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| © IANS |
Different approaches, different results and different
mindsets heading into Hyderabad would probably best summarise Australia’s tour
of India so far. The hosts wiped the dust bowl at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram
Stadium clean with their trump card, spin, as Ravichandran Ashwin,
Harbhajan Singh and Ravindra Jadeja shared all 20 Australian wickets among
themselves.
Australia, meanwhile, decided to stick to their guns and
went with their strength, playing four pace bowlers and just the one
specialist spinner in Nathan Lyon. James Pattinson bent his back on a pace-less
pitch to justify the strategy as he went on to take a
five-wicket haul in the first innings; at the end of the game, he had six of
India’s 12 wickets that fell to his name. However, Lyon could manage just
four and leaked 200-plus runs in India’s first-innings total of 572.
In the end, a lead of 192 was too much for the Australians
to overcome and set a good enough target for India to chase in the fourth
innings. To their credit, rather, to debutant Moises Henriques’s credit,
Australia did well to make India bat again and take the match into a fifth
day after being at 137 for seven a few minutes after Tea on Day Four.
The pitch at Hyderabad isn’t expected to spit as many cobras
as the one at Chennai. Local cricketing hero and recently-turned
commentator, VVS Laxman, described it as “hard, firm and crumbling”. You
wouldn’t think the Australians would be too ecstatic on hearing this,
given Chennai behaved almost the same way. But indications are that
Hyderabad would probably not turn right away from Day One, which would make the
toss a lottery for whoever wins it.
It is to be seen whether Australia stick to their guts and
play four pacers again around Lyon. But given the drubbing they received in
Chennai at the hands of India’s spin trio, and how the host batsmen milked
runs off their quicks, and spinner for that matter, coach Mickey Arthur
would do well to resist the temptation of giving a third Test cap to left-arm
spinner Xavier Doherty.
However, playing Doherty would mean leaving out one of Peter
Siddle, Pattinson or Mitchell Starc. Henriques is definite to make the cut
following his heroics with the bat (68 and 81 not out). Siddle is the most
experienced of the lot and would be an automatic choice too. Between Pattinson
and Starc, the latter seems most likely to be made the sacrificial kangaroo,
since Pattinson was genuinely troubling the Indians. However, the 22-year-old Victorian
could just be rested in Hyderabad, since he has recently recuperated from
a lower rib injury and tends to break down if he exerts himself a lot.
Doherty is quite similar to India’s chief tormentor in the
England defeat at home, Monty Panesar, in the sense both are quick through the
air. After seeing how Panesar ran his way through the Indian batting on rank
turners just a couple of months ago, playing the 30-year-old could just prove
to be the right gamble for Australia.
India, on the other hand, look set to play the same XI come
March 2, given they were so successful in Chennai. This means local boy
Pragyan Ojha isn't likely to make the cut even in his hometown. Captain MS
Dhoni likes the idea of playing two off-spinners, Ashwin and
Harbhajan, who get the ball to turn away from Australia's four left-handed
batsmen in the top six. Slow left-arm bowler Jadeja, who can also bat,
unlike Ojha, provides the variation in the spin arsenal.
As for the batting, the openers’ slot looks the most
unsettled, with Virender Sehwag and Murali Vijay sharing 37 runs between them
in the two innings at Chennai. Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane
are waiting on the sidelines for their opportunity, but Dhoni put his
faith in Sehwag and Vijay in the post-match presser, saying the duo need to be
given time to settle.
With the selection of the squad for the third and fourth
Tests set to take place after the culmination of the Hyderabad rubber, the onus
is on Sehwag and Vijay to perform. The rest of the Indian batting looks good
enough to stroll their way through this series.
Both teams would love to get a win here. India would get an
unassailable lead in the series if they win, whereas Australia will be gunning
to do all that’s in their capacity to prevent that from happening and get back
on level terms in the four-match series. The Australians hate to
lose, wherever in the world they are, and India can expect a strong comeback at
the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
Teams:
India (Probable): Virender Sehwag, Murali Vijay,
Cheteshwar Pujara, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni (c & wk),
Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar,
Ishant Sharma.
Australia (Probable): David Warner, Ed Cowan, Phillip
Hughes, Shane Watson, Michael Clarke (c), Matthew Wade (wk), Moises Henriques,
Peter Siddle, Nathan Lyon, James Pattinson, Xavier Doherty.
(This article first appeared here)
