Key Takeaways From The India Vs Australia First Test Match: Analysis And Insights

You constantly have a strategy until you are smacked in the face, according to the first Test match between IND and AUS. Australia learned this the hard way when they lost the opening test of the four-match Border-Gavaskar tournament against an outclassed by innings as well as 132 runs. Australia slumped to 177 after winning a supposedly important toss, with Jadeja celebrating his comeback to the longest format with a fifer. You can check cricket news for India to stay updated.

In response, brilliant performances by India’s captain Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, and Axar Patel, as well as a breezy cameo from Mohammed Shami helped the team reach 400 runs with a dominant 223-run advantage. From the time Khawaja was removed, Australia never really had a chance in the match. The Australian batting was broken by Ashwin and Jadeja, and Shami performed the match’s last rites. 

The key talking topics from the lopsided first Test between India and Australia are as follows:

• Pitch banter between IND and AUS becomes juvenile

Everybody was discussing a pitch prior the game and how the newspapers had depicted it as a full minefield, with the selective watering giving origin to the phrase “pitch” doctoring” in Australian media. Yet as the match developed, it became a totally different tale. Although the ground was challenging for batting, it was the same for both teams. 

The likes of Australia’s Labuschagne and Smith as well as India’s Rohit, Jadeja, and Axar demonstrated that if you put in some effort on the playing surface for a time, you could score runs and get some value out of your strokes. Also, if one team gets 400 scores and the other is unable to score any, it’s not the quality of the pitch that matters but rather the degree of ability displayed. And the host team’s batting was sufficient to silence the opponents of the ground who seemed to be speaking out loudly. 

• Rohit leads the way

 Due to his absence from 8 of the past 10 tests as well as 3 of the previous 5 as captain, Indian captain Rohit Sharma started the series under scrutiny for both his leadership skills and his level of preparedness. In exams, he also exhibited a slightly tense demeanor, giving the impression that he was a guy with much to lose if things didn’t go his manner. Yet the captain took the initiative, both on the ground and with the bat. He was aggressive in his strategies for each batter on the ground and rearranged his bowlers appropriately. Nonetheless, he really stole the spotlight with the bat. 

In a game where everyone appeared to be playing on the team of chaos, he was among the few batsmen who met his innings with a feeling of regularity. He played with such confidence that it appeared as though he was playing on an entirely different pitch. This was a remarkable hit from a man who appears to have enjoyed that moment more than the rest, so it would take something spectacular to dismiss him. 

• Murphy shines on debut

There were many concerns raised when it was announced that inexperienced spinner Todd Murphy would be making his test debut rather than options like Agar and Swepson, who had previous experience in similar circumstances, by the Australians. By the conclusion of the match, though, the young Australian had done a great deal of good for his reputation by grabbing 7 wickets on his debut and bowling more effectively than his veteran partner and coach Nathan Lyon. 

Murphy bowled a really sharp line, maintaining the ball on the stumps, as well as letting his natural changes do the work for him after reading the circumstances properly. During his period with the ball, he was miserly and bowling with control. He earned a little luck for the tremendous work he did, even though some of his wickets were fortuitous and the result of bad deliveries. Murphy served as the master for the day while Lyon served as the trainee. 

• Jadeja makes a grand entrance upon his comeback in IND versus AUS.

Ravindra Jadeja made a century in his final test appearance. Also, it seemed as though he had never been away when he returned to the longest format after a protracted break. For the whole test series, he was outstanding in every area. With the ball during the initial innings, he helped India win the match back by dismissing Marnus Labuschagne, who’d been batting extremely comfortably at 49 as well as posing a threat to the hosts. 

He then delivered an incredible Jaffa to get Steve Smith out of the way, giving them the upper hand. Even with the bat, he was a cut above the rest, forming a collaboration with Rohit and Axar, who each had a unique role to perform. With Rohit, he was the aggressive, and with Axar, he was the anchor, so India always adjusted its play to the circumstances. A healthy Jadeja is a crucial component of this Indian team, and his performance simply reinforced that. 

• Australia’s meek surrender

Australia came into this tour with the appropriate attitude. They made two visits of the subcontinent that appeared to be successful. They trained rigorously in Bengaluru in circumstances that were tailored to their preferences after practicing spinning pitches on a specially designed pitch in Sydney. They even were successful in bringing in a net bowler whose style of bowling is similar to that of Indian ace R Ashwin. But despite all, they struggled mightily in this exam. Warner as well as Khawaja were cheaply fired as infants. 

Renshaw was chosen over Travis Head, who is presently considered as the fourth-best test batsman, which was a mistake in terms of squad selection. Renshaw had a very limited effect on the test and was injured for the majority of the Australian bowling. The fewer things said regarding the Indians’ second-inning hitting, the better. Todd Murphy’s bowling never appeared to pose a threat to them. They still have time to make things right, but they are a lot stronger squad than this loss would have you believe. Simply put, they failed to show up on the designated day. 

Conclusion

A initial Test game against Indian cricketing squad and Australians was a one-sided affair as India dominated Australia in all aspects of the game, resulting in an innings and 132-run victory for India. Despite the pre-match focus on the pitch, it was the level of skill of the players that made the difference. Indian captain Rohit Sharma led by example, displaying his exceptional batting skills and leadership qualities. Todd Murphy impressed on his debut for Australia, while Ravindra Jadeja marked his return to Test cricket with a great all-round performance. Australia’s lackluster performance, despite their preparation, was a surprise and they will need to regroup quickly if they hope to compete in the rest of the series.