The number 36 was etched on the more than 100-year-old Adelaide Oval scoreboard as the Indian players exited the stadium one hour after the humiliating eight-wicket loss in the opening Test here on Saturday.
Australia pacer Josh Hazlewood. Pic/AFP
It promised to be a great Test but ended as a farce. India were dismissed for their lowest total in Test cricket. The number 36 was etched on the more than 100-year-old Adelaide Oval scoreboard as the Indian players exited the stadium one hour after the humiliating eight-wicket loss in the opening Test here on Saturday.
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A small portion of Indian fans were still at the ground to watch the players trudge off in almost disbelief. This was no ordinary batting unit. It had players of the calibre of Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane in the middle order. But in the space of 92 balls, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins ripped the highly-fancied Indian batting to shreds.
The bowling was exceptional and the pitch had quickened up, but even Kohli admitted on Fox Sports after the match, "it wasn't like the ball did too much, they did bowl in good areas and we simply didn't show enough intent."
The Australian bowlers were immaculate and Indian batsmen kept edging the ball, but a total of 36 is inexplicable. In just over an hour, India had gone from a solid position to a miserable one. Statisticians and social media lined up all the numbers that outlined India's disastrous performance. It happened so quickly that it was difficult to digest for anyone at the ground.
In 1974, India were dismissed by England for 42 at Lord's, their lowest total before Saturday. This was only the first match of the series, so there couldn't have been mental scars or fatigue. In fact, India should have been proud of their effort in the first innings. But to fall prey in such a manner was unbelievable. There was a familiarity to most of the dismissals. Five of the top six batsmen were caught behind the wicket. The lengths of Hazlewood and Cummins, and the bounce had undone them in a short period of time.
Technically, they couldn't have done more, it was just outstanding bowling. But this is not club cricket, it's Test cricket. One player had to stand up and fight. As Kohli told to Fox Sports, "once we started losing wickets, there was this atmosphere where we felt how are we going to score the next run?" If that was the feeling inside the dressing room then no wonder the team were skittled for 36.
Did you know?
Under Virat Kohli, India got their highest and lowest Test scores. On December 19, 2016 India registered 759-7 decl against England at Chennai and on Saturday, Kohli’s men slumped to 36 v Australia at Adelaide.
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