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India’s 2-1 win in Australia is not the best triumph overseas, feels Sanjay Manjrekar


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https://www.crictracker.com/indias-2-1-win-in-australia-is-not-the-best-triumph-overseas-feels-sanjay-manjrekar/

 

India started 2019 with a bang winning their first-ever Test series in Australia. The team led by Virat Kohli defeated Tim Paine’s Aussies 2-1 in a four-game series after the fourth Test in Sydney, which India were favourites to win, ended in a draw. India’s head coach Ravi Shastri was so overwhelmed that he even called the win perhaps bigger than India’s first World Cup win in 1983 and the World Championship of Cricket Down Under in 1985. However, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar begged to differ.

 
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India’s 2-1 victory Down Under did not reflect the dominance that India showed in the series but Manjrekar feels there were bigger victories the Asian powerhouse had on foreign soil in the past. According to the 53-year-old former cricketer who now does commentary and analysis on the game, the latest win is India’s fourth-best win in Tests overseas.

India have beaten eight Test-playing nations on their soil starting from the 3-1 win over New Zealand in 1967-68 and the only big team they are yet to beat in an away series is South Africa. Read – Here is a list of India’s maiden away Test series wins

“We have to understand that this Australian batting lineup is the weakest. And before the series began, India had a good chance of winning. But because India weren’t winning in South Africa and England despite having a good team there was that question mark.

So, No.4. Although the quality of the Indian bowling attack was good. But India had a weakness too – going into the series their batting had a problem. And the series would have been a lot closer had Pujara, after India were 40 for 4 on Day 1 (at Adelaide) not got that hundred,” the former cricketer said in a conversation with ESPNCricinfo.

Latest win in Australia is the fourth-best for Manjrekar

For Manjrekar, the 1-0 win in the three-match series against England in 1971 under the late Ajit Wadekar was India’s best overseas series win in Tests. He rated India’s 1-0 in a five-Test series in the Windies earlier that year under the same captain as the second-best overseas Test series win. Manjrekar’s third pick was India’s 2-0 win in England in a three-Test series under Kapil Dev.

Thereafter it was the latest series win in Australia while his fifth preference was the 2-1 victory in three Tests in Pakistan in 2004 under the joint captaincies of Rahul Dravid (2 Tests) and Sourav Ganguly (1 Test).

On the reason for ranking the Wadekar-led win in England in 1971 as the top one, Manjrekar said after the first two Tests were drawn, India’s Bhagwat Chandrasekhar produced a magic spell to help the team win by setting a target of 170-odd. “And finally at Oval, that magic spell from Chandrashekar. They had to get about 170 runs. The pressure must have been immense. A David-Goliath situation and so it has to be No.1,” he said.

 

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to be frank , wonder as to how can these series wins be ranked?? every series win  especially in SENA + WI  is a great one.Even what Sourav  achieved in PAK was a towering one considering the relations with the neighbours. So , i find it hard to digest these type of ratings. May be first series wins in every  traditionally strong country would have  been a bit better than others. That's all.

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He isn't wrong. I will go a step further and put the 2007 England triumph above this one even though I hardly followed this series. Likewise the 2004 Pakistan series, 2015 Sri Lanka, 2009 NZ and 2006 win in WI should rank high, around the same level as beating the joint worst Oz team of the last 70 years.

 

It may seem like smaller accomplishments now but when you put yourself back in time, all those wins came under extraordinary circumstances and after long droughts as well, NZ after 42 years (lot of scars in that country, Napier save), WI after 35 years (some greats in that WI which was still strong at home, our 1st series win outside Asia since 1986), SLanka after 22 years (from 0-1 down amidst despair and frustration due to our overseas nightmares since 2011 and Galle robbery/choke), 1st time ever in padosiland (threat to life :phehe:).......look at the broader picture.  

 

2007 England was really special, subsequent events have proved just how difficult those conditions are for our players. Correct me if I am wrong, but in the last 15 years only India and SA have won test series there (proper ones, not 2 test jokes..sorry Lanka). Australia with an ATG outfit failed there in 2005 and 2009, then got massacred this decade. 

Edited by Gollum
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13 minutes ago, Gollum said:

He isn't wrong. I will go a step further and put the 2007 England triumph above this one even though I hardly followed this series. Likewise the 2004 Pakistan series, 2015 Sri Lanka, 2009 NZ and 2006 win in WI should rank high, around the same level as beating the joint worst Oz team of the last 70 years.

 

It may seem like a smaller accomplishment now but when you put yourself back in time, all those wins came under extraordinary circumstances and after a long drought as well, NZ after 42 years (lot of scars in that country), WI after 35 years (some greats in that WI which was still strong at home, our 1st series win outside Asia since 1986), SLanka after 22 years (from 0-1 down amidst despair and frustration due to our overseas nightmares since 2011 and Galle robbery/choke), 1st time ever in padosiland (threat to life :phehe:).......look at the broader picture.  

stop being a self loather. I am also not sure what would have happen if Smith and Warner was playing, however beating Aus in Aus is always a big achievement. 

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1 minute ago, SK_IH said:

stop being a self loather. I am also not sure what would have happen if Smith and Warner was playing, however beating Aus in Aus is always a big achievement. 

Point out where I am factually wrong, what has my post got to do with self loathing? It is a fact that we have done better in Oz in the past against much stronger teams, even if results column don't show. This team is also lucky it has DRS, we got robbed so many times there in the past because of their convict umpires. 

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4 minutes ago, Gollum said:

Point out where I am factually wrong, what has my post got to do with self loathing? It is a fact that we have done better in Oz in the past against much stronger teams, even if results column don't show. This team is also lucky it has DRS, we got robbed so many times there in the past because of their convict umpires. 

this is a big achievement simply because after a long time Ind team should some resilience and came back to take lead in the series after being 1-1 at Perth. Even this Virat led team can go downhill once such a thing occurs. Ind bowling outbowilng the Aus bowling was also something to cherish.

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27 minutes ago, Gollum said:

He isn't wrong. I will go a step further and put the 2007 England triumph above this one even though I hardly followed this series. Likewise the 2004 Pakistan series, 2015 Sri Lanka, 2009 NZ and 2006 win in WI should rank high, around the same level as beating the joint worst Oz team of the last 70 years.

 

It may seem like a smaller accomplishment now but when you put yourself back in time, all those wins came under extraordinary circumstances and after a long drought as well, NZ after 42 years (lot of scars in that country, Napier save), WI after 35 years (some greats in that WI which was still strong at home, our 1st series win outside Asia since 1986), SLanka after 22 years (from 0-1 down amidst despair and frustration due to our overseas nightmares since 2011 and Galle robbery/choke), 1st time ever in padosiland (threat to life :phehe:).......look at the broader picture.  

 

2007 England was really special, subsequent events have proved just how difficult those conditions are for our players. Correct me if I am wrong, but in the last 15 years only India and SA have won test series there (proper ones, not 2 test jokes..sorry Lanka). Australia with an ATG outfit failed there in 2005 and 2009, then got massacred this decade. 

To me our best overseas cricket came in BG Trophy 2007-08, even though we lost that. Most of us have forgotten the pressure our players were put in by the Aussie media, Hayden, Ponting, Clarke and Symonds and to comeback at Perth win there and end 16 win streak second time. Numbers don't show the drama of that series.

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1 minute ago, SK_IH said:

without giving a list, can you tell what specific series win was Ind biggest achievement overseas ?

Biggest achievement overseas: SA 2010/11, battle for the top spot. Collectively those 2 teams fielded 5-6 ATGs and 10-11 national greats. 

 

Biggest win overseas: England 1971, they were number 1 team then and fielded many greats. In the lead up to that series they were undefeated at home for a few years, Aus/WI/Pak/NZ all toured and failed. We went with a spin heavy attack and won. 

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Just before the series  ...  This Australian bowling attack was supposed to be one of their better ones ever, especially while bowling in Australia  ...  and our batting was supposed to be very weak overseas. 

 

Add to that the pressure created by the Australian media and ex-cricketers on touring teams just before and during the series. And the pressure of losing the 2 earlier away test series this year.

 

So,  this is a very very big achievement  !   Don't know about rankings.

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