World Cup semi-final, India vs Australia at the historic Sydney Cricket ground. Does it get any bigger than this?
These two teams have met a lot in the recent past and one could say they know everything about each other. What has happened in the past will count for nothing when both teams take to the field and that is something Rohit Sharma acknowledged in a press conference when asked about the bilateral series and the ODI tri-series involving England, when India failed to win a single match.
“I don’t think it matters,” Rohit said. “What happened was in the past. We never wanted to carry it [the Test and tri-series results] into the World Cup. We always spoke about this. We know how important the World Cup is, and [for us] to come out and play some good cricket. So now it is just the matter of two more hurdles.”
India have spent the last four months in Australia. Rohit said: “We have to make the last four months worth it.” He said the team had come to Australia with a “mission”, with the World Cup being the focal point. After two and a half miserable months, Rohit said, “None of the guys thought about going back. We were there on a mission, we wanted to achieve history.”
These two countries have a very commendable record in ICC tournaments, in general. This game has more significance than anything else, however. In the last few days there has been a lot of negative talk about India from the Aussies, particularly from Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Johnson and the like. One can be assured that MS Dhoni and his boys will certainly not pay attention to any of this talk. It is going to be a cracker of a contest and we are set to be treated with a feast of entertainment.
Out of the many mini-battles that are set to take place, the prospect of the Australian batsmen tackling the Indian spinners is set to be fascinating, to say the least. B Arun, India’s bowling coach gave his views as well.
“Ashwin and Jadeja have been brilliant,” Arun said. “It’s been a great journey for Ashwin, who has rediscovered flight. He has been exceptionally good with his variations. Jadeja had a difficult time coming back from injury, but he too has done well to deliver at right time. The bowlers complement each other, learn from each other and take pride in bowling well as a unit. Tomorrow is just another game and we’ll take it as it comes. We’re going to go around with whatever has been working for us.”
It has been quite a turnaround for the Indian team, in particular, the bowling attack. They have impressed the most and picked up all 70 wickets in the seven games they have played so far in this World Cup. The fast bowlers, led by Shami, have been hugely effective and they will be keen to stamp their authority on the mighty Australian batting line-up.
The way the Indian top order tackles the fiery pace quartet of Starc, Johnson, Hazlewood and Faulkner will have a huge significance on the outcome of the game. The Indian batting line-up has had a very good tournament so far and come the big day, they will be ready to fire on all cylinders.
It’s always been India’s dream to prove they could be the best. Now they want to prove they are better than the best. They’ve won three ICC tournaments since their World T20 in 2007. Last World Cup they lost to South Africa and tied with England, before going on to win the tournament. This time they have been splendid. A loss to Australia would end a billion dreams and would be, quite simply, unthinkable. For Australia, this is their World Cup. They have been considered favourites all this while. Even the promos have sometimes forgotten that New Zealand, their co-hosts existed. Even their loss to New Zealand was so spectacular and chaotic that it was seen more as a great game of cricket than a loss. But a loss to India at the SCG will rankle for many years to come.
This is a clash of strategy and methodologies. This is a new-age rivalry. Not as historic as the Ashes, or as fervent as India-Pakistan, but certainly it is no lesser in any aspect. We are in for a humdinger of a contest.
