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India vs Australia past encounters: Part 1 of 4

India and Australia have participated in several keenly contested duels.

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Jack Ryder’s team certainly did not represent Australia’s best. Picture Courtesy: Megan Ponsford

India never played Australia before their Independence, but since then they have participated in several keenly contested duels. This is the first instalment of a trip down memory lane by Abhishek Mukherjee.

The Ashes is the oldest and grandest of keenly contested cricket contests. India-Pakistan contests, though newer and fewer, have seldom lacked in intensity. However, if you take one team from each, India and Australia have a rich heritage of their own contests.

1. Jack Ryder’s Australians in India, 1935-36: Australians 2, India 2

India’s pre-Independence relationship was restricted to seven Tests against England. However, SS Mongolia, carrying a group of Australians had set sail from Port Melbourne in October 1935. Along with the usual tour matches, they would play four unofficial “Tests” in India (with a small detour of Ceylon). The man behind the tour was the Maharaja of Patiala, who sponsored the entire trip with a purse of £10,000; it was his way of going one-up on Vizzy, who had led India to England that summer.

With the Australian Test team (sans Don Bradman) having left for South Africa, the team consisted mostly of over-aged and out-of-contention cricketers. They were led by a 46-year old Jack Ryder; also in the side were Stork Hendry, 41; Ron Oxenham, 44; Hammy Love, famous for replacing Bert Oldfield in the Bodyline series, 40; Charlie Macartney, 49; and perhaps most significantly, Bert Ironmonger, 53.

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They played four “Tests” in all. The Australians went one-up with a resounding nine-wicket victory at Brabourne Stadium, with Frederick Mair and Ironmonger claiming five-wicket hauls and Ryder scoring a hundred. India fared no better at Eden Gardens, being bowled out for 48 (by Macartney and Oxenham) and 127 (Thomas Leather routing them). Though Mohammad Nissar routed the tourists for 99 in the first innings, they chased down the target with eight wickets in hand.

Things seemed to go the same way at Lahore after India were bowled out for 149, but Nissar and Amir Elahi fought back to restrict the tourists to a 17-run lead. Shute Banerjee and Wazir Ali then lifted the score from 25 for two, and with eight batsmen reaching double-figures, the tourists were set 285. Ryder was the only one to put up a decent fight as Nissar and Baqa Jilani ensured a 68-run victory.

With all to play for, India were bowled out for 189 at Chepauk before Nissar and Amar Singh claimed five apiece to gain a 27-run lead. Macartney’s six-for ensured the target was restricted to 141, but Nissar, once again bowling with fire, skittled the tourists for 107. The series was levelled.

The tourists performed commendably in the tour matches, especially Oxenham. The standard joke behind his success story in India was that Hindus did not eat oxen and Muslims abstained from taking ham.

2. India in Australia, 1947-48: Australia 4, India 0

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Don Bradman walks out to bat. The Indians never stood a chance against him © Getty Images

According to many, Bradman may not have toured England in 1948, had the series against India not gone as expected. Not for the first time, Bradman finished at the top of the aggregates, scoring 715 at a, well, Bradmanesque 178.75. Lindsay Hassett also averaged in three digits, and India were mauled brutally by the side that would be called The Invincibles in a few months’ time.

To be fair to the Indians, the Australians often had the better of the wicket. At The Gabba, for example, Bradman declared at 382 for eight after the wickets had turned into a “sticky”. The Indians did not stand a chance, and were bowled out for 58 and 98, Ernie Toshack returning unreal figures of five for two and six for 29.

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India fought back at SCG. This time they were benefitted by rain, scoring 188 before Dattu Phadkar and Vijay Hazare bowled out for a paltry 107. The Test was hung in the balance, but play never resumed after India had been reduced to 61 for seven. The Test witnessed a mere ten hours of cricket. MCG saw Bradman register twin tons and Vinoo Mankad responding with a hundred, but Bill Johnston proved to be too much for the tourists.

Adelaide witnessed 201 from Bradman and 198 from Hassett, but the hero of the Test was Hazare, who became the first Indian to score two hundreds in a Test (and the first to do so in consecutive days of a Test). India slumped to an innings defeat following a Ray Lindwall blizzard. Having won the series, Australia crushed India by an innings again at MCG, thanks to a Neil Harvey hundred and some probing bowling from Len Johnson and Doug Ring.

On a side-note, Bradman became the first non-Englishman to a hundred First-Class hundreds. Playing at SCG, Lala Amarnath had summoned Gogumal Kishenchand to confused The Don when he was on 99, but it did not work.

3. Australia in India, 1956-57: Australia 2, India 0

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The Indians found Richie Benaud unplayable that series © Getty Images

Australia’s first tour to India was dominated by spinners, of whom Richie Benaud emerged as the clear winner: he claimed 23 wickets from three Tests at 16.86.  He started with seven for 72 to bowl out India for 161 at Chepauk. Following a 158-run lead, Lindwall blew them away for 153. India kept the series alive with a draw at Eden Gardens, thanks to a hundred from Gulabrai Ramchand in the first innings and gritty performances from Pankaj Roy and Polly Umrigar in the second.

The third Test belonged to two champion spinners — Benaud (six for 52 and five for 53) and Ghulam Ahmed (seven for 49 and three for 81). Australia scored 177 and declared on 189, which was sufficient for India, who folded for 136 in each innings.

4. Australia in India, 1959-60: Australia 2, India 1

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Jasu Patel created history for India. Caricature by Austin Coutinho.

The series started in an identical fashion, with Benaud (three for nought — the cheapest three-wicket haul in Tests — and five for 76), supported by a Neil Harvey hundred, guided the tourists to an innings victory at Kotla. For the second Test at Green Park India recalled a 35-year old off-spinner called Jasu Patel, who had taken ten wickets from four Tests.

Benaud and Alan Davidson bowled out India for 152 before Australia reached 121 for two. Then Patel bowled one of the most iconic spells in the history of Indian cricket: he finished with 35.5-16-69-9 (Chandu Borde took the other wicket), and the Australians were bowled out for 219.

With their tails up, the Indians refuted Davidson (seven for 93); Contractor, Abbas Ali Baig, Borde, Ramnath Kenny, and Bapu Nadkarni all contributed, and Australia were left to score 225 against Patel. This time he claimed five for 55 as India won by 119 runs — their first victory against Australia. Till Narendra Hirwani came along, Patel’s innings (nine for 69) and match (14 for 124) figures remained India’s best.

An anticlimactic draw — dominated by hundreds from Contractor, Harvey, and Norman O’Neill and some splendid bowling from Davidson, Ian Meckiff, and Nadkarni — followed at Brabourne Stadium. With Benaud back at his best and Les Favell scoring a hundred, Australia won by an innings at Chepauk, and claimed the series with a draw at Eden Gardens (they could have won the Test; set 203 they finished on 121 for two).

5. Australia in India, 1964-65: Australia 1, India 1

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Tiger Pataudi seldom returned empty-handed from Bombay © Getty Images

It was a three-Test series, and Australia started with an emphatic 139-run victory at Chepauk despite Nadkarni’s heroic efforts. Though India claimed a 65-run first innings lead, a target of 333 was always going to be difficult against Graham McKenzie and Neil Hawke. India lost by 139 runs.

The second Test at Brabourne Stadium was one of the greatest played on Indian soil (though the hosts were at an advantage as O’Neill went down with a severe stomach pain soon after the match started, reducing Australia to ten men). With Bhagwat Chandrasekhar pulling off a good performance, India were set 256 for a win.

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ML Jaisimha fell early, and though Dilip Sardesai and Salim Durani added 66 for the second stand, India lost wickets in quick succession and were reduced to 122 for six when Vijay Manjrekar joined Tiger Pataudi. The Indian captain had scored 128 not out at Chepauk and 86 in the first innings here; he was not willing to give it up easily.

They reached 146 for six at lunch, and came back at tea with 215 for six. Then Connolly struck twice, having Manjrekar caught at slip and Pataudi at gully. India still needed 30, and it all depended on Borde, who had only KS Indrajitsinhji by his side (Chandra was the only one left to bat).

But they batted on: Indrajit held up one end as Borde kept scoring, and it took them 41 minutes to register a 41-run win to level the series. It was a fitting win, given that it was Dusshera.

Rain washed out the last two days of the third Test at Eden Gardens, though it had its share of drama. Bobby Simpson and Bill Lawry added 97, but a magical spell from Durani restricted the tourists to 174 (they lost their last five wickets at the space of nine runs). India managed to secure a 61-run lead, but Simpson and Lawry again put up 115 — and rain did the rest. India secured their first series draw against Australia.

6. India in Australia, 1967-68: Australia 4, India 0

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Bob Cowper scored 485 runs at 69.28 and took 13 wickets at 18.38 © Getty Images

Though India had a few quality individual performances (EAS Prasanna’s 25 wickets at 27.44 was perhaps the finest among these), they were hammered by Australia throughout the series. For example, Abid Ali took six for 55 and scored two 33s on debut at Adelaide Oval, but Bob Cowper (92 and 108), Connolly (four for 54 in first innings), and David Renneburg (five for 39 in second) sealed it for Australia.

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MCG witnessed hundreds from both Simpson and Lawry (they added 191, outscoring India’s 173). Ian Chappell added 151, and Ajit Wadekar’s 99 could not stop an innings defeat. Then Chandra got injured, and for some reason, the selectors sent Jaisimha as replacement. Jaisimha practised for a few hours at the State Bank of India ground, took several connecting flights, and reached Brisbane just before the Test started. He ended up scoring 74 and 101.

Simpson, meanwhile, had stood down from leadership as the mantle had passed on to Lawry mid-series. The Indians put up a tough fight this time, but Cowper (51 and 25, three for 31 and four for 104) turned the Test in Australia’s favour. The series was claimed. Simpson stayed for the MCG Test (though Lawry led and Simpson batted at four). Once again Cowper proved to be the hero (32 and 165, one for 21 and four for 49). The whitewash was complete.

Click here to read India vs Australia past encounters: Part 2 of 4

Click here to read India vs Australia past encounters: Part 3 of 4

Click here to read India vs Australia past encounters: Part 4 of 4

(Abhishek Mukherjee is the Chief Editor and Cricket Historian at CricketCountry. He blogs here and can be followed on Twitter here.)

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