What a win. What a start to the Hindu New Year. Here we bring you 5 talking points from the Border-Gavaskar trophy 2017.
India wins the Border-Gavaskar trophy for the 5th time and finishes the home season on a high. This series seemed to be the real test for the Indian youth army and they came supreme at last. The high-intensity battle was in the headlines for many reasons. There were many takeaways for both the teams.
Let’s have a look at the series in a nutshell…
1st test match defeat After almost two years – After dismantling the Kiwis and the Englishmen, the Australia series had to be hot and steamy. The Aussies came prepared and shocked Virat Kohli’s men by defeating them by 333 runs in the first test. Virat Kohli’s 19 matches unbeaten streak was broken and India was beaten for the first time during the entire Home season.
Virat-Smith cheating controversy – We all know what happened on day 4 of the 2nd test in Bangaluru. Things got extreme from then on. The former Indian cricketers were not happy with Smith. Gavaskar even went on to ask for ICC’s intervention. The Australian media stood by their Captain and criticized Kohli for over sensationalizing the issue.
We don’t know whether it was a brain fade or an instance of cheating, what we know is that this controversy added the much-needed masala to the already fierce rivalry between India and Australia.
Umesh and Co. giving it back to the Aussies in style- Indian fast bowlers grounded the Australian batsmen by bowling fierce ‘Bouncers.’ You heard it right. Australians were on the receiving side this time around. Umesh, Ishant and Bhuvi were right on the money throughout the series. Australians were humbled by the same weapon that they used against India over the ages.
Kuldeep Yadav, the wonder Kid – The 19-year-old boy from Kanpur is the new find for India. He is the new edition to India’s collection of spinners. He is the first Chinaman bowler to play for India ever. His trajectory was simply magnificent. He announced his arrival in the international scene with a figure of 4/68 in his first test match.
Who can forget the Maxwell dismissal…it was simply wow!
Ajinkya Rahane, the Captain – Ajinkya Rahane showed that he is a unique leader, but Virat Kohli also reminded everyone that a shoulder bruise can’t force him to lie low. Temperamentally, they are like chalk and cheese, but for every Virat Kohli, you need an Ajinkya Rahane as they come together to create a nice balance of caution and aggression that any champion outfit needs. Ajinkya was as impressive as one can be as the captain of India.