Can India Beat Back the Aussies?

Can India turn the tables on Australia in the second Test? Can they reverse the severe setback suffered at Pune into a victory that will square the four-Test series? It will not be easy but the Indians will do well to take inspiration from the occasions their predecessors have in fact pulled off such a feat.

The most notable in recent times is April 2008. In the second Test against South Africa at Ahmedabad India were dismissed for 76 in 20 overs in the first innings on their way to defeat by an innings and 90 runs in three days. Barely a week later in the next Test at Kanpur India bounced right back winning the game by eight wickets inside three days.

And of course perhaps the most famous is the turnabout in the series against Australia in 2001 when after losing the first Test inside three days by ten wickets India came up with a sensational triumph at Kolkata that is now part of cricketing folklore.

On the face of it then an Indian victory is not exactly Mission Impossible. After all India were the favourites and Australia the underdogs before the series started. Also India are playing at home where they have a formidable record. And it is not every time that India go down in two successive Tests at home. England in 2012 are the only team to do so in the last 16 years.

However there is no denying the fact that Australia not only hold a 1-0 series they also hold a considerable psychological advantage. A totally unexpected victory by as huge a margin as 333 runs with more than two days to spare is a big bonus and since we are speaking about Australia it is unlikely they will squander away the lead easily.

Steven Smith is as tough as any typical Aussie captain and leading from the front comes naturally to him as he proved by his sterling hundred at Pune in conditions favourable to spin bowlers. He is also an astute observer of the game and the opposition and his bowling changes and field placements in the first Test underlined that he had made a thorough study of the weaknesses of the Indian batsmen besides making a quick study of the surface. .

When the series started the talk was all about the damage that Josh Hazlewood and Mitch Starc would cause probably with a little help from Nathan Lyon. But the Aussies struck gold in the form of unheralded Steve O’Keefe. The left arm spinner used the conditions adroitly and was rewarded with the best bowling figures by a spin bowler in India. Is it a fluke or whether he has it in him to continue the good work will be known in Bangalore but the fact that the Indian batsmen will have to take him very seriously is a major plus point for the Aussies.

How do the Indians recover from the Pune debacle? Well for openers the batsmen will have to show better technique in negotiating both pace and spin. While O’Keeffe picked up the wickets they were also in discomfort against Hazlewood and Starc. Secondly Ravi Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja will have to live up to the lofty reputations they have acquired over the years. In Indian conditions if the pacemen come off it is a bonus but the wicket taking act must be dominated by the spin duo. In helpful conditions at Pune they performed below expectations and that certainly was one reason for the humiliating defeat.

There is no reason however for heads to roll or adopt drastic measures. Yes, one change could be Karun Nair for Jayant Yadav. It does seem unfair for a man getting a triple hundred to be dropped for the next Test and he should be back. In any case after the double debacle at Pune there is need to strengthen the batting..A fit Bhuvneshwar Kumar in place of Ishant Sharma is another possible option.

With the Pune pitch quite correctly getting a ''poor’’ rating from the match referee Chris Broad much interest will centre round the surface at Bangalore. Advance reports have it that the authorities are trying their best to provide a sporting track and that is good news for certainly one would always like to see an even contest between bat and ball. That is what good cricket is all about.