Australia vs India 2014-15: Let's play gentlemen, the series is finally upon us

Virat Kohli and Michael Clarke - The men at the helm

The past couple of weeks have seen the cricketing world engulfed in shadows of dark grief. In an untimely and shocking event, Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes passed away and cricket lost one of its young stars. A loss that shook up the cricketing fraternity and put into perspective a fact that is not often realised in this tough and harsh game, nothing but life is more important. A healthy breathing cricketer is the custodian of the loved game and in the absence of his breath, the game is almost lost.

Hughes would have wanted the game to carry on and that's precisely what Australia and India will try to do tomorrow at the Adelaide Oval. When the 2 teams walk onto the field, each of the 22 men will step out with a sense of admiration and loss for the baggy green #408. Their hearts will be filled with thoughts of what could have been and what actually transpired.

Cricket returns to Australia

Cricket had literally come to a standstill down under and when the umpire says play on 9 December, the first hour or so might seem odd and more difficult than it usually is, especially for Michael Clarke and his men.

Coming into this Test match, neither team can be referred to being 100% prepared. India played 2 two games where one can argue that they got a decent chance to assess the conditions and bounce. But if the Australians decide to stick to the aggressive form of cricket they displayed against England, then India have not even had a glimpse of what they will actually face. The Australians have neither had match practice nor sufficient amount of time to cope with the circumstances.

While Clarke has been declared fit to take the field and charge of his team, it will be the young and enthusiastic Kohli at the helm for India. He will definitely garner in a new approach and try to match the opposition’s aggression with his passion and intuitive gut. The initial phase of the Border-Gavaskar trophy when played in Australia is more of a stiff challenge for India, but this time around, the home team is in a deeper mental trench.

How will the teams approach the game?

On the eve of this much-awaited contest, as the players prepare themselves for the toughest recovery, a few questions loom over our head. Will the Aussies bounce back in the game and bounce out the Indians? Will India, with their fast bowling attack, touted as the most promising attack touring Australian be successful in troubling the hosts? Will the batsmen concentrate more on ducking to bouncers, and will the new ball bowlers start with a bouncer or will they refrain from it completely?

These questions will be answered tomorrow, but a thing of certainty is that only the joy and pleasure of playing cricket will assist the ones suffering to see the light at the end of the tunnel. The tunnel might be a long one, but the illuminati of the coveted game will shine through to restore normalcy.