Can Ajinkya Rahane and his men break the Sydney jinx?

Ajinkya Rahane has got a golden opportunity to win a Test match in Sydney.

The Sydney Cricket Ground, or SCG, is definitely not one of the happiest hunting grounds for the Indian team, despite its reputation as a pitch which generally assists the spinners.

In fact, India have only won once at this historic venue and that too in 1978 (none of the current Indian players were even born then). And, to be honest, that victory is also never spoken with reverence as it came against an Australian side which was severely depleted because of the World Series Cricket era. So much so that, it was captained by a 41-year-old Bob Simpson who was called back from his retirement!

Golden opportunity to win a Test in Sydney

And, in this backdrop, Ajinkya Rahane has got a golden opportunity to win a Test match in Sydney. This could not only be the first one of the New Year, but also the first one of the new decade as well - which promises a great future for Indian cricket.

By leading in just one Test match on Australian soil, Rahane has earned something which a lot of fine captains in the past haven’t managed on many tours - that is the praise from former Australian captain Ian Chappell. If Chappell thought that Rahane was ‘born to lead’ and is a ‘brave and smart’ captain, he wasn’t alone in his admiration for the stand-in Indian captain.

“Australia always knew they would have their hands full with the Indian captain in this rubber. It’s just that it wasn’t this one,” wrote Greg Baum who is chief sports columnist and associate editor with The Age (Australia).

“Ajinkya Rahane might not be as regal as Virat Kohli, but he had already shown himself on Boxing Day to be more intuitive in the field, and now on day two proved himself a worthy batting proxy with a classy, unbeaten century that arrested the 12-wickets-a-day momentum of this series and should find a levelling victory for his team here,” wrote Baum in his column on December 27.

A new dawn in the new decade?

However, with all the much deserved praises, Rahane must be aware that it won’t count for much if his team fails to win in Sydney. If anything else, this is going to be the most important match for him and for his team. If India can astound Australia again in Sydney like they did in Melbourne, they will ensure that for the only time in their history, they will be coming back with Gavaskar-Border trophy from two consecutive tours of Australia.

Can Rahane and his team break the Sydney jinx?

However, a win at SCG is never easy for any visiting side and more so for India despite some of the finest individual performances by its cricketers.

Historically, Indians have done well for most part of the days in Sydney and yet for some reasons or others, they have not been able to seal victory. In 1986, Sunil Gavaskar’s 172 raised the hopes of a win as India declared at 4-600 and Australia was forced to follow on. Alas, Allan Border’s mates hung on by four wickets on the last day.

In the next trip to the SCG in 1992, India dominated the Test match (Ravi Shastri’s double hundred and Sachin Tendulkar’s 148) and agonizingly failed short of grabbing the last two wickets in the final hour of the match.

In 1999, they were annihilated on a green top, but in 2004 again they failed to force a result despite having an upper-hand in most part of the match when Tendulkar made 241 not out and VVS Laxman 178 as India declared their innings at 7-705.

What happened next in 2008 is widely regarded as the ugliest Test between the two nations as Australia won the “Monkeygate” Test in controversial circumstances in the dying moments of the match.

During the last trip to Australia, Kohli's side was also in a very strong position at SCG when Cheteshwar Pujara and Rishabh Pant made centuries and Australia were bowled out for less than half their total, but India were denied a memorable win by rain. Can Rahane and his team break the jinx this time around?

More than sum of its parts

Astonishingly, India under Rahane have shown that they are not bothered about missing the services of Virat Kohli, Mohammed Shami or Umesh Yadav who all contributed magnificently in 2018 when India won its first-ever Test series in Australia.

The inclusion of his Mumbai team-mate Rohit Sharma could be a huge boost for his batting unit which is heavily dependent on skipper after his fine century in Melbourne. “We’re all happy to have Rohit Sharma back. He brings a lot of experience to the side. He has been batting really well in the nets. He has been opening for us so he will definitely bat at the top of the order,” said Rahane in his customary press conference ahead of the third Test.

Normally, when a team reaches Sydney for the New Year’s Test, it is usually the last match of the series. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the series was rescheduled in a way that India is playing the penultimate game of the 4-match series and not the final match. Thus, it also means that for the first time in nearly a decade, SCG will be hosting a ‘live’ Test, with the series result still hanging by a thread. Time for everyone in the Indian team to rise to the occasion like Rahane did in Melbourne.