Australia v India, 2nd test match in Adelaide

by Geoff Wellsteed

 
A note from Adelaide

'Our land abounds in nature's gift of beauty, rich and rare', so reads two lines of the Australian national anthem, but this lineage could equally have applied to the tip-top performances of Mitchell Starc and Travis Head. As the world's acknowledged best pink ball quickie Starc justified that classification with a spell of 6-48 which included the new Indian superstar Yashasvi Jaiswal with the first ball of the match. How the Aussie crowd loved that ! Having skittled India for a substantially under-par180, when the home side came to bat Travis Head played an attractive, attacking innings and when he was eventually bowled by Siraj for 140 there was a snarling, aggressive exchange between the two of them. Post-match both had a different interpretation of the spat, but the baying beer-fused spectators had no doubt about the main offender and booed and hissed Siraj for the remainder of the match. Head, currently easily the best of a shaky looking home side top six now has centuries against India in red, white and pink ball cricket. Who can claim to be a better all-format batter? No one l suggest. 

And so we now all go off to Brisbane's Gabattoir for the third encounter with the series all square. The remarkable thing about the first two matches is how Australia went from a dejected, desperate display in Perth to complete domination here. Never write off the baggy greens. For India it was the reverse. Frankly, it was an embarrassing showing and difficult to explain. Across two completed innings no Indian scored above 42.  The Aussies will be singing their national anthem with gusto in the bars of this beautiful city tonight.