That seems to be the message going by the matter of the verdict of the appeal and the status of the series. Nagpur beckons and the team that rises to the task will walk away victors.
It has been an easy break between Tests yet again. The trend of shifting focus away from the actual equations on the field was once again carried out, this time with the one Test match ban hanging on India’s prolific opener, Gautam Gambhir’s head. Now that even if the BCCI “rejects” the decision, it is a virtual certainty coming from the newly anointed Test skipper, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, that Tamil Nadu player, M. Vijay, will make his debut against Australia when the Test begins in Nagpur.
But the ringing of changes will most certainly be forced upon the other team in the Border Gavaskar Trophy as well. Ricky Ponting and his mean including Mike Hussey’s celebration of Gambhir’s absence will be short lived as Australia will have to really make the moves if they are to push for victory, square the series and retain the Trophy which they presently hold in light of the controversial series down under.
The most irksome of the situation for Ponting is one that was not very different from the one India were facing in the last Test match in Delhi, to play an additional spinner. While Australia would not want to end up looking like they were shooting in the dark by suddenly replacing Cameron White for the final Test, they could well want to bolster that department by picking the spinner originally meant to lead the spin attack when first choice Bryce McGain was injured, Jason Krezja. The result of the series and the task hanging on the Australian shoulders could well allow Krezja his first shot at international Test cricket, one that he was practically promised when he was picked for this tour.
But the problem then arises of which of the fast bowlers to drop. Ponting has had his problems there was well with his bowlers suddenly falling wayward when they should have shouldered additional responsibility in the absence of a genuine spinner of world class ability. Brett Lee’s improvement and experience make him a must have. Mitchell Johnson has wickets under his belt. Stuart Clarke has held his shoulder of the burden, but to what extent remains yet to be clearly determined.
The one thing Ponting will want to avoid at all costs is lose the toss and once again allow the Indian skipper to decide to bat first and test Australia for a third successive time. For Dhoni, it may be more official than it was in Mohali. But he has already tasted victory once and certainly no factor, no even a missing Gautam Gambhir, will stop Dhoni from competing in the same vein.
All to play for. This is most definitely not the time to rest.
