You can still get $5.50 about India winning 3-0. Get on, the remaining wickets will be spinner friendly and we are a spinner free team. There is no way our attack can take 20 wickets in a game and our bowlers can’t contain the Indian batsmen. The bet may not win but it is terrific value. If India win the third test save on the other results.
I wouldn’t get carried away about Australian sliding on down.
This series represents Teams 1 & 2 in the world, playing in India. Massively in India’s favour. And this one test aside, Australia was looking good in the first test, and quite happily held its own, and in fact was close to pulling off a win.
It has always been a massive task to win in India, even the Australian teams with Hayden (in his prime) & Langer opening, McGrath & Warne in the attack saw winning in India as a massive challenge. The West Indian teams of the 80’s struggled in India.
Australia is still a very strong team, with a roster of players where the majority of them would walk straight into any other national team. It is simply an unfortunate reality that they are still adjusting to coming out of a period where the team contained two of the best bowlers of all time.
Yeah, they’ve got several world-class players still, but the point is that they’d walk into other teams because every other team has players you’d class as “filler”, something the Aussies previously haven’t had to resort to. But there’s no other word for the likes of Siddle and White; at no other point in the last 20 years would they have been handed debuts. Haddin is merely serviceable. Shane Watson is, IMO, all mouth and no trousers (NSFW!). Hayden looks to be in definite decline. Katich, well, he’s improved since his last spell, but has a bit to prove to be considered a genuinely world class opener. So for the first time in a long time, it’s also true that most other teams have players that would walk in to the Aussie lineup. It’s a levelling of the playing field.
And while historical context and home advantage is all very well, it’s the manner of this defeat rather than its simple fact that has people talking. Declaration bowling? Collapse in disarray? These aren’t things that have happened to Aussies in a long time. Much of the performance was sloppy in a way people just aren’t used to seeing from an Australian side. Yes, all of this is notable largely because we’re used to the Aussies being superlative, but it’s still a definite change. Nobody’s saying they’re suddenly worse than the rest, or that the decline will be massive, but it’s pretty much undeniable that they’re coming back to the pack.
(India aren’t number two yet, incidentally, that’s the Saffers.)
I dunno about that. Ponting and Hussey yes. Clark and Lee maybe. The others, no. Take Haddin for example. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a good player, but I would take Dhoni, Sangakara, Boucher or MacCullum ahead of him with the gloves or with the bat.
I’m not a Haddin fanboy or anything, but you’ve gotta feel for the guy. He has the daunting task of trying to follow a unique individual who really rewrote the expectations of a Keeper. Do you remember the keepers Australia went through after Marsh retired, before we finally settled on Heal’s? I think it was something like 4 in the space of 18 months. And while Marsh was excellent, Gilly was a step above again. I think Haddin will be doing incredibly well if he performs well enough to keep his spot under the expectations of having had Gilchrist in the team.
I actually rate Johnson quite highly, while it’s true he is still learning his craft at the international level, I think he will be a mainstay of the team for many years.
I just got the impression from a couple of the posts that we are expecting Australia to slide down to 4th or 5th. Not going to happen. It’s true we no longer sit head and shoulders above everyone else, and we have come back to the pack. Australia has the framework in place to keep a constant flow of talent coming through the system, and I think we will be constantly challenging for the No 1 spot for a long time to come.
And I see this morning that Shaun Marsh has had the tap on the shoulder. I’ll be very interested to see how he goes over in India.
That is one thing about the current Australian team, there is going to be plenty of opportunity for State players to get the call up. We had almost an entire generation of excellent state players never get a chance to play for their country. (guys like Jimmy Maher & Martin Love)
Well, we’re either in for an extremely boring draw, or Australia are about to get spun out of the second Test on the bounce. India have made 613-7 declared, with Gambhir and Laxman making double centuries, and probably Australia’s only consolation is that Zaheer Khan made it look like the pitch is still extremely batting-friendly. Oh, and Harbhajan’s out with a toe injury, so it’s just Alok Mishra plus Kumble’s vast array of straighter ones.
Best moment so far: Virender Sehwag on the balcony, miming agricultural swipes in an attempt to make VVS get a bleeding move on. His 200 meant the declaration was a good 10 overs too late.
Australia 50 without loss at stumps day 2. I’ve not been watching, but apparently there have been puffs of dust. Uh oh.
I love Sehwag, Dead Badger - he’s effortlessly cool and 100% a team man. Sounds like the balcony scenes there are better than the ones in the WIndies at the moment.
Yeah, Kumble and Mishra had a couple of balls really spitting out of the rough. It’s not going to be fun batting; just thank your lucky stars Harbhajan’s sitting this one out (and probably the final match, by the sounds of it).
West Indies? Is something going on there at the moment? I hadn’t heard. Can’t be important. 
When a billionaire is flirting with the WAGs there’s bound to be dissension in the ranks.
The game’s very much on the edge at the moment. Hussey departs for 53 and Australia are 4/327 with a bit less than half and hour to play on day 3. If Hussey and Clarke had been there at stumps the draw would have looked a good thing. Now India’s right in there for the win.
Now, a picture from today’s play for any Americans looking to understand this strange game: here. That was towards the end of bees stopped play:[
And the game turns a little after a great day for Australia. India leads by 79 with 8 wickets in hand. Australia probably haven’t the bowling to press for the win, but India seem to have settled for the draw. That’s a bad idea psychologically. Sending Sehwag in to open after bowling 40 overs was a bad idea too.
And Australia still haven’t bowled India out twice in this series. We just haven’t the bowling strike power to win on the subcontinent, at least on this tour…
I can’t figure out why India even bothered to declare? Weird decision.
I was very surprised to recently discover they use a different type of ball in India (and England) than the rest of the cricketing world? 
You’d think the ICC would set out the type of ball to be used.
Well, the balls all adhere to the MCC regulations - it’s just that subtle differences have a noticeable effect in the course of eighty overs, and when subtle effects like swing and reverse swing are in play. It’s no different than football manufacturers producing different balls (in fact there they actually fall over themselves to design a nifty swerving ball for major tournaments).
As for the declaration, I think it’s just considered slightly bad form for four innings not to be at least started. India couldn’t reasonably make a sporting declaration, so it had to be a token one. Fingers crossed the last pitch won’t be such a featherbed, eh?
Augh - I can hardly bear it anymore… Tendulkar has been on 99 for 4 overs now. Surely he can’t be dismissed in the nineties again.
…
And there you go! 40 test centuries. I never get tired of watching the Indians bat - especially when all the “old folks” are batting as well as they have done in this series. Good stuff!
India 5/311 at the close. Good toss to win. Very hard to see the Australians drawing the series from here.
Tendulkar doesn’t looked finished at all. VVS neither.
Krejza did well after taking a fair bit of tap from Sehwag early. I can’t believe they persisted with White.
An amazing day 2. On debut, Krejza gets a double sidecar but takes 8!
India went to lunch at 405 without losing a wicket. Then Krejza took all five that remained to have them out for 441. Useful thing, having a finger-spinner in India. Krejza’s mental strength is clear - he was belted, but there were few darts.
Australia have lost two for 189 at stumps. India’s offies showed that there are no demons in the pitch (yet). If they bat well tomorrow, Australia will smell blood.
That was a hellaciously expensive debut eightfer, but hey, it was still a debut eightfer and they’re something less than common. Be interesting to see how Krejza pans out, I mean, when else did Bob Massie ever achieve anything?
It’s tea on day 4, and India has lost three wickets in as many overs. Krejza shows his abilities once again getting Laxman and Ganguly (for a duck in his last test match) in two balls. Bhajji and Dhoni really needs to put some stability on Indias game or I’m afraid they’ll throw the series away.
The lead is only 253 runs, and Australia will probably have a full day at the crease. Too much exitement for my liking.
India are out for 295, meaning Australia need (an unlikely) 382 to retain the trophy. Questions will be asked about the bowling tactics, which seem to have more to do with stopping Ponting being suspended for slow over rates than getting India out.
Katich, Watson and Krejza’s stocks are up. Assuming Watson doesn’t trip over a dosa on the way back to the hotel, he’ll finally have shown what the selectors reckoned he promised.