Ravi Shastri, former India captain, believes Australia’s batters must return to basics and play with more patience in order to regain their place in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Test series.
The second test was another 3-day Test game as Australia lost with an embarrassing performance. Australia elected to bat first to start the Test, and Usman Khawaja came in to bat after the first Test’s failure. While Smith and Labuschagne experienced a rare failure, he was supported by Handscomb. In the opening innings, Mo Shami had four picks, while Ashwin and Jadeja each had three. India’s response was shaky as KL Rahul’s rough patch persisted and the majority of their top-order had trouble scoring runs. At 139/7, they were in trouble, but Axar and Ashwin provided the rearguard, cutting the lead to just one run.
Australia lost nine wickets for 52 runs in another embarrassing collapse, effectively ending any hopes of a rare victory in India. In only 31.1 overs, Australia was all out for 113 as left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja recorded career-best figures of 7-42.
On the latest episode of The ICC Review, Shastri was asked by host Sanjana Ganesan where Australia had gone wrong so far, and the former India captain did not hold back in his assessment of the tourists.
“I think application (has let them down) more than anything else. The lack of belief in their own defence,” Shastri said.
“The lack of application and the lack of discipline was unreal and Australia paid for it big time.”
Shastri believes that Australia’s batters should try to occupy the crease during the remaining Test matches, rather than taking the aggressive approach that has proven to be their undoing thus far.
“It’s very important to go back to the basics, go back to the drawing board,” he said.
“If you don’t trust your defence, you have no chance because that’s when you entertain thoughts of breaking free, much quicker than you normally should.
“Sometimes you’ve got to spend some time at the crease, but how are you going to spend some time at the crease if you don’t trust your defence?
“But I didn’t see one Australian batsman (do that). What surprised me was some of their most senior players also came out there and looked to do things out of the ordinary, something they’re not used to far quicker than later. And especially in conditions that suit the Indians.
“So I think it’s patience, it’s application, it’s discipline and trusting your defence.”
A victory in Indore will be critical for India to maintain its momentum. The only way India can miss out on a WTC Final spot is if Australia wins in both Indore and Ahmedabad while Sri Lanka wins in New Zealand by winning 2-0. If this occurs, Sri Lanka will take second place with 61 Points. India will be eliminated with 56 Points.
