The Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2001 holds a special place in the heart of every Indian Cricket fan. It was quality Test Cricket at display with India taking on the mighty Australians for a 3 match Test Series. The series was intensely and passionately fought with spectacular performances by players from both teams. Eventually, it was India who emerged victorious winning the series 2-1.
It was a historic moment for Indian Cricket to defeat Australia who were thrashing the opposition both at home and away and had 15 consecutive wins coming into the series. The series is remembered for some special moments which include Harbhajan’s ‘hat-trick’ and Laxman’s miraculous innings of 281.
Here are 5 reasons that make it the best ever test series for India:
#1 Coming out of Match-Fixing fiasco and playing mighty Aussies
The Border-Gavaskar trophy was contested just after the infamous match-fixing incident had broken out. Fans were dejected after the incident and the game’s credibility was in danger.
The series saw some remarkable performances from both teams and it was soon that fans were back in front of their TV sets or in the stadiums. The series, undoubtedly, played a very prominent role in gaining back the confidence of the fans and helped the game to distance itself from instances of corruption.
What made the series more fascinating was the fact that Australia had won their last 15 matches in a row when they landed in India. They were undoubtedly the best side with a balanced team composition.
They had bowlers in the form of McGrath, Gillespie and Warne who were capable of destroying any batting line-up. In addition to that, they had a solid and dependable batting department as well. Breaking their winning streak and winning the series was a historic moment for Indian Cricket.
#2 Massive crowds and fan support
The rivalry between India and Australia has always been gripping and fascinating considering the quality of Cricket these two teams play. The competition is neck to neck and matches are enthusiastically watched by people from all over the world. Something similar happened during this series too.
Ganguly’s troops had a tough task at hand going into the series. Even though India lost the first test, their fight back in the second and third test gave the fans an opportunity to rejoice and celebrate.
The crowd turnout throughout the series was humungous and it was a great advertisement for test Cricket. Stadiums were mostly full for all the matches and support from the crowd was inspiring and motivating.
Apart from that, India's series win was celebrated like a spectacle all over the country which was quite unusual for a Test series victory.
#3 Winning match after following-on
It was the era of Australian dominance in world Cricket. A team full of match-winners, Australian Cricket was at its peak when they toured India in 2001. Meanwhile, things weren’t going good for Indian Cricket. There was much instability in the team after the match-fixing scandal broke out and given the circumstances, expectations were not high that India will be able to win the series.
India lost the first Test in Mumbai after a dismal performance. The moral and confidence of the players were low. However, it was a splendid turnaround in the second test at Eden Gardens which no one saw coming.
Australia put up a mammoth total of 445 on the board in first innings. Indian batting line-up collapsed and they were dismissed for a meagre 171. Asked to follow-on, Indian batsmen led by Laxman and Dravid, a partnership about which we’ll talk in the next slide, put up a big total of 384 for Australia to chase after declaring the innings at 657 for 7.
The combination of a magical bowling spell by Harbhajan Singh and heroic batting performance by Laxman and Dravid helped India register a win. The victory was emphatic as it was only the third time a team had won a test match after following on.
#4 The Laxman and Dravid partnership
After losing the first test badly in just 3 days, a disappointed but hopeful team India went to Kolkata in an attempt to level the series. Australia put up a huge total on the board in the first innings and India were reeling on128-8 after a disappointing batting performance.
India failed to avoid the follow-on and were asked to bat again. Laxman, who high scored with 59 in the first innings was promoted up the order to bat at number 3 in the second innings. And the rest is history!
Laxman played a phenomenal innings. It was mesmerising to see him flicking, driving and cutting the ball with such ease and perfection. He refused to give up and was unperturbed by the strong and fearful Australian bowling attack.
Accompanying him was ‘the dependable’ Rahul Dravid. If Laxman thrashed the Australian bowlers, Dravid added to that pain. He was classy as ever and batted with grit and determination to ensure India gets a grip over the match.
Laxman and Dravid were involved in a 376 run partnership with Laxman scoring 281 and Dravid scoring 180. They scripted one of India’s finest and memorable test victories ever which is etched in the memory of every Indian.
#5 Harbhajan Singh's spin magic
The second Test at Eden gardens remains as one of India’s historic test matches. If Laxman starred with the bat, it was Harbhajan Singh who spun the web around Australian batsmen. He picked up seven wickets in the first innings which also included a hat-trick. With this, he also became the first Indian to take a hat-trick in Test Cricket.
The demolition started when Australia were on 252 with 4 wickets down. His first victim was Ricky Ponting. It was a quicker delivery bowled in stump line and Ponting was adjudged LBW trying to play across. The second to be dismissed was Adam Gilchrist almost in a similar fashion being given out leg before wicket.
The whole stadium was on its feet supporting and backing Harbhajan to get that hat-trick. And Bhajji didn't disappoint, he dismissed Shane Warne, who was caught on short leg and completed his hat-trick.
Harbhajan picked up 13 wickets in that match and 32 wickets in the entire series and was declared as man of the series for India.
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