Australia vs India 2018-19, 2nd Test: Did the Aussies “con” India into excluding the spinner from their XI?

Australia ended the first day of the Perth Test at 277/6, having decided to bat first after winning the toss. The day saw a lot of ebbs and flows, with both the pitch and the performances of the players being subject to intense discussion from all corners.

Though a judgement call on how good this total is can be made only after both teams have played their first innings, it is safe to assume that at this point, Australia have a slight edge. But regardless of the eventual result in this match, there is one significant takeaway for the Indian side, especially for its think tank, from the way things panned out in the first day.

The lesson is: don’t let the selection of a team be influenced by media and commentators.

Much of the discussion before the Perth Test had centered around the supposedly bouncy and pacey nature of the pitch. The curator, media, experts – everyone seemed convinced that it was going to be an out-and-out quick and bouncy surface.

Ricky Ponting had said that the fast pitch would favour the Aussies more than the Indians. Michael Vaughn disagreed. According to the latter, the world-class Indian pace attack would be able to trump their Aussie counterparts.

But they both agreed on the nature of the pitch, as did almost every expert in the media as well as all the commentators.

Most importantly, the Indian captain too seemed convinced, which was reflected in his team selection. He chose an all-pace attack and excluded the only spinner, Ravindra Jadeja, from the playing XI.

Within an hour of play, it was clear to everyone, including Kohli, that he had made a serious blunder. He was forced to hand over the ball to Hanuma Vihari, and even his part time off spin proved difficult for the Australians to negotiate.

It will be a stretch to say that the Australian media ‘conned’ India into believing that the pitch had nothing for the spinners. But everything points to the fact that India’s team selection seems to have been majorly influenced by what the ‘experts’ in the media and the commentators thought of the pitch.

The Australian captain, Tim Paine on the other hand, seems to have taken the right call in including Nathan Lyon.

On the evidence of how much assistance a part-time spinner like Vihari got from this first day pitch, it is likely that Lyon will have a major role to play when India come out to bat. Kohli and Co are probably going to learn the hard way, the importance of judging the pitch first hand rather than relying on second hand reports.

The bottom line is that India should always have a spinner in their XI unless they are completely convinced that there is nothing on offer for the slower bowlers.