If it was any World Cup game where India would have fancied playing three spinners, it was the opening fixture vs Australia. Temperature in the mid-30s, bright sunshine and Chennai strip. Too strong a temptation to resist and the management went on the expected lines by playing the trio of Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav. The first over, 8th of the innings, which Ashwin bowled vindicated the call as the ball spun and there was enough bounce in the surface to excite the trio.
The conditions, however, were one small part of the success story of the Indian spinners today as it was a brilliant exhibition and execution of skills. Together, they made little adjustments and had subtle variations which made life difficult for the opposition.
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If it was the stump-to-stump lines for Jadeja, Kuldeep upped his pace a bit to not allow the batters enough reaction time. That delivery to dismiss Glenn Maxwell not only outfoxed the right-hander with a turn but rushed him with some extra yards. These minute changes resulted in big wickets of Steve Smith and Maxwell, and never allowed the other batters to get their eye in.
“I realised that it was a slow wicket, not a slow turner but on the slower side. So it was important to increase the pace slightly on these kinds of wickets to not allow enough time for the batters. That is what I did with Maxwell. If you see that delivery, that was a bit quick too and turned. So that was the plan on this wicket,” says Kuldeep after his 2/42 in his opening game of the 2023 edition of the World Cup.
Jadeja too made the quick adjustment after figuring that the wicket was on the drier and slower side. From there on, it was more about sticking to a stump line, operating with a Test match-like mindset and then allowing the pitch to do its magic.
“When I started the first over, the ball was stopping after falling a little slow. I thought it was the afternoon, it was hot and the wicket was dry. I thought a stump-line would be better. From here some balls would turn, some would go straight so it won’t be easy for the batsman to line up. This was my plan that I should bowl at the stumps and luckily the ball to Smith turned a little more.
“So, my plan was simple I was thinking that this is a Test match bowling wicket. I shouldn’t experiment too much because everything was happening in the wicket. So, I was trying to bowl it stump to stump,” says Jadeja at the post-match presser.
The turning point
For Jadeja, Smith’s wicket was clearly the turning point as Australia lost wickets at regular intervals after that and weren’t able to post a challenging total.
“I think that was the turning moment, you know, when you get a wicket like Steve Smith from there onwards it was not easy to just come in and rotate the strike for the new batter. So, I think that I would say that wicket was the turning point. From there onwards, they were 119 – 3 and 199 all out. I think, yeah, I would say that was the turning point. And yeah, it helped me, because I knew the conditions in Chennai. I’ve been playing here for like 10-11 years so I know the how conditions in this ground. So, I think I enjoyed and whatever I contribute to the team I always feel happy,” adds the all-rounder.
Smith concurred with Jadeja’s views and reiterated that it was a challenging wicket to bat on in the afternoon but eased in the evening hours due to dew. The right-hander felt 200 was a little bit under-par and 250 would have made it a decent game.
“It was a challenging wicket this afternoon. 200 was a little under par and 250 would’ve been decent. It was easy to get boundaries as the wicket was challenging and was going to be challenging for any new batter coming in,” says Smith in a media interaction.
All the challenges started in the eighth over of the Australian innings when Ashwin came on to bowl. Extra bounce was there to be seen and the ball spun sharply after landing on the seam. The veteran offie relied more on getting his sidespin and overspin right and getting the body into right positions.
“It’s more than the pace, it’s difficult for the bowlers to bowl at a particular speed. It’s about getting the sidespin and overspin right, getting my body into position – all of these things. It’s about getting that right for me. For me it usually takes about 6-8 balls to get that right,” says Ashwin in interaction with broadcasters after the game.
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‘All a bit different’
Josh Hazlewood, who put Australia on top early in the run defence with two quick wickets, lavished praise on the opposition spinners, and Kuldeep in particular.
“Yeah, I think he’s obviously done really well over the last 12 or 18 months. He’s always been a good player. We’ve found him tough to play against. Not often you come up against a left arm leg spinner with great variations, so it’s sort of something that’s hard to practice against,” says Hazlewood.
The quick was quick to highlight the variety which the Indian spinners brought to the table and how well they used the conditions.
“And yeah, he’s always been a good player to play against so I think in general the three spinners bowled really well they’re all a little bit different obviously but they know the conditions really well and bowled accordingly.”
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