Probably the greatest Test series India have won in recent memory, the 2001 Border-Gavaskar series will be a memorable one for Indian fans for many reasons.
Firstly, it was one of those rare occasions when India were underdogs on home soil. They were expected to roll over and lose against a marauding Australian team, Steve Waugh’s ‘Invincibles’, which was on a world record winning streak.
Secondly, India came back in the series from the dead to not only end Australia’s 16-match winning streak but also start a new era of dominance for Indian cricket in Test whites, a phase that saw them succeed at home and away consistently for nearly a decade.
Lastly, India found unlikely heroes each time, be it Sameer Dighe, in the third and final Test, VVS Laxman in the second Test in a career-defining innings, and a rookie off-spinner in Harbhajan Singh with the ball, or a sturdy opener in SS Das.
On this day, India defeated Australia in the third and final Test at Chepauk Stadium, by two wickets to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, starting a new era of India-Australia rivalry.
Prologue
Before the series, there was plenty of verbal jousting between Steve Waugh and Sourav Ganguly, the latter, never a man to mince his words or to take a backward step. He aimed a barb at the visiting team and said that their winning streak was against weaker teams, it was also true India didn’t have a great time during their series Down Under prior to that.
The Australian team boasted of their finest lineup, which included Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer, the Waugh Brothers, Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist and a bowling combination that included McGrath, Gillespie and Shane Warne.
On the other side was an Indian team with new faces like Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan, an unstable opening pair and the absence of a quality pace bowling attack. Sample this – India tried out five different spinners and four new ball bowlers in the series (one of them being Sourav Ganguly himself, in the third Test alongside a young Zaheer Khan).
The first Test: Dampener at Wankhede
In Mumbai, India were blown over by the Australians. Batting first, India were bundled out for 176. Australia, despite slipping to 99 for 5 managed 349 thanks to an 112-ball 122 from Adam Gilchrist in partnership with Matthew Hayden, who resurrected his own career on this tour.
India were all out for 219 in the second innings leaving Australia just 47 runs to knock off in their final innings, which they did in seven overs without losing a wicket. Gilchrist picked up the Player of the Match. Australia were ready to steamroll India as everyone had expected.
The second Test: The epic at Eden Gardens
In what could possibly be called one of the greatest Tests of the millennium, Australia continued their momentum, posting 445 in the first innings thanks to Steve Waugh’s 110. Harbhajan Singh announced himself with seven wickets, but the Indian batsman floundered and were bundled out for just 171.
They were asked to follow on by Steve Waugh, which would turn out to be one of the biggest blunders of his career.
Trailing by 274, India started steadily, reaching 232 for 4, with Australia looking to wrap things up as quickly as possible. VVS Laxman, whose impressive 59 in the first innings led Ganguly and John Wright to promote him to No. 3 at Dravid’s expense, added 117 with Ganguly for the fourth wicket.
Then came one of the partnerships of the century – 376 of the most sublime runs ever scored under pressure – as Dravid and Laxman played out an entire day without losing their wickets. Laxman scored 281, then India’s highest individual score in Tests, while Dravid scored 180.
India declared on 657 setting Australia a target of 384, a number many felt was too big. Ganguly, many thought, lost a golden opportunity to win the match by declaring late, needlessly hanging on with batting on the fifth day morning.
Ganguly’s perspective was not to lose the match at any cost. Eventually, Australia, who started very steadily at 74 for 1 in 23 overs collapsed and were 212 all out in 68.3 overs. Harbhajan picked six wickets and Sachin Tendulkar picked three prized scalps at the right moment when India were battling against time.
India won by 171 runs and Eden Gardens, Kolkata, will remain in Indian cricket history as the most hallowed ground of all time.
The third Test: The encore at Chepauk
The stage was set for the grand finale, with the Eden Gardens win breathing new life into the Indian team. Australia won the toss and chose to bat. Thanks to a Matthew Hayden double century (203), Australia reached 391, after a batting collapse which saw them drop from 340 for 3 to 391 all out.
Harbhajan Singh was the wrecker-in-chief yet again with seven wickets. India replied solidly buoyed by their previous win, with Sachin Tendulkar scoring a century. India made 501 to earn a lead of 110. Australia were all out for 264 in their second innings leaving India an achievable target of 155. Harbhajan Singh picked up 8 wickets for a match tally of 15/217, which remains to the date, his best bowling figures in a match.
India were cruising at one point of time during the fourth innings chase at 101 for 2, but they quickly slipped to 135 for 7. VVS Laxman, who scored 66, was the sixth wicket and India suddenly seemed in dire straits with victory in sight but no one to hold fort. That is when wicket-keeper Sameer Dighe, played the cameo of a lifetime.
He remained unbeaten on 22 adding 16 valuable runs with Zaheer Khan for the eighth wicket. Indian managed to squeeze their way to 155, winning the match by two wickets and the series with it. While Harbhajan Singh and Hayden shared the Player of the Match, the former won the Player of the Series Award.
The numbers
On the wickets column, Harbhajan led with 32 wickets at 17.03 with four five-wicket hauls in six innings. McGrath was a distant second with 17 wickets while Warne managed just 10 wickets at 50.50.
Hayden piled on 549 runs at 109.80 with 2 centuries and 2 half-centuries. VVS Laxman was second with 503 runs at 83.83 with a century and three half-centuries. Dravid and Tendulkar were third and fourth with 338 and 304 runs respectively. No one else managed an average over 50.
The series will always live in the memories of Indian fans, especially those who had seen their team being vanquished everywhere in the 90s. This series, was a watershed moment in Indian cricket history.
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