Mastermind behind India’s resurrection from Adelaide hell
Ravi Shastri has been watching Australian cricket since his epic innings in 1991, at the MCG he masterminded a coup
The resurrection of the Australian cricket side was a marketing exercise as much as anything. A rebranding and a focus group type shift in core philosophies overseen by a new coach, Justin Langer, and a new captain, Tim Paine.
There were some missteps, some overreach and some hesitancy early.
Elite humility didn’t wash with the public or on the field, but they eventually found their feet. Things fell into place when Tim Paine stood up to Virat Kohli in Perth and while there is a slight cringe factor around the mantra of “making Australians proud (again)” there is an integrity to the intention and processes.
India’s more recent resurrection — from the ignominy of all out 36 in Adelaide to the redemption of a brilliant win at the MCG — was a more focused and forensic affair, but one that has been three decades in the making.
Plenty played roles, not the least of them acting captain Ajinkya Rahane, head coach Ravi Shastri and bowling coach Bharat Arun.
Shastri has been coming to Australia since before the turn of the century. He loved cricket in this country and the attitude of cricketers in this country. He fashioned his own game on that aggressive, never-back-down approach. He has done a similar thing as coach.
Shastri laid down his marker at the SCG in early 1992. He tells the story of when he brought up his half century he decided to give the Australians a taste of their own medicine by walking to the slips cordon and taking on the captain Allan Border in front of his men.
“The biggest spray of his life,” the Indian claims.
Border, he says, was dumbstruck. His charges, who lived in fear of the original Captain Grumpy’s temper, watched with amazement. Border doesn’t remember the incident, but remembers that Shastri was one of the first Indian visitors to respond to aggression with aggression.
They both remember sharing beers after matches and respect ever since. Border plans to catch up with his old adversary in Brisbane.
Shastri scored a double century that day.
He says the young Sachin Tendulkar asked if he too should take the Australians on verbally that day, but he counselled against it, telling him to play his natural game and do his talking with the bat. Tendulkar made a century, they shared a 196-run partnership.
When the Indian all-rounder found himself coaching Virat Kohli’s side he found a natural ally.
Kohli was the young cricketer who flipped the bird to the SCG crowd on his first tour.
Stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane is a quieter spirit, more in the mould of Tendulkar, but one with an equally determined will.
Just as Paine was the right captain for a nervous Australia in 2018, Rahane was the right captain for an Indian side which should have been shattered by the Adelaide experience.
Rahane speaks softly but carries a big stick at the MCG.
India’s bowling plans did not change from Adelaide to Melbourne even if its bowlers did. Mohammed Shami was out because of injury and young Mohammed Siraj was in as replacement.
Prithvi Shaw was replaced by Shubman Gill. The debutant brought runs while Shaw took with him his poor fielding.
Ravindra Jadeja, the all-rounder and best fielder in the squad, was also included.
So, India added a strength and removed a weakness in the field. In Adelaide it had dropped seven catches, in Melbourne Australia dropped seven.
How to explain that? Indian fielding coach R Sridhar says that bad fielding is like a pandemic. Good catching and bad catching are like a virus. If somebody drops one early the rest of the field thinks “we can’t afford to drop two” and tightens up. From there it just gets worse. If somebody holds a good one early the energy and confidence is contagious. Rahane’s quiet confidence was also infectious. The exchange between skipper and bowlers when they had success was quiet but notable. No chest beating, just delight that a plan had paid off.
The bowling plans were a result of the pandemic too. Shastri and Arun were quarantined in the UAE waiting for the squad to surface from the IPL and then spent weeks on arrival in Sydney before the white-ball games.
They used it to work out lines and field placements for the Australian batsmen and the results were obvious. They dried up the scoring areas of the key batsmen and forced them into error.
Siraj is a graduate of Arun’s bowling school, one of a stable he has groomed over the years and one from his home state of Hyderabad. The bowler has been a personal project of the affable bowling coach who is a close ally of Shastri.
With Umesh Yadav also injured and Ishant Sharma unavailable, the depth of India’s fast bowling talents is being tested but thus far has stood up under pressure.
India has always been rich in batting talent, but struggled to field a strong bowling line-up. Arun, however, has been able to source and nurture a school of seamers who can prosper in foreign conditions.
If Yadav does not play Navdeep Saini is available to step up. The seamer took 3-19 at the SCG in early December.
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