India have pulled off one of the most remarkable test match wins of recent years to beat Australia in the 4th Test – and with it win the series – with practically their reserves playing at the Gabba, the Aussie’s so called fortress.
Man of the match, Rishabh Pant hit an unbeaten 89 to lead India to victory, and the series win.
And it was a match India didn’t even need to win. A draw here would have been enough to see them retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Any Test match win at the Gabba for a visiting team is impressive. But what makes this Indian win all the more remarkable is the amount of players who weren’t available.
India Reserves Beat Australia
On Day 1, Australian commentator Shane Warne said he could count seven players who could have played in this Test.
The so-called second string won the 4th Test by 3 wickets, and with it, the series 2-1.
India have had no Virat Kohli and Mohammed Shami since the end of the 1st Test. And since that point they’ve lost a whole raft of players.
And to top it all off, on the eve of this Test match they lost their two main bowlers, Ravi Ashwin, and Jasprit Bumrah. Surely that was India’s remaining slim hopes gone?
Not a bit of it.
Rishabh Pant will rightly get all the plaudits, but lets not forget the contributions of the bowlers. Mohammad Siraj, in particular, was outstanding, and it was great to see him get rewarded with a 5 wicket haul in Australia’s 2nd innings.
On a final note, what about Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy? You could see a marked change in things in how India approached the 2nd Test.
There was more inventive field placings, and I got the feeling the players felt a release of pressure not having the intense Virat breathing down their necks.
A huge pat on the back needs to go to Rahane for the way he has led his team to this exceptional victory.
