Varun Aaron’s three-wicket burst led India’s impressive bowling performance that saw Cricket Australia (CA) XI getting cleaned out for a paltry 219. Shiamak Unwalla feels that the signs are encouraging ahead of what promises to be a long, tiring tour.
When India toured New Zealand in 2008-09, Virender Sehwag hit the first three balls of the tour he faced for consecutive sixes. Though India eventually lost the match — a Twenty20 International (T20I), that statement of intent set India up for what proved to be a highly successful series for the visitors. India lost both T20Is (the second one off the final ball of the match), but ended up winning the One-Day International (ODI) series 3-1, and the Test series 1-0 — which could just as easily have been 2-0 had poor weather and bad light not saved New Zealand, eight wickets down and 338 runs adrift, in the last Test.
When India toured England earlier this year, they played two practice matches. On both occasions, their batsmen scored well but the bowling attack was carted to all ends of the ground. Therefore, seeing Bhuvneshwar Kumar get a breakthrough in the very first over of India’s tour to Australia was a refreshing surprise. That Varun Aaron later took two wickets in three balls made it all the more satisfying.
Aaron bowled with pace and aggression, beating the batsmen for pace more than once. Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar, Karn Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin all chipped in with wickets as well. What was most pleasing to see was that all the bowlers took wickets. Bhuvneshwar provided the initial inroads, Aaron rocked the party, Ashwin got rid of the set batsman, while Shami and Karn cleaned out the tail.
This sort of all-round bowling performance does not come very often for India. They struck with the new ball, they were relentless, and despite a few boundaries conceded by Aaron and Karn, they were quite economical. There were no weak links, and they did not allow the batsmen any respite whatsoever.
Reading too much into this performance would, of course, be rash. However, the signs are certainly positive, and if nothing else it will at least enhance the overall morale and confidence level of the team. With Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, and Ravindra Jadeja still to have a bowl, it seems India are in a good place at the start of the series. There is reason to be optimistic at this performance, but India’s true trial by fire will occur come December 4.
(Shiamak Unwalla, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek and cricket fanatic. You can follow him on Twitter @ShiamakUnwalla)
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