The Adelaide Test was the latest instance in recent matches, where India’s batting has collapsed in heap, allowing opponents to take the upper hand in the game. At Adelaide, India went from 399 for 5 to 444 all out in the first innings, losing five wickets in the span of merely 45 runs. In the second innings, things got even worse for the Indians. Chasing 364, they were comfortably placed at 242 for 2, and it actually looked like they were pushing for victory. But, from that point onwards, they collapsed to get all out for 315, losing their last eight wickets for merely 73 runs.
The story was pretty similar for India in the Tests in England as well, as India kept collapsing repeatedly almost as if in action replay mode. In the opening Test of the series at Trent Bridge, they went from 344 for 5 to 346 for 9, losing four wicket for just two runs before a last-wicket partnership of 111 runs rescued them. In the second innings of the same Test, they went from 140 for 1 to 184 for 6, losing five wickets for 44 runs before the lower order again brought them back in the game.
After putting up a good showing in the second Test at Lord’s, which they went on to win, India were back to their crumbling ways at the Rose Bowl. In response to England’s massive score of 569 in the first innings, India managed a decent 330. Although it still gave England a massive lead, India at least did not collapse like they had been doing earlier in the series. That was until the second innings, where all hell broke loose. Chasing an improbable 445, they went from 80 for 2 to 178 all out, losing eight wickets for 98 runs.
In the fourth Test at Old Trafford, Manchester, things only got worse for the Indians. They batted first, and were reduced to 8 for 4 inside six overs, and after a brief recovery to 6 for 63. Ravichandran Ashwin and MS Dhoni had a decent partnership after that, but India still folded up for 152, which was just not enough. In the second innings, they were once 53 for 1, but lost their way to 66 for 6, and were eventually all out for 161, with only Ashwin standing up for the second time in the game.
By the time India arrived at the Kennington Oval, their confidence was at an all-time low. And, it showed, as they lost half the side for 36. India went on to 90 for 9, and were eventually dismissed for 148, as many as 82 of those came from Dhoni’s bat. The story was the same in the second innings. India lost half their side for 46 and eventually crumbled to an embarrassing 94 all out. It was a minnow-ish type of performance, which the Indian fans would never forget. Can they reverse the trend, which has carried on to Adelaide, in the next Test?
--By A Cricket Analyst
