Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2014-15: Player Ratings for India

Despite losing the 4-match series 2-0 to Australia, India put up a spirited show, unlike their previous overseas tours in the last 3 years, thanks to some excellent individual performances from the batting unit. The bowlers, however, looked completely toothless and failed to get the home team all-out even on a single occasion. With that being the case, let us have a look at the player ratings for all the players from the visiting side who featured in the series:

#1 Shikhar Dhawan

Player Rating – 3

Stats: Tests – 3 Runs – 167 Average – 27.83 Best – 81

Shikhar Dhawan played the first three Tests of the series before being dropped for the fourth and final Test, at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), but had just a single good knock to show for: 81 in the second innings at Brisbane. He was found wanting against the pace and swing generated by the Australian pacers.

#2 Murali Vijay

Player Rating – 8

Stats: Tests – 4 Runs – 482 Average – 60.25 Best – 144

Murali Vijay had a good tour of England in 2014 and looked equally impressive in Australia, as well, right from the start. One of Vijay’s qualities that stood out in the series was his ability to leave the ball outside the off-stump. The other impressive aspect about the right hander’s batting was the manner in which he made the most of the loose balls that were offered to him by the Australian bowlers, which showed he wasn't just there to hang around.

#3 Cheteshwar Pujara

Player Rating – 4

Stats: Tests – 3 Runs – 201 Average – 33.50 Best – 73

Billed as India’s answer to the recent batting woes in swinging and bouncy conditions, Cheteshwar Pujara had yet another forgettable series overseas. Considered to be someone who can play the long innings, the 26-year-old didn’t spend as much time at the crease as he would’ve liked to, with off-spinner Nathan Lyon exposing his weaknesses against quality spin bowling.

The only aspect that separates him from Dhawan, and in turn, earns him a point more is that he faced 199 balls more than the Delhi player: 471 as against 272. And it indicates his ability to fight it out even when not in the best of forms.

#4 Virat Kohli

Player Rating – 9

Stats: Tests – 4 Runs – 692 Average – 86.50 Best – 169

Without a doubt, Virat Kohli was India’s best batsman in the series. There were a couple of changes observed in his batting in Australia, as compared to England: he batted outside his crease against the quick bowlers and took a middle stump guard. With that guard, he shuffled towards his off-stump and cover drove bowlers with a horizontal bat, instead of trying to open the bat face at the last minute. His bat came down as straight as a ramrod, which was in stark contrast to how it was against James Anderson and Co.

He also tackled Nathan Lyon extremely well, bringing out the sweep when it was needed.

There are 3 reasons why he couldn’t get a 10:

1. He failed to take India past the finishing line in the first Test;
2. He got out on the last ball of Day 3 at Melbourne, handing the initiative back to the home side;
3. He left it at the hands of Ajinkya Rahane to ensure a draw at Sydney.

#5 Ajinkya Rahane

Player Rating – 8

Stats: Tests – 4 Runs – 399 Average – 57 Best – 147

Ajinkya Rahane provided immense solidity in the middle-order. His stand-out quality in the series was his sound technique against both pace and spin. In addition to it, he also proved that he had the temperament to go with it in the final innings at Sydney when he helped India secure a draw in a tense scenario.

#6 Rohit Sharma

Player Rating – 2.5 (penalty of -0.5)

Stats: Tests – 3 Runs – 173 Average – 28.83 Highest score – 53

Rohit Sharma failed terribly in the first part of the series but put up a decent show in the final Test, at Sydney, batting at number three. But as has been the case for the majority of his career, Rohit failed to convert his good starts into something big getting out for scores of 53 and 39.

Ideally, he should have got a 3.5; after all, he was only as poor as Dhawan. But for trying to sledge Mitchell Johnson and, in turn, unleashing the sleeping beast on the Indians at Brisbane, he gets a penalty of -0.5.

#7 KL Rahul

Player Rating – 5

Stats: Tests – 2 Runs – 130 Average – 32.50 Best – 110

KL Rahul looked completely out of sorts in his debut Test, at Melbourne, but showcased his abilities in the following Test at Sydney after being promoted to his natural position – opener – by scoring a well-compiled hundred in the first innings. However, the pressure of the last day chase got to him in the second innings and he succumbed meekly, again.

The Sydney track was good to him, but it remains to be seen how he fares on a more challenging deck.

#8 Suresh Raina

Player Rating – 0

Stats: Test – 1 Runs – 0 Average – 0

Suresh Raina would like to remove the Sydney Test as early as possible from his memory. The left-hander got out for a duck in both the innings of his only match of the series and didn’t contribute much with the ball, either. An away going ball from Shane Watson caught him wanting in the first innings, while an incoming delivery from Mitchell Starc trapped in right in front of the stumps in the second.

Well, what do you get when you contribute nothing?

#9 MS Dhoni and Wriddhiman Saha

Player Rating – 3

Stats: Tests – 2 Runs – 68 Average – 22.66 Best – 33

MS Dhoni couldn’t repeat his England series heroics, but his contribution in partnership with off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin to help the visitors save the third Test, which eventually turned out to be his last with him announcing his Test retirement, helped him go out on a high.

Wriddhiman Saha

Stats: Tests – 2 Runs – 73 Average – 18.25 Best – 35

Saha wasn’t much different from Dhoni. Perhaps he looked more assured behind the stumps, but failed to make use of his opportunities with the bat.

#10 Ravichandran Ashwin

Player Rating – 6.5

Stats: Tests – 3 Wickets – 12 Average – 48.66, Runs – 113

Ravichandran Ashwin might not have picked up a truckload of wickets in the series, but he did an extremely commendable job by keeping the runs down at one end. Unfortunately, his good work went in vain, as the fast bowlers couldn’t support him. He also proved to be useful with the willow in hand.

#11 Ishant Sharma

Player Rating – 5

Stats: Tests – 3 Wickets – 9 Average – 48.22

While Ishant Sharma didn’t bowl as bad as the numbers suggest, he failed to back up his odd brilliant spells with consistent line and length to build any pressure on the batsmen. The team’s bizarre strategy of bowling bouncers despite it becoming predictable didn’t help him, either.

#12 Mohammed Shami

Player Rating – 5.5

Stats: Tests – 3 Wickets – 15 Average – 35.80

In terms of the number of wickets taken, Mohammed Shami was India’s best bowler. However, stats don’t usually don’t tell you the full story, and a good number of them were gifted by the Australians when they were in search of quick runs.

#13 Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Player Rating – 2

Test – 1 Wicket – 1 Average – 168.00

Coming back from a lengthy injury lay-off, Bhuvneshwar Kumar managed to play only a single match in the series – the fourth and final Test at Sydney. The right arm pacer looked completely out-of-sorts with the ball, lacking match fitness, and it showed in his pace, which, at times, dropped to as low as 115 kmph. With not much grass on the deck, he wasn’t able to get any swing as well.

However, he did provide good support with the bat lower down the order, and along with Rahane in the second innings, helped India save the game at Sydney.

#14 Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron

Umesh Yadav (L) And Varun Aaron

Player Rating – 2.5

Stats: Tests – 3 Wickets – 11 Average – 49.81

A lot was expected of Umesh Yadav when he was picked for this tour, but unfortunately, the right-arm pacer dished out disappointing performances with the ball. He just couldn't get any rhythm going his way with the ball throughout the series. The Yadav that one saw Down Under was a pale shadow to the one we saw in the home series versus Sri Lanka last November.

Varun Aaron (Player Rating – 2)

Stats: Test – 2 Wickets – 5 Average – 72.40

Varun Aaron’s wasn’t much different from Umesh. Like Yadav, he too was guilty of not sticking to a line; to add to it, his extra pace worked very well in favour of the Australian batsmen.

#15 Karn Sharma

Player Rating – 1

Stats: Tests – 1 Wickets – 4 Average – 59.50

Karn Sharma’s selection at Adelaide caught many by surprise, and quite expectedly, he looked nervous from ball one.The pitch at Adelaide started to assist spin as the match progressed, but the 26-year-old couldn’t exploit it. Had he managed to have some impact, the result of the match could have been different.