CLOSE-IN: India has the skill and firepower to win the Test series down under (IANS Column)

The most awaited Test series between the two top cricket sides in the world has finally got underway. Both Australia and India are vying for a place in the final of the World Test Championship’25. India, have the firepower to win the series, however, they need to mentally rise to the occasion in order to do so.

Unfortunately, India’s 3-0 loss to New Zealand at home has put them on the backfoot. A series win, which one thought would have been a cake walk for India, proved to be disastrous. India, now need to convincingly beat the Aussies on their home turf. They have done so in the last 2 visits and it is those victories that they need to remember and reminisce about to regain their lost confidence.

The present Australian side is beatable. The West Indies and England sides have shown that recently, a Test win at the Gabba by the former and the Ashes win by England, have made Australia look vulnerable. India, on the other hand ,have a clean slate to boast of, having got the better of Australia in all their previous 4 encounters.

I remember during the 2015 World Cup match between India and the West Indies in Perth at the WACA when the Premier of Western Australia then, Colin Barnett, told me that they were moving the cricket ground a few kilometers away to build a new stadium. The venue, he said, would be ready in 2 years’ time and the new Perth Stadium got completed as forecasted. My only question to him then was, “what happens to the hard fast bouncy wicket that the WACA was known for, especially if the new one is going to be a drop down one.”

A sly but not a worried smile did come forth from him, evading my question and stressing on the commercial viability of the move. Sixty thousand, he said, will be the capacity and all the 4 Test matches in the recent past held there have been sell outs. The Indian cricket side of 2018 inaugurated the new Perth venue. Virat Kohli enjoyed batting on it. The wicket had the bounce and the pace, however, the spin of Nathan Lyon did the trick in India’s defeat.

Since then Australia have carried on winning at this new venue. What many analysts forget to understand is that the Perth venue of yesteryears which was established in 1890’s is dead and gone. The records of players and teams are of historical value and not ones that can be compared with the present.

The drop down wicket can be a tricky affair. Although, the basic foundation could be hard and solid below, it is the layer above and how it is curated that will decide its behavior. Both the Melbourne and the Sydney cricket venues have surprised one in the way the pitch has played in the recent past. They are drop down wickets as well. Playing the first Test of the 5 Test match series at Perth shows the serious planning that has gone into it by the Australians. Victory at their favorite venue would be just the momentum and boost they need to defeat India. A goal that not only the present side but also the past players and journalists are propagating through their multimedia channels, a known tactic used by the Australians to rattle their opponents.

India have the best Test bowling unit in the world. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj could be lethal on a fast bouncy track. With 3 frontline spinners in Ravichandra Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar to follow, Australia will need to bat really well to notch up a big total. India’s batting on paper is excellent, however, they have not justified their potential recently and that has been their downfall.

Apart from Kohli, the man that Australia have zeroed in on, is Yashasvi Jaiswal. The young left handed opening dynamite of a batter is a massive threat if he gets going. The short rising ball, one gathers, will be the mode of attack to get him out, he will be tested and one hopes the Mumbai lad comes out winning. One feels India needed to play a few warm up matches. In the past, one played against a State side to get used to the match conditions. It was a serious first class game in which the State players got the opportunity to showcase their talent and form. No amount of simulation can ever replace such an encounter and India may have missed a trick there.

The Indian side definitely does not lack in skill, however, to perform at the optimum level, the batters with their stroke-play and the bowlers with their length and direction have to be on the ball from the very first ball. This is precisely where India have failed in the past, by losing early wickets or giving away valuable runs when either batting or bowling first.

The Indian team knows what is at stake. They have been rattled by New Zealand, however, they have the opportunity to rekindle themselves. The fighting knock by Rishabh Pant in 2021 to get a victory at Brisbane was what won India the series during their last visit. The Indian team needs that fighting spirit this time around as well to come through victorious.

(Yajurvindra Singh is a former India cricketer. The views expressed are personal.)

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