India tour of Australia - 2018/19

[LiveLoveABD]

Savagery by Sunil Gavaskar on Virat Kohli, Ravi Shastri, BCCI and Indian cricket
https://indianexpress.com/article/s...ia-vs-australia-tests-sunil-gavaskar-5499326/

I totally agree with him when he says that Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri should be put on the judgement stand if India do not win the remaining tests. I'd even go farther and say that even if India win a test match in the next two tests, they have to ensure that they win the series. As I said before this series started, even a drawn series will not be enough for Kohli-Shastri to save their asses (Kohli as far as his captaincy role is concerned; his batting shouldn't be touched). If Kohli cannot win this series for India, he has to be sacked as the test captain FOR SURE. He has only been making it worse with his boorish behavior on the field. And Shastri with his rubbish comments during and post matches, is such an embarrassing excuse of a coach.

India has to win both the remaining tests or have to win a test and draw the other one. If they can't do this, it's time for Ajinkya Rahane or Cheteshwar Pujara to be given test captaincy. Hope Pujara and Rahane bat as well as they've done so far, in the remaining games so that they can keep themselves ready if test captaincy comes knocking their doors.

Unfortunately my friend, you're dreaming. India will in all likelihood lose both tests to follow and neither captain or coach will be touched. The Indian captain is the most powerful person in cricket and VK is the most powerful Indian cricketer of all time. Yes, he is more powerful than Tendulkar because the latter, as obsessed as he was with his own numbers was not a control freak and it's not rocket science to know Kohli is. His attitude is a clear give away. In a recent interview, he was dissing tweets made to him by his own fans and said they should find something productive to do in life. He doesn't realise that he is 0 without fans because there would be no cricket without them.

Our frustration keeps making us question Shastri. The whole bloody world knows he's on a holiday, probably having the finest gin and scotch every night and cheating on his wife in posh hotel rooms. I actually think the bloke snorts something every two hours in the dressing room. Just have a look at Royal Challengers Bangalore. You will not find a more miserable record for any team considering the amount of money that has been spent by them. The fact very simply is that Kohli is untouchable. We could lose the world cup badly and he would only get the boot if he chose to relinquish the job.

Dhoni didn't lose the job after 8-0. These two clowns will use the test wins as excuse. And Gavaskar commenting on Rahul getting the sack is hilarious. Gavaskar commenting on anything is hilarious. The bloke made 30 odd off 200 something balls in a bloody world cup match. Rahul played a vital knock in the second innings of the first test and has a ton in Aus and Eng. He needs to learn, yes, and it will only happen if he plays. Not here in India.

Just one more thing- There is lot of talk about this Australian side. Honestly, it's the better attack of SA or ENG and I feel we should be hammering AUS. Says a lot about SA and ENG.

 

[Rehan_24]

Woww What a superb win by Australia. Defeat with a heavy margin of 146 runs. It was kinda expected in the 4th day.

Personally, I dont think so that captain and coach has much to do with this result. Had it been Rehane or Pujara as captain, the result would have been the same because the batting mainly failed in 4th innings, the openers disappointed big time and when your openers get out so early you cant expect to build on and consolidate every now and then. The day was with Australia and they took advantage of the opportunity swiftly.

I believe there has been immense presssure out there in the middle order particularly Kohli if the openers dont give a solid start. The wicket keeper batsman Pant, I m not sure how good enough he is to be played as a keeper batsman. I would suggest to induct B. Kumar in the next game to give Australia a bit more surprize in terms of swing and carry. Pandya doesnt look to.me a test match material.

Coach and management are more responsible regarding an infight between Ishant and Jadeja rather than the game plan

Melbourne and Sydney I'd say Australia are favorites. At this situation, The team with high morale has an edge. I dont think so draw would happen.

On another note, It has been the worst commentary I have seen in Australia. I wont say its biased but the voices have a lot to learn how to bring enthusiasm into a match

 

[LiveLoveABD]

India's masterful selection in away tests in 2018.

Tour of South Africa

1st Test

Ajinkya Rahane dropped in favour of Rohit Sharma.

2nd Test

Bhuvaneshwar Kumar is dropped after match figures of 6/120 and 25 (86) & 13* (41). He was not just India's best bowler but also one of the better batters. Rahane continues to be dropped.

3rd Test

After the series is lost, Dhawan, Rohit make way for the more accomplished Rahul and Rahane while Bhuvaneshwar returns with 4/83 30 (49) and 33 (76).

General consensus is that if we had played our best team from the outset, we would have won the series.

Tour of England

1st Test

Both Bumrah and perhaps India's most crucial player in England in Bhuvaneshwar Kumar are mismanaged with limited overs duties and get injured. To add to the misery, Pujara is dropped to accommodate all three openers.

2nd Test

In gloomy conditions on a green top, Kuldeep and Ashwin both play. It proves disastrous.

3rd Test

A feat which would be hard to achieve at home i.e three back to back wins to win the series starts well as we win the third test. Inexplicably, Dhawan continues to find favour while Vijay is sent home with no communication.

4th Test

Dhawan continues to play. Ashwin plays the test inspite of carrying a niggle and finds the test match a struggle.

5th Test

The experiment with Pandya is finally binned and a proper number 6 plays. Dhawan continues to play. Ishant Sharma is unable to bowl in the second innings as the work load finally gets to him. Vihari who was not included in the squad plays ahead of Nair who was.

General consensus was that 4-1 was not a reflective score line. With stable selection and good leadership, we could have won at least 3-2 or at the very worst lost 3-2. With brilliant leadership, 4-1 was certainly on.

Tour of Australia

1st Test

We win, but for some reason Nair who didn't play a test in England is dropped. Vihari who was included after the 4th test plays before Nair. Now here, without any 4 day runs behind him, Rohit Sharma plays before both while Nair is dropped from the squad itself.

2nd Test

All seam attack where Lyon grabs 8 poles and gets MOM while we play 4 seamers with 4 number 11's. Bhuvaneshwar Kumar bears the brunt of it again as Umesh Yadav plays before him.

If the regular posters read this entire post, they will, like me dream of what could have been.

 

[hammadahmed88]

Personally, I dont think so that captain and coach has much to do with this result. Had it been Rehane or Pujara as captain, the result would have been the same because the batting mainly failed in 4th innings, the openers disappointed big time and when your openers get out so early you cant expect to build on and consolidate every now and then. The day was with Australia and they took advantage of the opportunity swiftly.

I can't say I agree with this. Clearly selection was wrong, and captain and management team have to take responsibility for that. Players can only do what they do. You can't pick players, then expect them to play outside of their ceiling. Four seamers was obviously a mistake. That has to go on the captain and coach. Not playing Bhuveneshwar was a mistake, that is also on captain and coach. It's disappointing to see Kohli not owning up to these blunders, but rather, defending them after the match. Also, Goti King, as expected, is nowhere to be seen or heard from after a loss. Seemed to be doing the rounds after the win though just fine. Classic credit hog. No one will be able to convince me having Ravi Shastri replace Anil Kumble was a good move. Not sure why they persist with him.

On another note, It has been the worst commentary I have seen in Australia. I wont say its biased but the voices have a lot to learn how to bring enthusiasm into a match

I 100% agree with this wholeheartedly. Terrible commentary. Almost taking the fun out of watching Test match cricket for me. I think it is clearly biased. Also, incredibly short on the Indian perspective as well. Especially for neutrals like me, you need voices from both sides.

 

[hammadahmed88]

Savagery by Sunil Gavaskar on Virat Kohli, Ravi Shastri, BCCI and Indian cricket
https://indianexpress.com/article/s...ia-vs-australia-tests-sunil-gavaskar-5499326/

I totally agree with him when he says that Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri should be put on the judgement stand if India do not win the remaining tests. I'd even go farther and say that even if India win a test match in the next two tests, they have to ensure that they win the series. As I said before this series started, even a drawn series will not be enough for Kohli-Shastri to save their asses (Kohli as far as his captaincy role is concerned; his batting shouldn't be touched). If Kohli cannot win this series for India, he has to be sacked as the test captain FOR SURE. He has only been making it worse with his boorish behavior on the field. And Shastri with his rubbish comments during and post matches, is such an embarrassing excuse of a coach.

India has to win both the remaining tests or have to win a test and draw the other one. If they can't do this, it's time for Ajinkya Rahane or Cheteshwar Pujara to be given test captaincy. Hope Pujara and Rahane bat as well as they've done so far, in the remaining games so that they can keep themselves ready if test captaincy comes knocking their doors.

Always love Gavaskar, from a Pakistani perspective. They needed him in that commentary box.

On a side, on the topic of the argument for India's greatest batsman, Imran Khan cited Gavaskar as the best. (Sorry foks). He said a lot of things but primarily, it was about the bowling that Gavaskar faced in his time, and how the conditions were not batsman friendly. I think his logic was fair enough even if you don't agree. I tend to always side with Tendulkar here, but you can't argue with Imran Khan.

 

[asprin]

I don't think either of Kohli or Shastri will be in danger even if we lose 1-3. There were statements made during the England tour (after the 3rd Test) that sounded like something was finally going to happen if we didn't win the series but look what happened. They continue to retain their positions.

I'm 100% sure that Kohli will not be relieved of his captaincy. He just cannot be - given how huge of a figure he is in Indian cricket at the moment. So that's definitely out of the question. But Shastri needs to go. Will the Management take that decision remains to be seen.

 

[LiveLoveABD]

I don't think either of Kohli or Shastri will be in danger even if we lose 1-3. There were statements made during the England tour (after the 3rd Test) that sounded like something was finally going to happen if we didn't win the series but look what happened. They continue to retain their positions.

I'm 100% sure that Kohli will not be relieved of his captaincy. He just cannot be - given how huge of a figure he is in Indian cricket at the moment. So that's definitely out of the question. But Shastri needs to go. Will the Management take that decision remains to be seen.

Shastri is there because of Kohli. So he's not going anywhere unless Kohli gets the sack.

 

[NILAYSHAH60]

MCG drop-in pitch to be upgraded to Perth standard https://es.pn/2UTBUIQ

Now the Cricket Australia is trying to fool the Indian team for sure. Agree with the point mentioned in the article that the pitch might change later on but no in this series. I have been following the Boxing Day Test for quite a few years now (mostly highlights though as I never got up earlier to watch those matches and didn't have time and I lacked Interest in Test Cricket few years back ). Coming to the point, the pitch at the MCG is slow and the bounce is pretty much sub-continental infact it was a blunder in the last Ashes so it can't get quicker overnight without even trying it out in Shield Cricket. I expect the pitch to favour the Indian team and if we pick the right team we win . And, I know Australia never lost the Boxing Day Test at home but considering the bowling we have and the lack of experience in the Australian batting things might change

 

[NILAYSHAH60]

India will in all likelihood lose both tests to follow

I am optimistic of our chances. I believe we have players who can make a strong comeback. I hope that your statement proves to be wrong

 

[Rehan_24]

I can't say I agree with this. Clearly selection was wrong, and captain and management team have to take responsibility for that. Players can only do what they do. You can't pick players, then expect them to play outside of their ceiling. Four seamers was obviously a mistake. That has to go on the captain and coach. Not playing Bhuveneshwar was a mistake, that is also on captain and coach. It's disappointing to see Kohli not owning up to these blunders, but rather, defending them after the match. Also, Goti King, as expected, is nowhere to be seen or heard from after a loss. Seemed to be doing the rounds after the win though just fine. Classic credit hog. No one will be able to convince me having Ravi Shastri replace Anil Kumble was a good move. Not sure why they persist with him.



I 100% agree with this wholeheartedly. Terrible commentary. Almost taking the fun out of watching Test match cricket for me. I think it is clearly biased. Also, incredibly short on the Indian perspective as well. Especially for neutrals like me, you need voices from both sides.

Quite agree but let me broaden up my view here. I feel that in totality selection mistakes are not the sole reasons to loose this match. We should remember that its not an Indian home series rather Australia one. No matter how poor Aussie team is at this stage, we can not rule out the fact that pitches, grounds and atmosphere support them more being the host country.

India put up a good fight and the management may want to go with more attacking options through pacers by looking at the fast pitch. Ashwin injury was a blow as far as Kumar is concerned, thats really a question why Yadav had been given the priority.

As far as Shastari is concerned, He isnt even worthy of discussion. Kumble was a gentleman and its sad that Kohli and Kumble couldnt develop a good working relationship. I as a cricket fan, all for Kohli aggression as a captain. But the game and spirit of the game is always bigger than players no matter how good the players are.

Coming to Commentary, Channel 9 commnetators used to be benchmark for all commentators around the world I believe. Commentators used to love the game rather than just supporting their home side during match. Around the world, Now commentay can be regarded as some loud shouting spectators chanting and clapping in a box.... sometimes it gives a feeling of WWE match commentary to be honest.

 

[Targaryen]

I really like the way people discussing about the game, quite analytical. We are losing this series due to lack of proper judgement in lineup selection, Captaincy, and favourism.

I've seen the cricket boards like Australia who used to sack the players from Captaincy (& also from the team) due to the mismanagement of the squad that eventually led to the team ending up on losing side. Kohli has been a poor captain who doesn't even know how to select the lineup based on conditions (IPL too). As LiveLoveABD said, we have been doing lots of mistakes in terms of squad selection in overseas tours. And maybe in home series too which would be overshadowed by the win.

Murali Vijay is a must player in Australia even if he is out of form. Vijay is a kind of player who can get back his form anytime during the series and once he gets going, we all know how dangerous he is. There is something that is psychologically affecting the players, when you sack players without communication. Ex: Vijay, Rahul, Nair etc..

Rahul is the most unluckiest guy in the squad. Whenever he is in terrific form, he gets injured or rested which would make him lose his form. It's sad to see the player like Rahul under such circumstances where he will be picked in the squad to face a team which has been playing some quality cricket while Rahul himself is a returning player from injury. A lot of pressure and expectations to start with the series leads to some unexpected failures which is also the same in case of many players.

Rohit getting the chance who at some point couldn't even perform in the limited overs at the cost of Nair is terrible decision. Former gets the first preference due to his experience and the latter is dropped even after performing in domestic circuit.

Australia has tactfully prepared a pitch that would help the spinners (a semi-subcontinental), they know it's quite risky since India has Jadeja and Ashwin in the lineup. But who would've thunk Nathon Lyon would get Fifers in an Aussie conditions. I'm not saying Lyon couldn't do it at all, but it's very rare on a seam dominated country that a spinner is dominating the series (Hogg, Warne are the exception here).

I think India would've won all the oversea tours with proper team management. It's quite evident how favourism is done at the cost of some talented players. The best oversea lineup would be this:

Vijay
Shaw
Pujara
Kohli
Rahane
Nair/Vihari/Pandya
Saha/Pant
Ashwin/Jadeja
Bhuvi
Bumrah
Shami

Backups:
Ishant/Umesh
Jadeja/Ashwin
Pant/Saha
KL Rahul

That would give us a batting depth down to no.9 and also quality seam attack in Bhuvi, Shami, Bumrah (Ishant/Umesh), and also a quality spinner in Ashwin/Jadeja. Other spin option would be Nair/Vijay, based on conditions we could accommodate spin duo Ash-Jadeja or seam all-rounder.

 

[asprin]

A "tail" of the two tails



We performed better at Perth in mopping out the tail, but our numbers while batting has been abysmal (barring the 1st Innings at Adelaide where Pujara did a bulk of the scoring there).

| India | Australia
Avg runs (last 4 wickets) | 50.25 | 92.25

An avg of 50.25 runs for the last 4 wickets versus Australia's avg of 92.25 runs. That's quite significant and could result in us losing the series.

 

[Velocity]

Rahul is the most unluckiest guy in the squad. Whenever he is in terrific form, he gets injured or rested which would make him lose his form. It's sad to see the player like Rahul under such circumstances where he will be picked in the squad to face a team which has been playing some quality cricket while Rahul himself is a returning player from injury. A lot of pressure and expectations to start with the series leads to some unexpected failures which is also the same in case of many players.

Rahul is just annoyingly undroppable. You know with a player like him that there's a big innings coming up for him but otherwise, he doesn't make anything more than single digit scores or a 10 odd or 20 odd score. What's probably going to happen is he'll score a double hundred in Sydney now that he's consistently getting out around the 0-20 runs mark, apart from his 44 in Adelaide. His case is an interesting one, the problem that lies is both technical and mental perhaps.

Australia has tactfully prepared a pitch that would help the spinners (a semi-subcontinental), they know it's quite risky since India has Jadeja and Ashwin in the lineup. But who would've thunk Nathon Lyon would get Fifers in an Aussie conditions. I'm not saying Lyon couldn't do it at all, but it's very rare on a seam dominated country that a spinner is dominating the series (Hogg, Warne are the exception here).

Nathan Lyon was always going to be a huge threat to India. He's been picking loads of wickets since his debut in Australia. I think it's Lyon's style of bowling which allows him to be successful in Aussie conditions. When there's rough, he's the most dangerous. And pitches in Australia are known to create a lot of rough even from seamer friendly surfaces.

Lyon is probably the best off-spinner for Australia in history and the best after Warne. Look how successful he's been in conditions which are not friendly to spinners and how he's adapted to bowling on Asian tracks.

 

[Targaryen]

Rahul is just annoyingly undroppable. You know with a player like him that there's a big innings coming up for him but otherwise, he doesn't make anything more than single digit scores or a 10 odd or 20 odd score. What's probably going to happen is he'll score a double hundred in Sydney now that he's consistently getting out around the 0-20 runs mark, apart from his 44 in Adelaide. His case is an interesting one, the problem that lies is both technical and mental perhaps.


Nathan Lyon was always going to be a huge threat to India. He's been picking loads of wickets since his debut in Australia. I think it's Lyon's style of bowling which allows him to be successful in Aussie conditions. When there's rough, he's the most dangerous. And pitches in Australia are known to create a lot of rough even from seamer friendly surfaces.

Lyon is probably the best off-spinner for Australia in history and the best after Warne. Look how successful he's been in conditions which are not friendly to spinners and how he's adapted to bowling on Asian tracks.

Nathon Lyon is one of the best Spinner for Australia. Every other international teams have an unexpectedly surprising spinner who would be a threat to India.

 

[Perfect Square]

Nathan Lyon was always going to be a huge threat to India. He's been picking loads of wickets since his debut in Australia. I think it's Lyon's style of bowling which allows him to be successful in Aussie conditions. When there's rough, he's the most dangerous. And pitches in Australia are known to create a lot of rough even from seamer friendly surfaces.

Lyon is probably the best off-spinner for Australia in history and the best after Warne. Look how successful he's been in conditions which are not friendly to spinners and how he's adapted to bowling on Asian tracks.

I agree Lyon has been perhaps Aussie's top asset in bowling. But no matter how the spinner you expect sub-continent teams (Specially India) to at least not get cleaned up by a spinner alone.