India another Big win Series3-0

Australia resisted like a girl with an attitude, but gave in finally to a relentless suitor as India won the 3rd Test by 6 wickets to go 3-0 up in the series. The 4th and last match will be played in New Delhi from March 22 when India will attempt to win 4 Tests in a series forth first time in their history.

A target of 133 in a minimum of 27 overs, India hit the Promised Land for the loss of Murali Vijay -26, Cheteshwar Pujara -28 and Virat Kohli -34 and Sachin Tendulkar -21. For a brief while it appears that Australia may confine India to a draw. Thirty were needed in 56 balls when Kohliflicked Peter Siddle to short mid-wicket.

Tendulkar and MS Dhoni played through a phase of quiet as the requirement escalated, and the master’s sharp run-out by David Warner gave Australia another look-in to enforce a draw. But Ravindra Jadeja walked in to cream boundaries against Siddle; setting an example for his skipper to follow Dhoni decided things with 3 fours off Mitchell Starc and then uproots a stump as a souvenir.

The win at Mohali was mainly set up by Shikhar Dhawan blazing 187 on debut that was scored across 2 sessions on Saturday and made up for the time lost on account of the 1st-day washout. Dhawan was named Man of the Match, but did not come out to bat on Monday as he has injured his hand while fielding. India was also served well by Jadeja left-arm spin, which claimed 6 wickets - 3 in each innings - in the match. Jadeja has dismissed Michael Clarke 5 times in this series.

Australia Big fight

Australia was effectively 79 for 8 at lunch, with 52 overs remaining, and was rescued by two stubborn alliances: 36 in 16.1 overs between Starc and Haddin, and 44 in 18 overs between Starc and Xavier Doherty for the last wicket. Ravichandran Ashwin deceived Haddin with a ‘carom’ ball without delay after lunch.

Starc and Doherty stretched the lead to 132 before the 1st innings scorer of 99 was done in by Jadeja for 35. This meant that India had 90 minutes plus a minimum of 15 mandatory overs to reach the target. The hosts got there, not in a tearing hurry, but well within the time fixed, and will head to Delhi soaring on a first-time 3-0 cushion over Australia.

Earlier, Australia resumed in the morning 3 down on 75, sixteen ahead, and was all out for 223 mid-ways into the second session. They suffered the first jolt when Nathan Lyon edged Pragyan Ojha to Dhoni. Australia spasm-wreaked captain, Clarke, lasted for 49 deliveries before Jadeja dismissed him for the 5th time this series – via an inside-edged bat-pad that was gobbled up by Pujara at short-leg.

The next dismissal was rather unfortunate. Phil Hughes -69 who had infinitely multiply his series gains in the course of one attacking knock, was given out ‘lbw’ to Ashwin when the delivery seemed likely to miss leg-stump. All-rounder Moises Henriques -2 lasted ten balls before Jadeja flung himself to his left to accept a blinding return-catch. Siddle had his off-stump knocked back by Ojha, clearing the way for Haddin and Starc to delay the inevitable.

Score Details

Australia First Innings-408/10

Highest Score

Mitchell Starc -99(144)

Steven Smith -92(185)

Ed Cowan -86(238)

Best Bowling India

Ishant Sharma (72/3), Ravindra Jadeja (77/3)

India 1st Innings-499/10

Highest Score

Shikhar Dhawan –187(174)

Murali Vijay -153(317)

Virat Kohli -67(129)

Best Bowling Australia

Peter Siddle-5/71

Australia 2nd Innings223/10

Best Bowling India

Bhuvneshwar Kumar-3/31

Ravindra Jadeja-3/35

India 2nd Innings 136/4

Men of the Match

Shikhar Dhawan

Sehwag dropped last 2 Tests against Australia

Virender Sehwag has been dropped from India Test squad side for the 1st time since he made an emphatic comeback to the long format with a century in Adelaide in 2008-09. That, by the by, remains his last century outside Asia. No substitute has been named for Sehwag for the remaining 2 Tests of the series against Australia, which makes Shikhar Dhawan a favorite to open in the Mohali Test starting on March 14.

The 2remaining Tests of the current series, which India lead 2-0, are the last ones they are scheduled to play before they go on four continuous overseas tours beginning with South Africa later this year (2013). 

In his first reaction, Sehwag - who had been dropped from the ODI side for the series against England in January - tweeted: Will continue to work hard for my place in the team. I trust my game and am sure that, 'I'll be back.' Best wishes to the team. 

Since his comeback, Sehwag performance outside Asia might have been doubtful, but he kept his place in the side with typically dazzling match-winning knocks on the lower and slower tracks. Since Adelaide, Sehwag has scored just 523 runs in 12 Tests, at an average of 22.73 with a highest of 67. In Asia, though, over the same period he has total 3622 runs at 57.49, at a game-changing strike rate of 94.1. 

However, over the last 2 years, the big innings began to dry up still in Asia. After his 173 against New Zealand in Ahmadabad in November 2010, he had to wait more than 2 years for another Test century. In November 2012, Sehwag earn another lease of life with a typical century against England again in Ahmadabad but, between then and being dropped, he has had scores of (25, 30, 9, 23, 49, 0, 2, 19 and 6). 

This is a big fall for India's most prolific chance combination in Tests: Gautam Gambhir was dropped before the start of the Australia after 3 years without a Test century. Now India is possibly looking at a raw opening grouping going into South Africa. 

Not even naming a replacement opener is a big statement made by selectors who don't seem to have other option available but have still gone ahead and omitted him. Dhawan, his Delhi team-mate, is now a front-runner for Mohali, but Ajinkya Rahane can't be ruled out either. Sandeep Patil, the chairman of selectors, did say before the start of the England series that Rahane was selected as a middle-order batsman, but the Indian team management has been flexible and doesn't always stick to statement made in the press.

India won Innings and a day Series 2-0

HYDERABAD: Even India wouldn’t have dreamed of an end so terse. A couple of hours into the opening session on the 4th day of the second Test, all hopes of a typical Australia fight back vaporized like acetone on warm skin. India ran away winners by an innings and 135 runs, having needed just 35 overs on Tuesday to take the 8 wickets that stood between them and a 2-0 lead in the 4-match series.

 

The victory took MS Dhoni past Sourav Ganguly as India most successful Test M.S.Dhoni presents captain: 22 wins in 45 matches, and Ganguly’s 21 in 49. For Australia, the statistics were less kind. They became the 1st team ever to lose by an innings after declaring their first innings closed.

Cheteshwar Pujara was named player of the Match for his 1st innings 204, his s2nd Test double hundred. India was also served well by Murali Vijay's 167 runs in the first essay.

Resuming on 74/2, the visitors collapsed like a badly baked cake to 131 all out. The central figures were again India spinners although Australia batsmen displayed very little intent in prolonging their stays in the middle. Ravichandran Ashwin (5-63) and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja (3-33) did the most of the damage. 

Well Bowling
 

Jadeja opened the bowling with Ishant Sharma and turned in 18 overs on the trot, his haul with the prized scalp of Michael Clarke (16) done in with a delectable away turner that slip side past the Aussie captain’s defenced and took out off stump. Although Clarke dismissal portended the shape of things to come, the going was sorry for his team right from the get-go.

Overnight batsman Shane Watson (10) became Ishant first victim of the match - his first, indeed, in the last 3 matches – in the 3rd over of the morning. The all-rounder, playing purely as a batsman here, was out chasing easy runs, patting a delivery down the leg-side to Dhoni behind wicket.

A sequence of rued chances followed. Ed Cowan, who had also resumed overnight, was missed on 31 by substitute Shikhar Dhawan at short leg, off the bowling of Jadeja. Clarke too survive a vociferous appeal for a catch down the leg-side against Ishant, and responded by going inside-out for six against the left-arm spinner in the next over.

Spineless batting
 

the writing was now on the wall. Clarke was out to a Jadeja beauty, the kind that undid Moises Henrique’s in the 1st innings and Cowan, who was dropped again (44) by Dhawan at forward short-leg, finally ran out of luck. The left-handed opener went for the cut against Jadeja the resultant edge ricocheted off Dhoni’s pads and was pouched alertly by Virender Sehwag at slip. Jadeja next ran out Moises Henrique’s (0) with a direct hit from short cover.

IPL millionaire Glenn Maxwell (8) was trapped lbw off an Ashwin carom ball. Peter Siddle (4) departed to a mirror image of Cowan dismissal, the edge taken by Sehwag after it lobbed up from M.S.Dhoni pads. Mathew Wade and James Pattinson became Ashwin fourth and fifth victims in that order, the latter wicket ending things devastatingly in the home team’s favour.

India vs Australia 2nd test series score Details

Australia 1st Innings-237/9 Dec
 
Highest Score
M.Clarke-91(186) and Matthew Wade-62(144)

Highest Wicket(Ind)
Bhuvneshwar Kumar-3(53) and R.Jadeja-3(33)

India 1st Innings Score-503/10

Highest Score
C.Pujara-204(341) and M.Vijay-167(361)

Highest Wicket(Aus)
Glenn Maxwell-4(127) and Xavier Doherty-3(131)

2nd Innings
Australia-131/10

Highest Wickets
R.Ashwin-5 (63) and 3 (33)