Australia v India First Test, Day Four Report Card

Featuring Optus Stadium miracles, needing a puppy and the inevitable demise of India

Optus Stadium Miracles
Grade: A-

Australia entered the fourth day doomed to suffer inevitable defeat. 

Or were they?

That kind of inevitable-defeatist attitude doesn’t get you anywhere in life. So, instead, the team rallied as one to find positives at every turn.

When Usman Khawaja was caught after trying to mindlessly hoick one over midwicket, reducing the home side to 4/17? Well, at least it wasn’t Jasprit Bumrah who got him. Has India’s premier bowler been defanged?

When Travis Head and Steve Smith took Australia to 4/34? Just half a thousand runs to get now. Game on!

When Mitchell Marsh joined Head, and the duo raced to 5/134? Only 400 to win? Why, a lone batter has been known to score that many by himself in Tests. India under massive pressure now.

When the pair reached 5/154? That’s now 380 to win. We all watched Haydos bludgeon 380 that one time. Are you telling me these last six Australia batters aren’t equivalent to one Matthew Hayden? India struggling here, but full credit to them for fighting to the very end.

After Head, then Marsh, fell? Why, that’s just brought our first innings top scorer to the crease. India powerless in the face of this Australian onslaught.

Alex Carey and Mitchell Starc move the score to 7/200? Only 334 needed now. Tubby made 334 once and he forgot how to bat for a year and a half. Australia doing this easily. Desperate times for India.

Carey and Josh Hazlewood reach 9/234? Just 300 to win now. Heaps of Test cricketers have made triple centuries. No reason Josh couldn't. But likely denied here because of India's foolhardy declaration.

Honestly, it was startling to see India somehow pull this one out of the fire at the death. A tremendous come-from-behind win! The Miracle of Optus Stadium!!

Needing A Puppy
Grade: B

Realistically, though, what can Australia take from this humbling 295-run defeat? Some stirringly competent batting from Travis Head? (If India continue to bowl one Australian batter into form per Test, then the sixth through tenth match in this series will be absolute crackers!)

Compentish batting from Mitchell Marsh and Alex Carey, which pushed the loss into the final session? 

Almost-competent batting from Steve Smith? Y’know, for a while. 

Or how about the fact that Starc was only able to be dismissed by a superhuman catch from Dhruv Jurel? We’ve admired Jur-El’s powers before, but this was next level stuff, barely looking up in the sky from short leg as he snatched the ball from its trajectory. Astonishing reflexes, powered no doubt by Earth’s (or perhaps Perth’s?) yellow sun.

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