given them some extra recovery time

Despite the eventually lopsided scorecards I believe it is still possible for Australia to
put pressure on India's weak points and compete in the remaining matches.  I just can't see them doing so in their current apparently scrambled state of mind...

alfie wrote:As for this series : Australia's problems not abating . Hazlewood going home injured - and Cummins off home , albeit temporarily , for family reasons. Suggestions that other players "may" be sent home ... variously Agar , Morris , Renshaw , Warner if not fit ... all a bit vague and no word on replacements. Doesn't exactly scream " A Plan in Place " !

Green and Starc fitness sounds more hopeful but we've heard that before. Swepson might be back. Oh , and Murphy has an injury too.  Lord knows who will line up on 1st March but at least losing in three days has given them some extra recovery time

Despite the eventually lopsided scorecards I believe it is still possible for Australia to
put pressure on India's weak points and compete in the remaining matches.  I just can't see them doing so in their current apparently scrambled state of mind...

A complete disaster, alfie!

How's your right shoulder holding up? We might have to send you over to the rescue.

Unfortunately, I stubbed a toe last week and I'm now getting a delayed pain reaction. So that rules me out.

Hi PJ

My shoulder has apparently been "fixed" - at least for now (though it will need ongoing physio therapy) Actually survived two games now and bowled a few overs without trouble. Probably not up to a twenty over spell in Indian conditions yet so I guess Pat will have to manage without either of us

Yeah worse than I expected . Always had the feeling a collapse was just around the corner but after that first innings I thought they might set a challenging target...yeah

Problem is I think that after Smith (out of sorts , strangely, this trip) and Marnus , I think the batting is distinctly ordinary in other than home conditions. In truth a lot of other teams could probably say something similar : there are a lot of flat decks around and may not be that many really classy bats who can thrive when the going gets really tough - which against Jadeja and Ashwin , in India , it generally is ! Like to see a bit more common sense shown though , just to make a true contest.

Bouncing back from this one will be good test of character.