Former Test captains Michael Clarke and Ian Chappell have savaged Australia’s team selection and tactics in a dismal defeat at Delhi while the Indian media have been having a field day after the dramatic capitulation on day three.
The Australians tumbled to a six-wicket loss inside three days in the second Test in Delhi to trail 0-2 in the four-Test series.
Clarke and Chappell have added their voices to a chorus of criticism from past greats including Allan Border, blasting Australia for muddled team selection and bewildering tactics.
“I don’t think there was any justification for some of the things they’ve done; their selections smacked of panic,” Chappell told Nine’s Wide World of Sports.
“If you want to look at panic, the dropping of (Travis) Head, playing (Matt) Renshaw (in the first Test), saying he’s a good player of spin bowling – and you bat him in the middle order.
Ravichandran Ashwin celebrates taking the wicket of Steve Smith. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
“You come into the second Test with one quick only, you fly (Matt) Kuhnemann over from Australia and you play him ahead of (Ashton) Agar who bowls the same sort of stuff and was in the original squad.
“Now, are you going to tell me they’re not panic selections? This is the problem … they overthink things.”
Clarke said Australia’s problems could be traced to not playing a tour game to acclimatise to Indian conditions.
“Major, major, major mistake,” Clarke told Big Sports Breakfast. “There should have been at least one game over there to get used to the conditions.”
Clarke slammed captain Pat Cummins for his tactics in the Delhi debacle as India chased 115 runs to win.
“I’m not sure what happened with our tactics,” Clarke said. “At one stage, Patty Cummins had four blokes on the boundary. There’s two-and-a-half days left in the Test match; you’re either bowling India out for under 100 or you’re losing – one or the other.
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“If you lose in 20 overs, or you lose in two days, it’s irrelevant.
“I know it’s only a tiny run lead but we had to still try and win the game – and we had mid-off back, mid-on back, deep point, deep square leg. What was I watching?”
Criticism was also levelled at Australia’s shot selection through their second innings collapse of 9-48, when a succession of batsmen fell attempting sweeps.
“You’re playing for Australia. Surely, as a batsman playing at the highest level, you calculate that risk versus reward,” Clarke said.
Matt Kuhnemann of Australia is bowled by Ravindra Jadeja of India. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
“Against spin bowling on a pitch like that, you would say my ‘swim between the flags’ is play straight, hit with the spin. It’s like we’re not watching India bat. Why would you not look at that example and go, ‘OK, these guys know the conditions so well and this is how they’re playing’.
“Why would we try and do something different when they have been so good?”
The last skipper to win a series in India, former keeper Adam Gilchrist who stood in for an injured Ricky Ponting in 2004, was perplexed by the decision to include Agar in the touring party but not select him in the Tests.
“There’s been murmurings that he might be on a flight home because he might feel like he’s surplus to requirements over there and I can understand why, without being in the camp and knowing the finer details of why he wasn’t picked,” he told SEN WA Mornings.
“But it’s a pretty big insult that I know from touring and being on a lot of tours, you felt that if you’re picked on the tour in a broader squad – unless it’s a pretty extreme like for like that has to come in – you generally expected the guys that were first reserves to step in.
“I haven’t spoken to him. It’ll be interesting to see what he does, whether he’s brought into contention.”
Another Australian cricket legend, Ian Healy, was also bemused by the lack of a warm-up game in India.
Pat Cummins leads his team off the ground after they were defeated by India on day three of the Second Test at Delhi. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
“Never again tell me we’re not playing a tour match to begin, at least two, there’s no shortcuts to Test match success,” he said on SEN Radio.
“There are players that played T20 or didn’t play for a month – Cummins was one of those, Nathan Lyon was one of those and he shook it off this match, he wasn’t ready in the first Test.”
Meanwhile, the Indian media has taken great delight in exposing Australia’s flawed approach, particularly their reliance on the sweep shot six batters departing after trying to play the high-risk stroke.
“Once Steve Smith fell sweeping to Ashwin and Labuschagne was bowled playing back to a good length delivery from Jadeja that kept low, the rest of the Australian batters looked like they were lost in a haunted house. It was obvious Australia didn’t have a Plan B,” according to The Times of India.
“Jadeja and Ashwin, ever ready to pounce on their prey in home conditions, were not going to relent without devouring the sitting ducks.”
Over at The Hindustan Times, the Aussie performance was described as inept.
“No one expected batting to be easy but in being dismissed for 113 (31.1 overs), they earned the stamp of ineptness that is usually very hard to acquire.”
Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra said constantly sweeping is bound to end in tears.
“If you keep on playing the sweep shot, then sooner or later it is not about how you will get out, but rather when you will get out, now or later. That is what happened because if you just keep on playing the sweep shot. Sweep in English, if you remove S, then it is weep, which means crying”, he said on ESPNcricinfo.
And it wouldn’t be an Australian loss without former England captain Michael Vaughan having a dig on Twitter.
“Waking up to see a proper collapse by the Aussies .. many teams have done the same in India .. it’s not easy .. but let’s be honest the Aussies once Warner & Smith retire have very little waiting in the wings ..”
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