India vs Australia: Runtime error compounds India’s plight at the SCG

The key to running Australia close in their backyard is about doing and also timing the moves. Pitches conducive to playing shots and the kookaburra ball that loses its sting earlier than other makes all demand specific plans and intent if the home team is to be pegged back. Everything must go right for the visitors against a home team that knows how to exploit the conditions.

The Sydney Test turned on its head during an eventful Day 3. Australia executed their aggressive bowling plans to perfection as India faced defeat amid mounting injuries. The high of a Melbourne comeback to level the series 1-1 already feels distant.

It is vital to grab every opportunity in Australia, be it scoring runs at a good tempo or showing intent. If not, one setback can lead to another against rivals who swear by aggression when the react, like they did at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

India’s run outs though point to that timing gone awry. It started in the first Test at Adelaide when skipper Virat Kohli’s sublime innings was cut short after Ajinkya Rahane called for a sharp single and left him stranded. It was Rahane’s call, having played to mid-off, and it wasn’t poor. But his hesitation after that proved fatal.

Australia have often turned around matches that seem to slip away with brilliant fielding. At Adelaide that run out prevented India from taking a stranglehold on the game. Dropped catches and an all-time low 36 then pushed India to defeat.

It didn’t hurt in Melbourne. Rahane, the stand-in skipper’s brilliant knock ended at 112 after he was caught barely an inch short, failing to beat Marnus Labuschagne’s throw to Tim Paine. The Australian skipper had earlier got the benefit of doubt on a similar close call earlier in the game. Rahane responded promptly to Ravindra Jadeja’s call for a sharp single but a dive or desperate stretch was needed.

Australia again showed whatever the match situation they are switched on, looking for those half chances to rein things in. The tactic is to dry up the runs as they know the opposition will make a mistake trying to break free.

At the SCG, the batsmen’s inability to counter Australia’s world-class fast men bowling “into the pitch” and targetting the body with close-in fielders built the pressure. The hosts’ quality as the world’s best fielding side and Indian batsmen’s poor judgement led to the three run outs.

First, Hanuma Vihari drove to mid-off and failed to judge the pace of his shot to the fielder as he went for a single. He also erred in assuming Josh Hazlewood, being a tall fast bowler, would not pick and hit the stumps in one motion.

The run outs of R Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah happened because Jadeja, in his desperation to retain strike, didn’t take into account that neither was as quick as he is. Ashwin should have pushed harder for the run, but he had looked assured with the bat and Jadeja could have trusted him against Australia’s fast bowlers.

Pushing Bumrah for a second run too was poor cricket. India’s pace pack has been weakened due to injury and Bumrah had slipped and hurt his right leg while fielding. His struggles later on the field didn’t help India.

Australia were not blemishless. Jadeja ran out Steve Smith with a superb direct hit to end Australia’s first innings when the centurion was looking to add some quick runs with the last man.

Run outs in Test cricket are not pardoned easily. On Saturday, it was as much a cascading run, after being sucked into Australia’s bowling trap.