THE SYDENY DEFIANCE

 

THE SYDNEY DEFIANCE

As the voice of cricket, Harsha Bhogle, so eloquently put it, “India had built a palace out of rubble”. And if I had to pick a moment that could really be compared with this tour down under, then the only one that could actually stand its ground would be, when the Australian team had come to India in 2001, led by the ever gritty, Steven Rogers Waugh and a juggernaut of 16 continuous test wins, was halted by India, the final frontier.

It’s been a few days since the famed Gabbatoire was breached, after 33 long years, by a group of inexperienced but passionate youngsters. Teams have come to Brisbane every year and have mostly been smashed around, punch after punch, by the high flying Gabba ghost. Sure, it can never be said with certainty but things might not have been too different this time around as well, had it not been for the previous test match at the Sydney cricket ground.

After the Adelaide debacle and then the inspirational turn around at Melbourne, both teams had come to Sydney for the New Year’s test, with the series locked at one all. Without the Kohlis, Shamis, Umeshs and Ishants of the world and that nightmarish 36 all out at Adelaide. This was a pretty satisfying score line for the Indians with 2 test matches more to go.

In the next test, at Sydney, every time Australia would be looking to gain ascendency, India would find someone to count on and would pull the match back in balance. After three days and two sessions, after showing courage, energy and losing Jadeja’s thumb, India were set a target of 407 to chase down and 4 sessions of hard cricket against the likes of Starc, Lyon, Hazlewood and the Numero Uno, a certain, Patrick Cummins. The final session of the penultimate day, as the Indian openers marched out to the middle, was heavily tilted in the favour of the men, wearing the baggy green and the Indian supporters’ hopes resting on the “Hitman”. The elegance of Rohit and Gill took over the ambience, before both being dismissed and leaving a mammoth 300odd to get, 8 wickets in the bank and a full day of hostile pace of the Aussie trio and the guile of Nathan Lyon, on a final day surface of Sydney.

What unfolded on the final day was the stuff of great poetry. With the captain, Ajinkya Rahane, gone early, it seemed that finally the great Indian comeback was over and Australia would be smacking their lips for a 3-1 score line, ending at Brisbane. But that was a mistake, the Indian ship had more fuel in its tank and the previous series’ highest scorer, the night king for the Aussies, Cheteshwar Pujara and the effervescent Rishabh Pant had taken the wheel. An off colour Pujara had decided to ultimately arrive and what an arrival it was. He batted and batted, facing ball after ball, some would hit the willow and the others, Aussies would have felt at least, were hitting a wall, impregnable. He was like a warrior, putting himself on the line, for his fellow brethren. On the other end, was this 23 year old southpaw, waiting to unleash a storm and in quest of history, lighting up the SCG. With an impeccable shot selection, he raced to 97 of 117 balls. He finally got out trying to clear the long on fielder against a Lyon turner, miscuing to Cummins at point but he had done enough to keep India in the game with a victory in real sight. Soon afterwards, a nip backer from Hazlewood found its way through the watertight defenses of Pujara, castling him but not before the Indian number three had gone on for a  marathon 205-ball 77.  

 The next 46 overs with Australia needing 5 wickets, to take a 2-1 lead looked a little too much for the touring party, with an out of form Ashwin, a one legged Hanuma Vihari and Ravindra Jadeja with a broken thumb, being India’s final straws. Then the magnum opus began, the steel of this new India was on a fully fledged display with an unbreakable resolve. Over after over, Ashwin and Vihari put on a performance of a lifetime, blocking and blocking.  Taking the red cherry on the ribs, chest, fingers, and helmet but never giving up. Ashwin kept reaching out to Lyon’s loopy deliveries, smothering the spin with immaculate accuracy and Vihari kept on defying the pain of a torn hamstring, facing barrages from the world’s best bowling attack, swaying, ducking, leaving, but surviving. With a plastered Jadeja, padded up, sitting in the dressing room, ready to come out and fight for his team, it was a sight to behold for the ages.  The occasional sledge had, after a point, become continuous. With only 11 overs to go, the Australians had become edgy and in their own Aussie way, kept on sledging, now out of frustration. Then Captain Tim Paine said that famous line, “I can’t wait to get you to Gabba, ash.” It was strange, not because Aussies were sledging but because their captain was already thinking about the next game and not the current one. That was it, the Aussie ego had been dismantled, they had accepted a result which was not a win and this was the telling blow. Paine went on to grasp another Vihari edge after a couple of overs, off Starc. The game, after another 30 minutes was called a draw, India had survived to fight for another test match, and the series was still alive. Jadeja could finally take off his plastered glove, Vihari could limp back into the dressing room to get treatment and Ashwin, well, he too had a sore back needing attention

 What happened next at Gabba was a miracle but what led to Gabba happening, was Sydney. There have been numerous backs to wall fights in the history of the game but this was inspirational, to an extent that no cricket fan would have complained a word, even if we had lost the 4^th game. Indian cricket had scripted another memorable chapter in its rich history, a chapter that would be told for generations to come, when a group of battered and bruised warriors kept on fighting, for pride and eventually, the fate had to give in, to sheer determination. The Border-Gavaskar trophy was retained by, not India’s first eleven, but the only standing eleven, against a full strength Aussie onslaught.