The epitome of supremacy in the India-Australia Test is held by the legends after whom it is named – Allan Border and Sunil Gavaskar. file | Photo Credit: Reuters
It’s always been different with Australia. There is a sanctity to India-Australia cricket that is missing from series against other teams. With others, from England to Pakistan, there is a burden of politics, religion, ethnicity or culture. With Australia, the focus has been cricket; The game is not part of a larger narrative. Cricket stands for itself and not as a vessel for other emotions and feelings.
Australia was the first country to tour independent India three months after the tricolor was hoisted. Decades before this, soldiers from both countries had fought on the same side in World War I at Gallipoli and in the Far East. As India coach Rahul Dravid said in his famous 2011 Bradman oration, “Indians and Australians were comrades before we were competitors.”
Gallipoli (in Turkey) may have been a disaster for the Allies, but as one historian put it, the national character of Australia and New Zealand was forged on its beaches.
‘India’s oldest cricket friend’
Melbourne-born all-rounder Frank Tarrant was described by a London newspaper in the 1930s as “India’s oldest cricket friend”. Tarrant organized the first Australian tour of India in 1935–36, before which he helped prepare the Indian team for the opening home Tests and series against England. He also officiated in the first two Tests. Don Bradman’s first captain, Jack Ryder, led that first tour, which was a private one.
In an excellent biography of Tarrant, Australian author and Indophile, Mike Coward writes, “Ambitious and driven, he foresaw that India was destined for greatness as a cricketing nation and the imperative of a paradigm to the authorities in Australia.” Inspired to open your mind. Change in the world of cricket.
Coward also wrote a lyrical book on cricket in the subcontinent. Interestingly, two more interesting books on Indian cricket have also been written by Australians. while Edward Docker history of indian cricket (published in 1976) focuses on the politics of Richard Cashman indian cricket event (1980) investigated the cultural and sociological aspects of sports in India.
The great Duleepsinhji may not have played for India, but after his sporting career, he served as the High Commissioner to Australia in the 1950s.
In years when England sent less than their entire first team to play in India, Australia had the courtesy of fielding their best team, thus making them popular tourists in a country that did not appreciate the compliment. understood the meaning. Allan Border, who shares the name of the trophy for which the teams compete with Sunil Gavaskar, toured ten times between 1979 and 1989, leading to a revival of Australian cricket with a World Cup victory in 1987.
intense competition
Of course none of this has dampened the intensity of the competition between the two countries, which should be the case. India have won half of the 20 Tests between the countries in the last decade, losing only five – a record that includes consecutive series wins in Australia. India last lost a home series to Australia in 2004. Four Test series begins in Nagpur on Thursday.
Leaving aside the odd rift about pitches (former player Ian Healy believed Australia would win if India prepared a “proper pitch”, thus humiliating both teams at once), The decibel level pre-bout has been somewhat low. It is surprising that most teams, and Australia in particular, prefer to go a shot or three off the ground before the start of a series.
Elaborate move?
Fake-Ashwin, Mahesh Pithia’s story has both entertained and impressed Indian fans. Ashwin’s similarity in the Baroda off-spinner’s build-up and release meant it became part of the visitors’ preparations to meet the original taker of 449 Test wickets, 89 of which were Australian. Or it could be an elaborate Australian ploy to divert attention from an Indian bowler against whom they have an even more serious problem! As much as cricket is played in the field, it is also played in the head.
In recent years, some great museum-worthy cricket art has been sculpted in the India-Australia series, which may be the biggest reason for the anticipation with which each series is greeted. The batting of Virat Kohli and Steve Smith, the bowling of Nathan Lyon and Ashwin are already in that museum.
This series could see another generation adding their creations to that list – Shubman Gill, Cameron Green, Trevor Head, Kuldeep Yadav could be the actors set to do exactly that.