4 times India nearly won a Test Series in Australia 

#3 1980-1981, Drawn 1-1

The battle that lasted until the end (Picture Courtesy: ESPNCricinfo)

This was a three-match series where India started slow but finished brilliantly.

With World Series Cricket over, and Australia's star players returning to the side, the 1980-1981 tour of Australia posed a very different challenge to India.

India no longer had the spin duo of Bedi and Chandrasekhar to torment the Australians, although the emergence of Kapil Dev was certainly a bonus.

However, despite Kapil Dev taking 5/96, Australia would only need to bat once in the first test, with a Greg Chappell double century leading Australia to an innings victory.

Next, in Adelaide, it was Kim Hughes's turn to make a double-century, with Australia batting first and posting an imposing 528.

India would show resolve when they batted, with Sandeep Patil making 174 in a fantastic counter-attacking inning, but despite this, they would only narrowly escape defeat, with a torrid second inning leaving Australia just two wickets from victory.

A series win was out of the equation in the third test, but India showed what could have been as they produced one of the best comebacks in test cricket.

After both sides had batted for the first time, India trailed by 182 runs. Their second innings score of 324 gave them hope, but not much, as they would have to bowl the Australian's out for under 142 runs.

However, a superb Kapil Dev spell saw Australia crumble for just 83, meaning India had tied the series.

It may have felt like India had salvaged a series draw, but if it had not been for two mammoth innings by Chappell and Hughes, the series could have looked very different.

Furthermore, Sunil Gavaskar, the Indian batsman most post these types of scores, ended the series with an average under 20.

His form was subsequently a decisive factor in the series, although, five years later his runs would very nearly see India finally win a Test series in Australia.