Pratik DograThe India-Australia Test rubbers, re-christened as the Border-Gavaskar trophy in 1996, have evolved into a fierce battle of supremacy in the past decade. The high levels of competitiveness displayed by both sides, the quality of cricket strutted out in the middle and a fervour which invokes a rush of adrenaline amongst players and spectators alike, make it a sort of a ‘Blockbuster Series’, arguably on a higher pedestal than even The Ashes (at least on the first two counts)! The recent on-field acrimonies between players from both the sides have spiced up the rivalry even further. Did Harbhajan racially abuse Symonds? Or was the latter just being a bully who ended with an egg on his face. What makes (the usually ever polite off field kind of character) Sreesanth turn into a ‘man possessed’ against the Men in Baggy Green or force a 38-year old (you are presumed to have ‘been there…done that’ at that age) to lose his cool to such an extent that he calls his rival an obnoxious weed live on air!
The recent on-field acrimonies between players from both the sides have spiced up the rivalry even further. Did Harbhajan racially abuse Symonds? Or was the latter just being a bully who ended with an egg on his face. What makes (the usually ever polite off field kind of character) Sreesanth turn into a ‘man possessed’ against the Men in Baggy Green or force a 38-year old (you are presumed to have ‘been there…done that’ at that age) to lose his cool to such an extent that he calls his rival an obnoxious weed live on air!Ever since Sourav Ganguly famously got under Steve Waugh’s skin during the epic 2001 series, every chapter added in this rivalry has had a generous dosage of one particular ingredient- passion. And individuals have often channelised this passion to churn out momentous performances, rendering certain Tests as classics.
As yet another instalment of this duel is being slugged out, we at Zeecric, use the Diwali break between the second and the third Test to relive a few of these classics between the two sides in the last 10 years that can be spelled as the defining moments for the Border-Gavaskar trophy.
1998
Venue: MA Chidambaram stadium, Chennai
When, in 1998, the Australians landed on the Indian shores, the series was hyped as a Sachin v Warne battle. Both the champion performers were at the prime of their prowess. This was to be their first meeting in the longer version of the game (discounting Warne’s uneventful debut Test v India in 1992). After Warne scalped Sachin early in the first innings, the Mumbai Maestro turned the tables splendidly on Warney, enroute a blazing 155 not out in the second essay, which paved way for a famous Indian victory in the series opener. The Chennai Test was memorable not only for the fact that it eventually helped India win the series, but also for the manner in which the Indian batsmen (Sidhu, Azhar, Dravid, Ganguly…besides Sachin) launched a savage offensive on Warne, who later admitted to getting nightmares. Even as he continued to stamp his authority on batsmen the world, never again could Warne pose a threat to India.
Result- India: 257 and 418/5 decl beat Australia: 328 and 168 by 179 runs
India wins 3-match series 2-1
2001
Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata
The world conquering Australians came to India, riding on a 15 match-winning streak. They needed just 2 more wins to overtake West Indies’ record of the most successful spells and were better prepared then ever (ice vests…remember), they claimed, to launch an assault on the ‘Final Frontier’.
First Test. Well… a 10-wicket thrashing for India in Mumbai inside 3 days. And it was ‘Sweet 16’ for the Aussies. Halfway through the second Test too, the script seemed to be going the Oz way. In reply to visitors’ 445, the hosts folded up for a meagre 171 to have the follow-on imposed on them.
It is said, ‘When the going gets tough…the tough get going!’
With their backs firmly to the wall, Vengipurapu Venkata Sai Laxman (281), in the company of Rahul Dravid (180), managed the unthinkable. Turning the 274 run deficit on its head, the duo batted through the whole of fourth day during their 376 run partnership for the fourth wicket. Steve Waugh and his men did not know what had hit them. The hunters had become hunted. India declared at 657/6 in the second innings to set Australia a target of 384 in less than a day. Harbhajan Singh, who had become the first Indian to take a hat trick in Tests in the first innings, became the ‘Turbanator’ to sink the Australian ship by 171 runs.
It was the first instance in 25 years (and third ever) that a team following-on had emerged triumphant. A golden chapter in the Laxman-Australia mystic love affair had been engraved forever.
Momentum firmly with India, they went on to clinch the series 2-1 after getting better of the world champs by just 2 wickets in a thrilling final Test in Chennai.
Result: Australia 445 and 212 lost to India 171 and 657/6 decl by 171 runs
India win 3 match series 2-1
2003
Venue: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide
A Sourav Ganguly led India came to tour Australia in December 2003, determined to set right their dismal record of just 3 wins and 19 defeats in 28 Tests Down Under. And they struck the right chord in the first Test itself. A brilliant counter-attacking century by Ganguly himself in the drawn Test and the Aussies knew…India would be no pushover this time around.
In the Adelaide Test, Ricky Ponting slammed a brilliant 242 as Australians rattled up an imposing 556 in less than a day and a half, in the first essay. In reply, India found themselves precariously placed at 85/4…when messers Laxman and Dravid decided to embark on their Mission Impossible 2!
In an encore of Kolkata, the partnership bore 303 runs as India managed to come within striking distance of the Australian first innings total.
As the Australians trudged in to bat for the second time, India found an unlikely hero in Ajit Agarkar, who with his lethal in-swingers ran through the much-vaunted batting line-up to grab his career best figures of 6/41.
Needing 230 to register a historic win, first innings double centurion Rahul Dravid ensured there would be no hiccups as India romped home with 4 wickets still in the bag.
Even though this win could not propel India to a series win, it went a long way in breaking the mental barrier that teams from India held in the past while playing in foreign conditions.
Australia: 556 and 196 lost to India: 523 and 233/6 by 4 wickets.
4 match series drawn 1-1
2004
Venue: VCA Stadium, Nagpur
Despite missing the services of their captain Ricky Ponting, the Australians had crushed India by 217 runs in the first Test at Bangalore to race away to a 1-0 lead in the 4 match series. The second Test in Chennai was tantalisingly poised until the rain Gods rendered the fifth and final day null and void. Hence Nagpur became the arena for the potential series decider. An illness to Indian captain Sourav Ganguly minutes before the toss meant that Rahul Dravid had to don the mantle of captaincy.
Exploiting the uncertainty in the Indian team to the hilt, the Aussie shot out their hosts for just 185 after having posted 398 in their first innings. Simon Katich and the first innings centurion Damien Martyn missed their tons by whiskers as Australia declared after setting Indians an imposing target of 543.
‘Cometh the hour…cometh the man’ goes a saying. Unfortunately for India, none came. In a shockingly abject surrender, India crashed to 200 all-out to lose the match by a whopping 342 runs and concede first ever series victory for Australia on the Indian soil in 35 years. The ‘Final Frontier’, which Steve Waugh so desperately wanted to conquer in 2001, had finally been breached under stand-in skipper Adam Gilchrist’s commandership.
Australia: 398 and 329/5 decl beat India: 185 and 200 by 342 runs.
Australia wins 4 match series 2-1
2008
Venue: Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
If ever cricket could divide, the Sydney Test of 2008 stands testimony to it.
In the backdrop of an ill-tempered World Cup semi-final and an equally acrimonious one day series in India 3 months ago, when the two teams met in Sydney for the New Year Test, festivities were the last things on their mind. Trailing 1-0 after the 337 run hammering in the first Test at Melbourne, Indians were eager to get off the mark in the series while the Aussies were looking forward to equal their record run…by hook or by crook!
What panned over the next five days was cricket of the highest quality, with Symonds, Sachin, Laxman, Hayden and Hussey slamming tons besides 8 other half-centuries, Brett Lee’s fiver, being overshadowed by the kind of brutish and childlike behaviour one can’t find even at the university level.
It all started with Symonds accusing Harbahajan of racism, a charge latter denied vehemently, followed by a counter-charge levelled against Brad Hogg, snowballing into a major storm with potential to split the cricketing world into two. Amidst speculations of the tour being annulled, the ugly episode culminated with players trudging in and out of courtrooms! The incident left such a bitter taste in the mouths of the parties concerned, that the after effects could be felt for the remainder of the summer.
In the battle of ‘Us v Them’, while the Aussies lamented Indians for the naked display of their vast riches and manipulating the hearings besides holding the ‘spirit of cricket’ to ransom, the Indians accused their hosts of being cry babies who couldn’t digest being at the receiving end of the ‘art of sledging’. Horrendously incompetent levels of umpiring by veteran Steve Bucknor and Steve Benson compounded the miseries further as Indians unfailingly found themselves holding the wrong end of the stick.
Finally (and thankfully) better sense prevailed. Truce was called and the tour went on…and so did occasional transgression of the thin line between aggression and rudeness.
For the record, Australia won the Sydney Test and Harbhajan was cleared of the racism charges.
Australia: 463 and 401/7 decl beat India: 532 and 210 by 122 runs
Australia wins 4 match series 2-1