“We need to get up to make sure we’re fourth to get into that. We’ve got a couple of years to continue the curve of getting better every time. I think our team is getting better all the time,” Hussey said.
Overall – Australia
Year
Mat
Runs
HS
Ave
100
year 2007
4
2314
150
60.89
6
year 2008
14
8110
169
35.10
19
year 2009
13
7637
160
39.56
15
year 2010
8
4635
209
34.08
9
Mike Hussey
Mat
Runs
HS
Bat Av
100
year 2007
4
374
133
74.80
2
year 2008
14
900
146
37.50
2
year 2009
13
804
121
36.54
1
year 2010
8
442
134*
36.83
1
Ricky Ponting
Mat
Runs
HS
Bat Av
100
year 2007
4
192
56
38.40
0
year 2008
14
1182
158
47.28
4
year 2009
13
853
150
38.77
1
year 2010
8
700
209
46.66
1
Yep, that must be it. Australia, Hussey, and Ponting must be getting better all the time!!
In the first test they showed that they had the balls! The fought back in a manner reminiscent of the Aussies of yore! Till the last wicket fell you Australia never gave up (remember those Steve Waugh innings?), and India seems to be learning that lesson, slowly but steadily. Even bowlers seem to value their wickets, and are trying to make the opposition earn it.
In the second test, India played like a number one team should play. With assurance. Like the toss didn’t matter. Like losing Sehwag early didn’t matter. If it had been more than 5 years back we would be talking of the Indian team shutting shop to prevent a defeat. Now India went for an outright victory. Commentators said that the SG ball would reverse after 40 overs – they said lets do it before that. Sachin playing like he always does nowadays. M Vijay and Pujara playing really well. The bowlers doing an exceptional job – all of them. Remember that the tail wasn’t allowed to wag. Stuff good teams are made of.
We still have some distance to go to be ranked alongside the West Indies of 80’s or the Aussies (of 1940s and 2000s). The fielding needs to go up by many a notches. The batting, the middle and lower order, still tends to collapse every once in a while. And our biggest worry, our bowlers. They need to be more consistent and injury free. Harbhajan needs to rediscover his mojo and compliment the tight lines of Ojha with wicket taking. Zaheer needs a couple of good partners. I am believe that we have the ability to get there – all it needs is nurturing by the BCCI, instead of them focusing all their energy in going kinky on Lalit Modi’s ass.
Finally, a lot of people talked of Australia losing three in a row. What I am more interested in is seeing when was the last time a team won three in a row scoring more than 200 in the fourth innings!
