4th Test Preview: Depleted India to challenge under pressure Australia at their fortress

India were always behind the curve and facing an uphill task Down Under with Virat Kohli returning for his paternity leave after Rohit Sharma and Ishant Sharma were declared to be unavailable at the start of the series. As if things were not bad enough for the Indian side, ace attacker Mohammed Shami got injured in the Adelaide Test which ended in a disaster for them. 

As the series carried on, the team travelled from Adelaide to Sydney via Melbourne, with a squad that resembled more of a combat battalion coming off adverse conditions than a cricket team. Going into Brisbane, India are struggling to put a well-fit playing XI for the final Test that has drained them physically, emotionally and mentally.

Given all the problems they were starting with and the outcome of the First test, the tourists would have gleefully accepted the current standings in the series where they have batted with immense grit and determination to win one Test at the MCG, followed by an unlikely draw at the SCG that was earned on the back of exemplary resistance shown by their lower middle order on the fifth day of the Test.

They were deemed down and out in the aftermath of the Adelaide Test but defied all the critics and pundits who refused to give them any chance of coming back in the series.

Come the final Test, the challenge gets steeper for the Indian team who will have to field their fifth, sixth and seventh pacer on the preferred list in an all-important decider of the series, at a ground that is deemed fortress for the home side as they have not lost a single Test match since 1988 at the Gabba.

They have a lot of worries in even fielding a XI that can pose a set of challenges to the Australians on paper. Their spearhead in the pace department is a veteran of two Tests, while there are rings of uncertainties about the other two pacers who can bowl alongside him. The overall experience of their pacers in contention to play the Gabba Test is four and to make the matters worse, only their ace spinner is struggling with a bad back and is running against time to play, while another is in a hospital after sustaining a thumb dislocation.

There are issues in the batting department as well with the ruling out of Hanuma Vihari who led India’s riposte at the SCG and the absence of Jadeja who provided match-winning stability to the side. Now they will have to pick one among two batsmen who started the series as openers against the likes of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. 

In short, the Indian side is facing an unprecedented challenge where the captain is not sure of the best playing XI he needs to win the game but instead has to play with players who are just fit enough to walk on and off the field on their own. 

On the other hand, the Australians are not under any less pressure. They put everything on the line including the behaviour of their captain to salvage a win against Ashwin and Vihari, but to no avail, as they face a must-win game at the Gabba. Captain Tim Paine knows the surface at the Gabba will suit his bowlers more and especially with the Indian batsmen having faced a lot of blows on their body.

They played a 60-70 per cent fit David Warner at the top of the order in a sign of absolute desperation but the left-hander could not quite make life easier for his teammates down the order. His opening partner Will Pucovski showed promise on his Test debut but faced yet another disappointing injury that curtails his journey at the top of the order. The game of revolving chair in openers’ slot has not stopped as Marcus Harris has been named his replacement to walk with Warner to face the new ball against Siraj and co.

Their mainstays in the batting department—Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschange have looked threatening and at their absolute best but a big and match-turning innings has still eluded both of them. Although Smith scored a Test century in the first innings of the Sydney Test and Labuschagne missed just by a small margin, Australia could manage only 338 runs and it reveals the chinks in the Australian armour. Thankfully for them, India lacked penetration at the SCG for a long period of time, and they got away with a dominating position. 

Tim Paine knows the pressure is more on his team and himself than the Indian team and its stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane and it was telling on the fifth day of the Sydney Test. If India go on to win the Brisbane Test, it will set the phenomenal standard for the Indian team that will glorify their bench strength while a defeat for Australia would be disastrous as they don’t have the excuse of missing Warner and Smith in the series. To make matters worse, it could well be the last series as captain and also as a player for Tim Paine in case Ajinkya Rahane and co. pull out one more stellar performance defying all odds stacked against them.

Australia vs India: Match Details

Venue: Gabba, Brisbane

Date and Time: January 15-19, 05:00 AM IST, 11:30 IST

Broadcaster: Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV

Pitch Report

Other than Perth, the pitches at the Gabba have been conducive to pace and bounce over the years and these are the reasons that Australia have not lost a Test match for a very long time at this ground. No wonder, Paine was warning Ashwin about the prospect of batting against the trio of Cummins, Starc and Hazlewood on a Gabba surface that the Australians hoped would offer spice to them after a flat pitch that almost sucked the life out of them on the final day in Sydney.

Opposition teams, especially the subcontinent teams have been guilty of getting carried away with the pace and bounce on the pitch but it’s the hardness of the surface that is responsible for extra carry and pace and it also makes the abetting not so tough on the pitch. It does not support a lot of lateral movement and if batsmen can get the top of the bounce, batting can be easier and run-scoring can be fluent at the Gabba.

Team News

Australia

Australia have had injury concerns to manage as well and Pucovski has been ruled out of the fourth Test and Marcus Harris has been added in the squad to partner Warner at the top of the order. By adding Harris, the team management has opted out of shifting back Matthew Wade at the top of the order and have relied on a specialist to do the job against the new ball.

The team management had preferred Wade over Travis Head who was once the vice-captain of the side but Wade did nothing substantial to prove he deserves a shot more than Head does and committed the same mistake of throwing his wicket away at crucial junctures of the game.

Australians bowlers toiled hard and all three of them have played three Tests in the series leading up to the series decider and hence they might feel the pitch of it at the Gabba. However, all of them are looking fit and raring to go against the batting line up which has shown signs of crumbling in the lower order apart from the last innings in the Sydney Test.

Australia need Warner to come good at the top of the order and set the tone for the middle-order batsmen. The Indian bowling line up will be thin on experience and if Warner puts them on sword successfully, it sets up nicely for the likes of Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschange to bat India out of the Test match.

Strongest XI

David Warner, Marcus Harris, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Matthew Wade, Cameron Green, Tim Paine (C & Wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood

India

India were reluctant to travel to Brisbane in the wake of a hard quarantine imposed by the health officials but the discussion between Cricket Australia and BCCI paved way for the end of the stalemate and the tourists boarded a chartered flight to play the final test of the series.

In their team hotel, they were surprised to see no housekeeping; they had to manage everything on their own before yet another discussion between BCCI and CA took place. All in all, Indian team is facing an unprecedented time where a majority of their first-choice players are injured and are back in India or with them in condition, they can’t even walk or hold a bat.

Keeping all the off-field struggles in context, If India can put up a playing XI that can pose some sort of challenge will be a big test for the team management.

Mayank Agarwal was hit on his arm in a net session at the MCG and there is a lack of clarity on the status of his injury. If he recovers in time to play, he will most likely bat in the middle order but in case of his injury being serious, Prithvi Shaw will make his way back into the team.

The team management will have their task cut out in selecting the three pacers with Siraj certain to lead the pace attack. On the other hand, Ashwin’s bad back makes him a doubtful starter for the final Test and with Jadeja out of the game due to a dislocated thumb, Kuldeep Yadav stands at the forefront of making his way back into the playing XI.

There are also media reports claiming that Washington Sundar who was held back in Australia to aid Indian batsmen in the net session can be handed a debut as a like for like replacement of Ravindra Jadeja.

Strongest XI

Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Rishabh Pant, Mayank Agarwal/Prithvi Shaw, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Kuldeep Yadav/R Ashwin, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur

Australia vs India: Dream11 team and suggestion

Rishabh Pant(wk), Ajinkya Rahane, Marnus Labuschange, Steve Smith, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Cameron Green, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Mohammed Siraj

Captain: Marnus Labuschagne

Vice-captain: Ajinkya Rahane

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