India vs Australia: In India’s reply, everyone plays assigned roles

If Dhawan provided quick start, Vijay and Pujara laid the foundation before Kohli and Rahane stepped on the pedal.

Ajinkya Rahane made 62. Except for the eight runs on debut in Delhi, the rest including two tons and five 50s have come overseas. (Source: AP)

The all-run four is as much a unique characteristic of Test cricket in Australia as say the Kookaburra ball, the lush green outfields, the rasping stump cams, and Richie Benaud. A push down the ground, the mid-off fielder in hot pursuit and the batsmen pushing themselves for that extra run, the crowd applauding and cheering their drive to push for the fourth, not to forget their fitness levels. But somehow you could never picture a pair of Indian batsmen pull it off though.

But on Thursday, Cheteshwar Pujara and Murali Vijay actually did it. The bowler was Mitchell Johnson, and Pujara had pushed a full delivery to the right of the mid-off fielder, Ryan Harris, who had just completed a spell. And by the time, the burly fast bowler could bend his huge frame down, pick up the ball and fling it back, the two right-handers had completed the home run.
In the commentary box, Ian Chappell sounded both surprised and elated at what he had just witnessed.

The all-run four was just one of the myths that Pujara & Co dispelled on Thursday. There were few who had given them a chance of withstanding the fire and brimstone combination of Johnson and Harris. Yes, it was still Adelaide, the best batting conditions in Australia. But still there was enough bounce to get these young Indians hopping.
But as the day wore on, India’s top-six walked in, got settled, and proved that they weren’t the pushovers many expected them to be. It started with Shikhar Dhawan, widely regarded as a flat-track bully, who lacked the technique to overcome foreign climes.
Here, he was bowled once again by a full delivery that shaped into him, leaving his feet stranded. By then though he had provided some crucial momentum to the innings. He had taken on Johnson first-up, and hit him for four fours, three of them in one over. There was a clip off the pads, a stand-and-deliver on-drive, and a slash through the covers, and he finished with a 24-ball 25.

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If Dhawan provided the quick start, Vijay and Pujara laid the foundation with stability before Kohli and Rahane stepped on the pedal.
Vijay and Pujara were stodgy in defence but busy with their running between the wickets. They kept pushing the singles, and put on 81 for the second wicket. Vijay launched Nathan Lyon for two sixes over long-on, and also played a number of typically delectable shots on both sides of the wicket, the flick and the check-drive included. The Australians were guilty of bowling too straight to Pujara at times, and he made them pay.
Ajinkya Rahane did lead a charmed life at the crease, but he kept finding the boundary with more regularity than even Virat Kohli, and if it wasn’t for one that turned and bounced viciously from Lyon, he looked set for another Test century.

His dismissal brought Rohit Sharma to the crease, and he too seemed in no discernible discomfort against Lyon or the fast bowlers. It will be his responsibility now to take India as close as possible to Australia’s mighty first innings total.

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