Ashish Ranjan
Rohit Sharma and Ricky Ponting have not been on the same page leading up to the World Test Championship final between India and Australia, and that did not change on Day 1 at The Oval. The day after Rohit refused to read too much into Ponting’s assertion that Australia had a slight advantage due to the conditions, the legendary Australia captain harshly criticized his decision to leave out premier spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in favor of an extra seamer.
Rohit stated that it was a difficult decision to bench Ashwin, but they had to do what was “best for the team” given the pitch and the overcast conditions. Ravindra Jadeja was the only spin bowling all-rounder selected by India, while Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, Shardul Thakur, and Umesh Yadav were the four rapid bowlers.
Ponting stated that India only selected a team for the first innings. “India have fallen into the trap of selecting an attack only for the first inning of this Test match,” Ponting said during the first session of commentary.
Ashwin would have bowled better than Jadeja in the second innings, according to Ponting.The former Australian captain had no doubt that Ashwin would have bowled better than Jadeja as the Test match proceeded, particularly against Australia’s four left-handed batsmen.
“I was astonished that Ashwin wasn’t selected due to Australia’s abundance of left-handed batsmen. I have no doubt that Ashwin would have bowled significantly better than Jadeja later in the Test. They had to make a crucial choice between Thakur and Umesh. I was inclined towards Thakur because he would be my workhorse and give Shami and Siraj a bit of a breather. You can use Jadeja for a couple of overs to tighten up the contest,” he added.
India bowled too short with the new ball, according to Ponting, Karthik, and Dinesh Karthik. India’s pacers Shami, Siraj, Shardul, and Umesh were criticized for bowling too short with the new ball. The best bowler was Siraj, who also dismissed Usman Khawaja for a single. The other bowlers were either too short or wayward.
“It always looks good because they are beautiful bowls, but the one that gets you wickets is the one pitched at the five-meter mark,” Karthik explained.
“If India had bowled exceptionally well, sixty percent of their deliveries would have been on the fuller side and twenty percent on a decent length. Previously, I made the point that the bowlers must assume that they will be driven occasionally. What the captain can do is make his mid-off and mid-on more straight and deeper, which encourages bowlers to position the ball higher,” Ponting added.
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Meanwhile, David Warner was the most impressive of the Australian batsmen. Despite Khawaja’s early dismissal and Siraj’s testing spell, he persevered and gradually went on the offensive when Umesh Yadav entered the fray. Just as the left-hander appeared poised for a massive score, he gloved a delivery down the leg side for 43 off Shardul Thakur.
Australia was 73/2 at lunch on Day 1 with Marnus Labuschagne (26*) and Steve Smith (1*) batting.
