We have dominated the entire test series so far except the 36 all out part

[express bowling]

1. Scored 244 in the first innings in Adelaide, in tough batting conditions.

 

2. Dismissed Australia for 191 in the first innings first test. Crucial lead of 53.

 

3. Could have dismissed them for much less if we had not dropped 6 catches. Our bowling was top class.

 

4. Dismissed Australia for just 195 runs in the first innings in Melbourne  ... on a pitch where the first innings total was 440 in the last few years. Top class bowling 

 

5. Scored 326 against a tough bowling attack.

 

6. Dismissed Australia for just 200 in the 2nd innings second test  ... during a phase when the pitch was quite flat. Great bowling again.

 

7. Did the above with 1 fast bowler missing due to injury.

 

8. Won the 2nd test without Kohli, Shami and Ishant.

 

We are dominating this test series ... need to wrap it up and win the series. Be satisfied with nothing less.

 

We have a great bowling attack which takes quick wickets almost every time.

 

A bit of spirited batting would mean us winning any test.

 

Keep going !!

 

 

Edited December 29, 2020 by express bowling

[sandeep]

That is why even after the debacle, there were a few folks here who expected India to do well at MCG - unlike a few who jumped onto the "neutral boat"

[putrevus]

But that 36 all out negates lot of good things. This batting unit has rarely shown it can suppport its bowlers. Bowlers have to be perfect for this team to stand any chance of winning. 

[express bowling]

1 hour ago, sandeep said:

That is why even after the debacle, there were a few folks here who expected India to do well at MCG - unlike a few who jumped onto the "neutral boat"

 

 

Our bowling is always good these days.

 

What tilted the scale in our favour in the 2nd test is the tactical acumen of captain Rahane.

 

Starting from his bold team selection to his innovative and apt bowling changes  and field placements ... he was spot on.

 

Good to see an Indian captain reading the game well after a long time.

 

Edited December 29, 2020 by express bowling

[DeepSpace]

Suddenly Rahane's technique is decisive in both defense and offense. That is what confidence does to you. Also I think the responsbility of captaincy has kicked it up a notch!

Edited December 30, 2020 by DeepSpace

[sandeep]

4 minutes ago, DeepSpace said:

Suddenly Rahane's technique is decisive in both defense and offense. That is what confidence does to you. Also I think the burden of captaincy has kicked it up a notch!

Probably takes away the pressure of having his place in the side being unstable - replacing it with positive thoughts and the responsibility of the job.  

 

Rahane has demonstrated that he has what it takes to handle the job - and beautifully.

 

And the way he batted - especially in the 2nd dig - he looked world-class.  This is why folks in the minority on this forum didn't jump on the "trash hahane" bandwagon through his inconsistencies.  Because the guy is a capable batsman, has what it takes to succeed in tough conditions, pressure situations against top bowling, and you naturally give a guy like that a bit of a long rope.  Even in his many failures during the lean patch, it wasn't as if he was 'worked out' by bowlers, it was more a question of him making execution errors on his own.  

 

Similar logic applies to Pujara too - those with confirmation biases and skepticism about his 'slow' batting, perceived inability to "attack" top bowlers etc, are quick to deem him "struggling" on the evidence of a couple of innings in this series. His last dismissal last night was a classic example of him playing an uncharacteristic shot in an altered mindset of a small chase.  Normally ChePu is extremely unlikely to bother even attempting to play such a ball in the corridor, especially early in his innings when he is in "build" mode.  But yesterday with 50 odd runs required, he went for the drive based on the length, and ended up edging it due to a bit of new ball movement. This is in no way indicative of any issue - its just an execution error - a shot selection mistake blatantly and obviously induced by the match situation and context.  Next test if ChePu is in 'getting set' mode, he is not likely to play that shot to that type of ball.  

 

But if you already dislike his batting, and his "lack of intent" and are impatient, then you will be more willing to see problems where none may exist.  

@nsareen 

[G_B_]

Aussies will make changes with the bat. Joe burns will be axed.

 

 

[Laaloo]

1 hour ago, putrevus said:

But that 36 all out negates lot of good things. This batting unit has rarely shown it can suppport its bowlers. Bowlers have to be perfect for this team to stand any chance of winning. 

If you win the series, 36 won’t matter. Simple as that.

[Laaloo]

1 hour ago, express bowling said:

 

 

Our bowling is always good these days.

 

What tilted the scale in our favour in the 2nd test is the tactical acumen of captain Rahane.

 

Starting from his bold team selection to his innovative and apt bowling changes  and field placements ... he was spot on.

 

Good to see an Indian captain reading the game well after a long time.

 

Players also felt a more focused and relaxed. You saw bumrah and Ashwin kept advising Siraj.

[Nikhil_cric]

That 36 all out was a damning indictment and painful reminder of our flawed batting. The bowling has done the heavy lifting this series. Australia bowled superbly but it was nowhere near good enough to expect 36 a.o. 

[zen]

Ind has played almost at its best, while Aus has been scratchy esp. wrt batting and catches dropped (normally, they gobble up chances)

 

With Warner expected to return, the series will get more interesting esp. if Aus starts playing its best cricket

 

[express bowling]

9 minutes ago, zen said:

Ind has played almost at its best, while Aus has been scratchy esp. wrt batting and catches dropped (normally, they gobble up chances)

 

With Warner expected to return, the series will get more interesting esp. if Aus starts playing its best cricket

 

 

Warner is returning after a break and may take a few innings to get going. 

[putrevus]

1 hour ago, Laaloo said:

If you win the series, 36 won’t matter. Simple as that.

Yes if we win the series then it won't matter.So far after second test it still matters. 

[putrevus]

Aussies batting has not crossed 200 in two tests , I am more inclined to believe it is due to good Indian bowling rather than bad Aussie batting.Can they repeat these bowling performances for next two tests. I don't expect Indian batting to do that much different.

[ViruDilSeKhelo]

Mahi would be perfect right now to slot into the number 4 pojition and replace Vihari. A solid 50 would be on the cards.

[Gollum]

 

So said a famous Polish chess master 100 years ago. 

Edited December 29, 2020 by Gollum

[kirkutfan]

3 hours ago, sandeep said:

Probably takes away the pressure of having his place in the side being unstable - replacing it with positive thoughts and the responsibility of the job.  

 

Rahane has demonstrated that he has what it takes to handle the job - and beautifully.

 

And the way he batted - especially in the 2nd dig - he looked world-class.  This is why folks in the minority on this forum didn't jump on the "trash hahane" bandwagon through his inconsistencies.  Because the guy is a capable batsman, has what it takes to succeed in tough conditions, pressure situations against top bowling, and you naturally give a guy like that a bit of a long rope.  Even in his many failures during the lean patch, it wasn't as if he was 'worked out' by bowlers, it was more a question of him making execution errors on his own.  

 

Similar logic applies to Pujara too - those with confirmation biases and skepticism about his 'slow' batting, perceived inability to "attack" top bowlers etc, are quick to deem him "struggling" on the evidence of a couple of innings in this series. His last dismissal last night was a classic example of him playing an uncharacteristic shot in an altered mindset of a small chase.  Normally ChePu is extremely unlikely to bother even attempting to play such a ball in the corridor, especially early in his innings when he is in "build" mode.  But yesterday with 50 odd runs required, he went for the drive based on the length, and ended up edging it due to a bit of new ball movement. This is in no way indicative of any issue - its just an execution error - a shot selection mistake blatantly and obviously induced by the match situation and context.  Next test if ChePu is in 'getting set' mode, he is not likely to play that shot to that type of ball.  

 

But if you already dislike his batting, and his "lack of intent" and are impatient, then you will be more willing to see problems where none may exist.  

@nsareen 

Need a little bit of fortune to go your way too. In the “36” inning, it seemed like every good ball took the edge and every edge was caught. Here, few catches were dropped and of course, certain edges proved harmless. Not taking anything away from the fight/ skill of Rahane and company. The question is whether we would be praising them the same way, if for example few of those catches were taken. Also, I could easily see a scenario where let’s say the Kohli- Rahane mishap didn’t happen,  they have a big partnership, India scores big in the first innings and wins comfortably. We would then be saying that this Indian team is the best of all time. In the end, I guess we will have to see how the series goes. If we fall behind in the next test, I am sure we will talk about Rahane’s limitations. If we continue to stay in front, then we might ask whether it makes sense for Rahane to stay as captain and have Kohli come back as a player.

[Cricketics]

3 hours ago, sandeep said:

Probably takes away the pressure of having his place in the side being unstable - replacing it with positive thoughts and the responsibility of the job.  

 

Rahane has demonstrated that he has what it takes to handle the job - and beautifully.

 

And the way he batted - especially in the 2nd dig - he looked world-class.  This is why folks in the minority on this forum didn't jump on the "trash hahane" bandwagon through his inconsistencies.  Because the guy is a capable batsman, has what it takes to succeed in tough conditions, pressure situations against top bowling, and you naturally give a guy like that a bit of a long rope.  Even in his many failures during the lean patch, it wasn't as if he was 'worked out' by bowlers, it was more a question of him making execution errors on his own.  

 

Similar logic applies to Pujara too - those with confirmation biases and skepticism about his 'slow' batting, perceived inability to "attack" top bowlers etc, are quick to deem him "struggling" on the evidence of a couple of innings in this series. His last dismissal last night was a classic example of him playing an uncharacteristic shot in an altered mindset of a small chase.  Normally ChePu is extremely unlikely to bother even attempting to play such a ball in the corridor, especially early in his innings when he is in "build" mode.  But yesterday with 50 odd runs required, he went for the drive based on the length, and ended up edging it due to a bit of new ball movement. This is in no way indicative of any issue - its just an execution error - a shot selection mistake blatantly and obviously induced by the match situation and context.  Next test if ChePu is in 'getting set' mode, he is not likely to play that shot to that type of ball.  

 

But if you already dislike his batting, and his "lack of intent" and are impatient, then you will be more willing to see problems where none may exist.  

@nsareen 

Yes, 4 year old theory still remains that even with all failues and even with averagse dropping India has the best top middle order with Pujara-Kohli-Rahane in the middle. Yes, they are worse than 4 years ago, but their contemporaries suck equally or aren't as consistent, just look at other teams facing issues in their middle order when traveling away from home. 

 

Don't think there are better three anywhere in any line up. If they fail and we lose so be it, doesn't automatically mean they are bad. 

 

People talking about Pujara being too slow are just too high on IPL and t20 still. It is a shame they wanna watch test cricket from that lens.

 

Pujara with all his failures has still gotten starts this series and to me looks to be having a decent touch. I thought he looked fine in the first test. Matter of time he hits a big one. 

 

 

[sandeep]

15 minutes ago, Cricketics said:

People talking about Pujara being too slow are just too high on IPL and t20 still. It is a shame they wanna watch test cricket from that lens.

Pujara is a grinder.  And he's one of the best, if not the best, on the circuit right now.  He helps make the steel frame, on which the strokemakers can "impose themselves" on the bowling by playing with intent. 

 

For some of these 'fans' the concept of tiring out the bowlers, playing out the overs, batting time when the ball is new and doing a bit - these things are just alien to them.  They are unable to grasp the value that provides.  Just like Rishabh's 29 may be a small score, but added major value in the test match.  Both of those flavors have value in test cricket. 

 

But for some, its not about the cricket at all, its about the proxy bragging rights - India wins, Virat "dominates",  oh baby I feel good.  Same tribe gets triggered by Chahal's "skinniness" because it doesn't sit well with their fantasy image of a dominating Indian cricketer that they can 'feel good' about.  

 

 

[Cricketics]

6 minutes ago, sandeep said:

Pujara is a grinder.  And he's one of the best, if not the best, on the circuit right now.  He helps make the steel frame, on which the strokemakers can "impose themselves" on the bowling by playing with intent. 

 

For some of these 'fans' the concept of tiring out the bowlers, playing out the overs, batting time when the ball is new and doing a bit - these things are just alien to them.  They are unable to grasp the value that provides.  Just like Rishabh's 29 may be a small score, but added major value in the test match.  Both of those flavors have value in test cricket. 

 

But for some, its not about the cricket at all, its about the proxy bragging rights - India wins, Virat "dominates",  oh baby I feel good.  Same tribe gets triggered by Chahal's "skinniness" because it doesn't sit well with their fantasy image of a dominating Indian cricketer that they can 'feel good' about.  

 

 

i think the worse comes out from fans when the team is losing and Pujara fails. thats when they can't bare his slow style. This is similar to fans on other end wanting Pant to bat little smartly and not play shots to get out. 

 

Both set of these fans lack patience and need understanding that it is their natural game. Don't try to change that or expect them to change. They will deliver their best for the country doing these two things.