Following their sizzling victory in the one-off T20, the Indians would have been on a high going into the seven-match one-day series. However, it took only one game for them to be brought down to earth. Australia it were who learnt very well from their mistakes and outdid India both with the bat and the ball in the game. In the end, the margin of victory, 72 runs, was a fair indication of the gulf between the two sides on Sunday, as well as the extent of Australia’s dominance on the day.
India’s weaknesses in the bowling were exposed to the hilt by the Aussies. It is a known fact in cricketing circles that India’s bowling is not very penetrative, and this came to the fore again on Sunday. Paceman Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been their best bowler in recent times, but after he failed to provide the early breakthrough for a chance, the others had a massive struggle. The Australian openers were hardly troubled by India’s bowlers as they eased past the 100-run mark, a fair indication of the lack of effectiveness of India’s bowlers. The signs are pretty worrisome as far as India are concerned.
The most disappointing aspect is that the struggling pace bowlers are not quite rookies anymore. Ishant Sharma, in fact, has been around Indian cricket for six seasons, and yet hasn’t managed to find his feet. The way he was thrashed in the slog overs made him look like a club bowler. Sharma keeps bowling length in spite of being smashed all over the park in the slog overs time and again. R Vinay Kumar is less experienced, but he also the experience of playing in a few pressure matches. Yet, like his senior Sharma, he looks totally lost in the slog overs. Length balls are his bane as well.
India have often managed to get away with their rubbish bowling in the recent past due to their exceptional batting ability. They were banking on the same on Sunday. However, the Aussies prepared very well for the challenge, and never allowed the Indian batsmen to settle. The fact that India’s strokemakers looked out of their comfort zone in home conditions speaks of how well the Aussies had done their homework. Unlike India, all their bowlers chipped in with key contributions to keep India on the backfoot, literally.
Shikhar Dhawan has been India’s go-to man in recent times, and his early loss was a big setback for India in the chase. More discouraging however were the efforts from the other seniors. How many times do we have to state that Rohit Sharma must carry on after getting starts? Suresh Raina got an opportunity to bat up the order, and yet played a cameo like he does when he comes lower down. Virat Kohli tried his best but he cannot perform miracles in every chase. Ditto with MS Dhoni, who got the ball of the day from Clint McKay. It would be fair to say that India were beaten fair and square. --By A Cricket Analyst
