It was five years ago on January 7 when India ended the long wait of winning a Test series in Australia. The scenes from the celebrations after the drawn Sydney Test, which helped secure a 2-1 series win, are still fresh and the team’s dance moves choreographed by Rishabh Pant continue to be one of the most popular videos on the internet.
The likes of Virat Kohli, Pant, Murali Vijay, Ajinkya Rahane were captured having a gala time on a rain-hit day as Cheteshwar Pujara, after bossing the Aussies in their own backyard, struggled to get a very basic dance move right. He, too, was in a playful mood as the entire unit celebrated a historic triumph and Pujara played a very crucial role with a series haul of 521 runs.
Both captain Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri were relaxed and all smiles at the post-series press conference as the duo were fresh from doing something which no Indian captain-coach had managed in the past. First Test series win in Australia since the side’s first tour in 1947/48 was a big monkey off the back and the freak win in 2020/21 reaffirmed that the 2018/19 result wasn’t a fluke.
In both the wins, one man had a ringside view of history being made and years later, the moments are still fresh in his mind like it happened just yesterday. In a special segment for Fox Cricket during the recently concluded Australia-Pakistan Test series, coach Shastri said it was the mindset which was key in back-to-back series wins.
“I think the boys will never forget that because they knew what they were up against when they came to Australia and there was only one way you were going to play Australia – it was not to give an inch, not expect an inch and get into a mindset of being very Australian in the way you think. The way you mingle with the people around and then the way you approach the game. So it’s going to be hard It’s going to be tough. It’s going to be relentless. But get your mind ready to do all that if you want to win. No other way no shortcuts,” said Shastri.
If 2018/19 was special for being the first, the win in the next series was nothing short of a miracle. After the 36 all out in Adelaide, India lost services of regular captain Virat Kohli and it was Ajinkya Rahane who marshalled a young camp to glory. There were plenty of injury troubles which came their way but every day saw a new hero put his hand up and put body on the line. When Pant hit those winnings runs in Brisbane, it felt special.
Not because of the quality of cricket India played but the way they converted adversity into an opportunity. From net bowlers becoming Test heroes to Hanuma Vihari and R Ashwin giving their all to secure a draw in Sydney, the series had no shortage of drama.
Drama has been in abundant supply when the two teams lock horns, especially in Australia, and Kohli has found the spotlight on him more often than not. Right from his debut tour to the series in 2021, where he played just the opening Test, the eyes have been on the classy right-hander and he has thoroughly enjoyed fierce competitions with Aussie quicks on spicy tracks by taking “bullets on the field”.
“Yes, and did that (becoming a villain) right through from 2015, 2019, 2021. He could be the bad cop on behalf of the side. You know, he took the bullets out on the field, you know, and it didn’t matter to him. For him, the desire was to win and achieve that,” recalled Shastri.
“He loves batting in Australia. He loves the way the Australians compete. It gets the best out of him. And some of his best batting I saw in my years as coach was against Australia and in Australia above all. You know, the 100 he got here at Perth was on a dodgy pitch, you know, where people were getting hit, it was a sensational 100. And it’s just the fire, you know, and the way he’s, he’s one of the modern day greats,” added India’s former coach.
Between 1947/48 and 2022/23, India and Australia have featured in 28 Test series against each other. The rivalry began on a one-sided note as the Aussies got the better of India in the first few decades. The 1979/80 home series was the first time India got a favour in their result as the Sunil Gavaskar-led unit won the six-Test series 2-0. The next two decades saw India put up a fight but wait for that series win in Aussies’ backyard continued.
The domination at home had become routine but so had surrender abroad. It was only in the 2000s that millions of cricket lovers back home woke up early morning to watch the Indian team compete in Australia. They came close in 2003/04, played a very eventful 2007/08 series but it was a return to meekly surrender in the 4-0 drubbing in 2011/12. A year later, India thrashed Australia 4-0 at home but it was the away returns which were hurting.
There was lot of hope from the squad which landed in Australia in 2014 but they evaporated after drubbing in the first two Tests at Adelaide and Brisbane respectively. The series would be long remembered for MS Dhoni passing the Test captaincy baton to Virat Kohli and also because it was the last series where Australia got a result in their favour.
It has been all India since then as they have won two series at home and two back-to-back away to continue with their domination over the mighty Aussies. The intense rivalry is now set to add another chapter later this year when India’s tour gets underway in December and serve another reminder of why India vs Australia in Tests is one of the most awaited series of the year.
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