India vs Australia 2017, Border-Gavaskar Trophy: Five Talking Points Of The Series

Mar 30, 2017 at 11:51 AM

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India vs Australia 2017, Border-Gavaskar Trophy: Five Talking Points Of The Series

World No.1 Test side India proved their supremacy over their immediate follower in the Test team ranking – Australia – with an emphatic 2-1 win in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar series.

The series was fought in a neck to neck fashion and the winner could be decided only after a thrilling 4th Test at Dharamsala, unlike the hand down victories that Indian scored against New Zealand and England. It can be confidently said that among all the teams that India faced in the much talked about 13 match home season, Australia was by far the strongest and the most competitive.

While action on the field was intriguing, the four-match Test series also witnessed its share of controversy away from the 22 yards. The combination of both certainly promises to leave some unforgettable memories in the minds of the cricket fans.

  1. The Steve O’ Keefe surprise:
Steve O’Keefe turned out to be a surprise for Virat Kohli’s men in the Border-Gavaskar trophy.

Left-arm spinner Steve O’ Keefe was just like any other spinner on his first trip to India when he arrived with his squad. Picked for his accuracy, O’ Keefe was expected to play the supporting act to his off – spinning partner Nathan Lyon.

But, he changed all these perceptions in the opening match, gently asking his opposition to take him seriously or face the consequences.

The left-arm spinner, who had just four Tests under his belt, ahead of the 1st Test in Pune, shocked everyone with twin spells of 6/35 in both the innings which saw India suffering a shocking 333-runs loss in the series opener.

His performance was magical and highly unanticipated at the same time. The after effect of his antics were that the remainder of the matches saw no dust bowls being laid out.

2. Kohli’s no-holds-barred talks in Bengaluru:

The DRS-Dressing room saw captains from both teams involving in some verbal volleys post the Bengaluru Test match.

After an embarrassing loss in Pune, India was determined to equal the series at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. It was a must-win situation for the host as a loss in Bengaluru would have meant the series was almost in the hands of the visitors.

India, as it was expected made a fighting comeback and levelled the series, after a typical Ravichandran Ashwin triggered a fourth innings collapse and enabled India to win the match by 75 runs. The match was a livewire which saw both teams fight closely.

A great amount of crowd involvement made things more interesting. The match, though, will be remembered for some different reason. Steve Smith’s ‘brain fade’ moment in the match which made him seek assistance from the dressing room while mulling a DRS appeal triggered opposition skipper Virat Kohli to lambast him at the post-match conference.

Kohli’s reaction was not taken in a light manner by the Australian media and war of words kick-started from there on.

3. Kuldeep Yadav Foxes The Aussies:

Kuldeep Yadav shined with the ball on his debut as he picked up four wickets in the first innings of the fourth Test match against Australia in Dharamsala.

With the series being tied at one all, the third Test in Ranchi ended up in a draw, setting a perfect stage for the 4th and final Test at the scenic Dharamsala.

However, just when everyone expected a keenly fought contest, India was weakened badly as Virat Kohli, who picked up a shoulder injury in Ranchi, was ruled out of the series-deciding Test. Australia gained a huge advantage luckily.

Despite being out of form, Kohli’s presence made a big difference in the batting order.  But for India, Kohli’s injury was the perfect opportunity to unwrap the surprise element in the all-important game. Soon, left arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav earned his Test debut, after he named as the replacement for the Kohli as India decided to go with a five-bowler attack.

His inclusion proved to be a massive factor behind India’s win, as the 22-year-old claimed a brilliant 4/68 to stun the Aussies and lay the platform for the victory.

His spell which included the wicket of David Warner, Peter Handscomb and Glenn Maxwell helped him announced himself at the Test level and also earned him high praises.

4. Steve ‘The Magical’ Smith:

Australian captain Steven Smith scored 499 runs against India in the Border-Gavaskar trophy.

Australian skipper Steve Smith lived up to the expectations that were lying on his shoulders before the start of the tour. Keeping aside all the controversial stuff, Smith was unarguably the most dominating batsman in the series.

He almost enjoyed a Bradman-like form throughout the series acting as the unbreakable pillar of Australia’s batting order. His superb run with the bats saw him amass 499 runs in the four test matches at an average of 71.28 with the help of three centuries.

Cheteshwar Pujara stands at a distant second with 405 runs to his credit. His adaptability was great in this series and the impact of his batting saw Australia maintain an edge over India on most occasions.

His brilliant show almost pushed India on the brink of losing the Border-Gavaskar series.

5. Umesh Yadav – The perfect support:

India’s Umesh Yadav took 17 wickets in the four-Test matches against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar trophy.

The usual star performers for India, names like Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Cheteshwar Pujara lived up the expectations and did well to garner all the accolades.

It is obviously impossible to image the Border-Gavaskar win without their contributions. However, there was one individual who ended up being underrated – the Vidarbha express Umesh Yadav. The right arm fast bowler was an effective bowler throughout the season and can certainly be termed as the workhorse for India.

Be it picking up crucial breakthroughs or challenging the batsmen with his pace and bounce, Yadav did everything to ensure India regained its dominance over Australia from time to time.

These qualities saw him snap 17 wickets and end up as the fifth highest wicket taker among both the teams. The most interesting fact is that he happens to be the only fast bowler in the top five which feature only spinners, overtaking the likes of Josh Hazlewood and Ishant Sharma.

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