[suhaas307]

Kohli getting out cheaply, yet again, will raise concerns for the team. COuld it be the shoulder acting up? Vijay and Rahana should not have thrown it away like that. But it's good to see some of the batsmen getting decent runs on the board.

[Sawyer]

IMO, this is the first bad pitch of the series, where we have to go through watching the match meander for four full days before everything interesting starts to happen only on the fifth. With these kind of pitches, Test Cricket can't survive in this day and age.

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

IMO, this is the first bad pitch of the series, where we have to go through watching the match meander for four full days before everything interesting starts to happen only on the fifth. With these kind of pitches, Test Cricket can't survive in this day and age.

No, can't agree with you on this. The first two pitches were terrible. It came down to luck and not cricketing skill. Some balls scooting along the deck and others exploding from the pitch and all this from ball one!

This is a proper test wicket and a typical subcontinent pitch. And I don't think the game is meandering along. It is a gripping test match with both sides well matched. I feel we may concede a 50 run lead to Aus unless Saha and Jadeja can put up some resistance. If India can notch up a lead, pressure will be on Aus as Jadeja and Ashwin will come into play in the third innings with the pitch deteriorating. Next two days will be very interesting.

[Sawyer]

By this time tomorrow, we will know how interesting the last day will be, and whether we had to wait four days to find that out!

The other thing about the first two pitches is that the toss was largely irrelevant. And at Pune, let's not forget that one team made 500 runs on the pitch. While the second test was the best seen in India in a long time.

[vibbs]

Pujara and Saha bat Australia out of the game. Good test match batting. But I am afraid they have managed to bat the game out of India's hand too (by that I mean winning this test). Draw seems to be the only result possible now.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by vibbs

Draw seems to be the only result possible now.

True; unless there's a spectacular Aus collapse in their 2nd innings, this match will most likely end in a draw.

A result might still have been possible had our scoring rate been higher. 2nd session on Day 4 and we're still trailing. A 50+ lead at Stumps on Day 3 would have put India in a very strong position

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

True; unless there's a spectacular Aus collapse in their 2nd innings, this match will most likely end in a draw.

A result might still have been possible had our scoring rate been higher. 2nd session on Day 4 and we're still trailing. A 50+ lead at Stumps on Day 3 would have put India in a very strong position

Wow; I have a feeling I'm going to be proven wrong tomorrow.

What a stunning Session 3! Pujara and Saha with the bat and Jadeja with the ball and bat might have just tilted the game in India's favor. Jadeja's quickfire 50 and 2 wickets should make for a big difference in how Aus respond tomorrow.

[PPS]

Quite a few left handed batsman to come + bit of rough outside left handers off stump + having Jadeja helps our case tomorrow. It all boils down to how much time Steve Smith & Renshaw are able to survive.
Kohli captaincy will again be tested with his field placements, cannot allow Aussies to get too many runs either in the quest for wickets!

[Sawyer]

Although it wasn't always as gripping as Bangalore, another classic Test in all senses of that word.

Both teams deserve a lot more respect than they are giving each other, and I have to say that India led by Kohli are setting the worse example in this respect these days and may even be losing the respect of some Indian fans.

Kohli badly needs a father figure mentor; Kumble is not mature enough to play that role. The Indian Test team captain cannot play the angry young man role forever.

I notice that even people like Gavaskar and Laxman are losing the plot these days with some of their comments; Shastri is being more balanced, surprisingly enough!

The final test deserves a lot more respect to be paid to the game by both teams; it has the potential of being a classic battle of bat v ball and the less of motor mouthing and antics from both sides, the better it will be for it. Australia keep the trophy with a draw, so it will be interesting to see how they approach the match.

[PPS]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

India led by Kohli are setting the worse example in this respect these days

I think he's losing focus more than anything else! Thats the reason his bat hasn't done the talking this series. Some of his antics are unnecessary. We need Kohli the batsman to fire in the next game.

[Sawyer]

It's probably the other way around: antics caused by an absence of runs. Perhaps also because by being under a lot of pressure, that only the Australians have been able to exert this season.

[Sawyer]

With the two changes to the Indian team, one thing is a certainty - that the game will be played in a much better spirit.

Now, having lost the toss if India were to still win, what a wonderful victory it will be for the game of cricket as a whole.

[suhaas307]

Flying start by the Aussies. If this goes on without regular breakthroughs, we can be guaranteed to see a score of 500 or more inside 5 sessions.

[Sawyer]

It is already looking likely that the trophy stays with Australia because the needed Indian win to take it back looks unlikely, after just one session.

[PPS]

Brave move to go in with 5 specialist bowlers. Pitch appears to be flat at the moment. Bit surprised with Bhuvneshwar's selection considering Ishant has bowled decently in this series. We really need a big effort from our batsman & contributions from Saha,Ashwin,Jadeja & the tail.