Australia vs India, 3rd Test: 3 Steps to Success for India at Melbourne

Australia roared back at Perth with a 146-run victory to square the series going into the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne. After gaining the initial edge in the series, India was left to rue its selection decisions as Australia ran rampant on a lively Optus Stadium pitch.

In the aftermath of the Test, India was dealt a severe blow when their young prodigy, Prithvi Shaw was ruled out for the series. Mayank Agarwal was drafted in as was Hardik Pandya. However, only the former slotted straight into the eleven with the latter unfortunately missing out.

The other changes in the eleven include the dropping of Murali Vijay and KL Rahul whereas Umesh Yadav also found himself omitted after a substandard performance.

After an injury scare, Rohit Sharma returned to the fold with Jadeja too being included after some brainless arguments were made to justify his exclusion at Perth.

With the series deadlocked at 1-1, the Boxing Day Test has gained even more significance. If India can win at Melbourne, they would ensure that the Border-Gavaskar Trophy stays in India. However, if Australia makes it two wins on the spin, India could be left repenting upon its greatest chance for a Test series victory Down Under.

Thus, the stage is set for an enthralling affair at the MCG where two heavyweights of the game would cross swords.

Through this article, we would look at three things that India need to do in order to emerge victorious from the rubble that is to ensue at Melbourne.

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#3 Get off to a decent start

Agarwal will make his much-awaited debut at Melbourne

India have toured South Africa, England and Australia this year and despite having competed better than teams of the yesteryear, they barely have the results to show for it.

While their bowling has stood up in the face of adversity, their famed batting has crumbled under pressure. If India is to address the issue come Melbourne, it surely has to start at the top of the order.

Rahul and Vijay have endured a wretched run over the past six months in red ball cricket. The latter was dropped mid-way in England and has now encountered the same fate after his twin failures at Adelaide and Perth.

As for the former, he definitely needs some time out of the game to iron out the flaws that have developed in his game over the past few months. Thus, the decision to drop them seems right.

While it may be doom and gloom for the above pair, the same can’t be said of Mayank Agarwal. The opener has scored truckloads of runs over the past couple of domestic seasons and his first national call-up was long overdue.

With Vihari expected to partner him at the top, India need to get off to a good start. Of the four innings so far, the only decent start the visitors got was in the second essay at Adelaide and one could argue that the opening stand eventually made the difference as India scraped through for a 31-run win.

The Kookaburra ball has a tendency to move prodigiously when it is new. However, once its threat is blunted, batsmen can take advantage. Unfortunately for India, they haven’t found themselves in a situation where they can capitalise.

The Indian think-tank has taken the bolder route of throwing Vihari and Agarwal into the deep end. The whole of India would hope that the duo passes the test with flying colours and sets the foundation for success.

After all, ‘a good start is half the job done’.

#2 Control the scoring rate through Jadeja

Jadeja will be pivotal at the MCG

On the eve of the third Test, Ravindra Jadeja was passed fit after Ravi Shastri came up with an inexplicable statement regarding his fitness. However, now that the dust has settled, the left-arm spinner can concentrate on helping his team achieve victory at the MCG.

The Indian think-tank made a mistake of historic proportions when they decided to play four fast bowlers at Perth. Fortunately, though, they seem to have learnt their lesson as Jadeja was named in the squad to turn out at Melbourne.

The MCG’s drop-in wicket has produced some slow and low pitches over the past few years. Despite the curator promising a lively pitch, one can’t change its characteristics overnight and hence, spin will have a major role to play in the Test.

India enjoyed success in the first Test because they were able to keep the Aussie batsmen on a tight leash. Ashwin held up one end and with the fast bowlers equally probing, Australia played out a lot of deliveries without actually going anywhere.

Subsequently, Australia was forced to make the play and they lost wickets in their endeavour.

However, at Perth, India leaked runs from one end as Yadav and Shami were highly inconsistent in the first innings. Though the latter redeemed himself, the former was still erratic and failed to create pressure.

At Melbourne, India needs to do more of what they did at Adelaide and try to gain a semblance of control through Jadeja. The lad from Saurashtra is highly accurate and could play the role to perfection.

Even in the unlikely situation of the MCG strip not aiding him, he can be used as a temporary defensive option which would enable India to attack from the other end or from the same end when the moment arrives.

There was a lot of talk and criticism regarding Jadeja’s fitness before the game. Yet, if he can ‘spin’ his team to victory, all of it would be forgotten. And forgotten very quickly.

#1 Be more proactive against Nathan Lyon

Lyon has been India's biggest threat

India arrived on Australian shores with the unenviable task of extinguishing the best fast-bowling battery in the world. Though they have done decently in that regard, the final component of Australia’s bowling quartet has posed questions that they might not have prepared for.

At this juncture, the series’ highest wicket-taker is Nathan Lyon, an off-spinner. The off-spinner has taken 16 scalps and was simply sensational at Perth.

However, with India professing to be the best against spin, such numbers shouldn’t really be allowed to rack up. Yet, in the past, India has succumbed to the threat of spin overseas.

While it isn’t the greatest crime to be a little careful against Lyon, India has so far been guilty of getting completely bogged down against the spinner.

In the first innings at Perth, he took five wickets at an economy rate of 1.92. Though the Indians tried to attack a little in the second essay, they went back into their shell quickly and let Lyon bowl at a rate of just over two runs per over.

Lyon has been impeccable with his line and length so far. However, the Indians haven’t really done a lot to alter that. India has either been too reckless like Rohit at Adelaide or too defensive like Pujara at Perth.

Moreover, the fact that 9 of Lyon’s 16 dismissals have come when Indians have tried to defend highlights that the Indians might not be that secure in defence after all.

Thus, they need to adopt a mechanism where they pick and choose when to attack and do so judiciously. The sweep shot could be a probable solution as it could culminate in Lyon moving his line and length.

The threat of Lyon has emerged as the biggest banana skin on this tour. Yet, India, the best players of spin should have a plan up their sleeves.

So far, the plan hasn’t seen the light of the day and if it doesn’t rear its head at Melbourne, things could turn pear-shaped very swiftly.