Pitches were panned, but made for exciting contests
was pro-active in the run chase and ended Pat Cummins’ fiery attempt to provoke a collapse. Good, imaginative captaincy is crucial to the success of Test cricket.
The prodigious run scoring by Steve Smith and Cheteshwar Pujara reflected an old-fashioned approach to batting. Their concentration was relentless and the shot-making displayed a desire to eradicate error. It was reminiscent of a time when Test cricket was the only game in town.
Now, for the not so appealing aspects of the series.
The DRS doesn’t achieve what it was introduced to do. The DRS should simply overturn howlers, and within a margin for error, ensure decisions are correct. It shouldn’t be constantly employed to review fifty/fifty decisions and tactically induced punts. It should also be under the sole control of the umpires. The adjudication process shouldn’t turn a captain into a ‘Money or The Box’ contestant, with onlookers shouting advice from the sidelines.
The DRS should not include reviews to determine if a fielder has caught the ball. Murali Vijay caught Josh Hazlewood in Dharamsala; any fair-minded slip fielder will confirm it was a legitimate catch.
A fielder doesn’t catch the ball with his fingers pointing straight towards the ground. He only does that when he’s intercepting a ball that has bounced in front of him. Murali Vijay had his fingers curled under the ball, it’s just that the foreshortening effect of the cameras made it appear otherwise on one replay.
Not only does reviewing these decisions often bring about the wrong conclusion - on-field umpire Ian Gould’s soft signal was out - it also implies the fielder is a cheat. The evidence is flawed and should be thrown out.
The incessant on-field chatter has to be drastically reduced. It should drive batsmen mad but if it doesn’t, it’s the equivalent of a finger nail on a chalkboard for the television viewer.
Those annoyances apart, it was a fabulous series showing Test cricket in a wonderful light.
Over the years, Indian players have powered the popularity of the Indian Premier League, but the brand could be tested as six current national players won’t start the campaign due to fitness issues.
Injured India skipper Virat Kohli is unsure when he will be ready to lead last year’s finalists Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 10th edition, which gets underway in Hyderabad on Wednesday. The Indian cricket Board’s medical bulletin on Saturday showed the struggle of the players at the end of a fruitful but draining 13-Test home season.
Off-spinner R Ashwin of Rising Pune Supergiant was ruled out of the tournament on Friday due to sports hernia, which first flared up ahead of the final Test against England in Chennai.
Kohli, who hurt his right shoulder while fielding in the third Test against Australia at Ranchi and sat out the Dharamsala game, is undergoing rehabilitation. The impact batsman, who
CRICKET NEEDS TO IMPROVE THE LOT OF SPIN BOWLERS; THE GAME CAN’T DO WITHOUT TOPCLASS TWEAKERS.