Balaji Telefilms made fortunes by using the letter ‘K’ in their titles, so is the case with Dharma Productions. But, now it seems that the Indian cricket team is also benefiting from the letter ‘K’. Also, I would request you to delve back into the history and see how the mere presence in any form can help curate a victory. They have called it the most ‘toxic’ series ever and why not? It’s pretty justified. You got to see the ‘brain fade’ epic to Ishant Sharma getting animating Steven Smith using the ‘F’ word—also, let’s not forget the verbal dual between Ravindra Jadeja and Matthew Wade. But, ultimately good cricket has emerged trumps. It was cricket and nothing else that got this Border-Gavaskar trophy its right credentials. We saw a quality ton by Steven Smith on a rank turner at Pune to Kuldeep Yadav showing that ‘chinaman’ is still hard to pick. Cheteshwar Pujara showed grit and immense patience to Ravindra Jadeja’s all-round show.
But here is what irked the Australians
They were smitten by the letter ‘K’ which even they did not know. How? Let us talk you through that. Anil Kumble, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul have Bangalore common between them. For Virat, it is the franchise that he represents in the Indian Premier League. So yes, even without Australia knowing it, they bit the visitors.
So, how did they contribute?
Kohli Hai: This has been the most dismal run he has had ever since he made his debut in the national team. But what he did in 2015 kept haunting the Australians and in their over planning to get Virat Kohli out, they forgot to do a proper research on the others. They were unaware that Wriddhiman Saha was capable of getting a ton and Ravindra Jadeja could be so effective with the bat. Virat might not have played the last Test and there were haters who said he was not playing because he wanted to remain fit for the Indian Premier League, but all that was as nonsensical as Australian media drawing parallels of Virat Kohli with Donald Trump. Virat Kohli is a passionate cricketer who thinks country first, so to say all of this meant Australia were investing too much of their brains on him and that backfired.
Kumble Bumble: Anil Kumble was a great student of the game during his time and during that, he had the understanding of pitches and conditions better than anybody—and that is the kind of person you need at the helm of affairs. Some combinations are somehow extraordinary in whatever they do, probably the Kohli-Kumble combo epitomises that. If you had followed this series closely, you would have noticed Kumble and Sanjay Bangar were the first to have a look at the pitch and yes, the results are there for everyone to see. The Indian cricket team played exceedingly well to come back from behind to regain the Border-Gavaskar trophy.
KL enigma: We all had heard and seen what the young Bengalurean is capable of when he toured West Indies and even some bits during the home season. But, he really saved the best for the last. When the chips were down, it was KL Rahul trying to put India in command. Deep within, he must be feeling betrayed to have not converted a couple of half centuries to daddy hundreds, but his contribution in the Border-Gavaskar has been impeccable. The contribution he made in four different surfaces was the highlight of the series. He amassed 393 runs in seven innings. He also got five half centuries, which is truly surreal, given the conditions he was countering. It was KL who saw the new ball off and took India to a glorious finish in what had been a hell of a series.
Copyright © 2024 IE Online Media Services Private Ltd. All Rights Reserved.