Debasis Sen, Perth: A series which started on a brilliant note for Virat Kohli and his team following the first test win at Adelaide has turned out to be a forgetful one after the 146 runs loss to Australia at Perth on Tuesday. Both the sides will now travel to Melbourne for Boxing Day test match with the series level 1-1. The home side got a huge boost to their confidence after they outplayed the No 1 Test team in all departments. India was in the match occasionally when skipper Virat Kohli made a hundred or when their pacers found the mojo, but was not consistent enough to challenge the Aussies. Here are the five reasons why Kohli and his team faltered at the hands of Aussies.
1) Controversial dismissal of Virat Kohli: A soft decision with rock-hard consequences: the series might well hinge on that moment. Certainly this match did. Kohli looked in total command batting on 123* until he edged one to Handscomb fielding at second slips. Had Kohli stayed on the wicket for another two hours, it would have been a different story altogether.
2) Poor team selection: The current team management seems to have made it a habbit in getting everything wrong when it comes to team selection. It happened in Cape Town and Lords. At Lord’s earlier this year, India went with two spinners Ashwin and Kuldeep on a green top when it would have been better off to play an extra seamer. And that strategy backfired magnificently. At Perth, there was generous smattering of green on the pitch and India opted for four pacers and Hanuma Vihari operated as part-time off-spinner. Nathan Lyon took eight wickets in the match including the prized scalp of Kohli in the second innings. The team selection once again came to haunt India.
3) Poor form of the openers: The start given by the Australian openers in the first innings was the difference between both sides. Marcus Harris and Aaron Finch stitched an opening partnership of 112 runs and followed it up with another fifty run stand in the second innings while KL Rahul and Murali Vijay were all at sea against Aussie new ball bowlers. At Perth, India were reduced to 8/2 in the first innings and 0/1 in the second innings, not the ideal start on a brute pitch where a solid start was mandatory.
4) Fortune with the toss: Australian captain Tim Paine won a very important toss and mad the right decision in batting first. The Aussie openers Finch and Harris responded as they added a century stand for the first wicket. The wicket which looked easy paced began to liven up on Day 2 and 3. Aussie pace trio of Starc, Cummins and Hazzlewood capitalized, making full use of the conditions. While the Indian pace quartet of Ishant, Shami, Bumrah and Umesh looked woeful except from the outburst of Shami in the second innings.
5) Tailenders contribution: The contributions from the tailenders with the bat in both innings was a telling difference between both sides. The home side added a precious 75 runs between the last four wickets. In a stunning coincidence, India’s late order contribution was only 32 runs. India were bowled out for 283 and Australia gained a vital 43-run lead. The situation repeated in the second innings. Australia lost their eighth wicket at 198 and Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon and Josh Hazlewood added 45 runs for the 9th and last wicket stands. Those runs were invaluable as Australia stretched their lead from 241 to 286, an imposing one on a volatile pitch.