Australia vs India 2018-19: Defeating Australia in their own den has got to feel incredibly satisfying for Virat Kohli & Co
Team India have finally registered their first-ever series win against Australia in Australia. India made history in Sydney on Monday morning after clinching their maiden series victory on Australian soil, ending a 71-year old drought.
Captain Virat Kohli and his men toiled hard for this victory and outplayed the home side in every department, right from the first Test in Adelaide.
The fourth and final Test ended in a draw after a majority of the game was washed out by the Sydney rains. But it did not affect the outcome of the series and India retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
India arrived in Australia as the favourites, but there was a lot of speculation about the attitude of the team. In the Adelaide Test, Kohli and Co showed what they are capable of and won the match comprehensively. They dominated the majority of the series except for the Perth Test, which Australia won by 146 runs.
The visitors were disappointed after that defeat, and it looked like they were again going to blow away a golden opportunity to win a first-ever Test series in Australia. But Kohli rallied his troops and came up with new game plans, ensuring that they wouldn't let this chance slip away at any cost.
The team management decided to make a few changes at the top of the batting order. Mayank Agarwal made his Test debut for India in the third match and opened the innings with Hanuma Vihari.
This move proved to be a masterstroke as Agarwal was quite impressive in both the innings. His combination of defense and attacking footwork frustrated the Australian bowlers to no end.
Vihari also looked solid and played out a crucial chunk of time at the top. Both of them steadied the batting ship and ensured that India got to a big total.
The Melbourne Test was the decider, and India looked to dominate the home side in the initial stages of the game. Agarwal, Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara made sure that India crossed the 400-run mark. But it was Jasprit Bumrah who was the star of the match with his lethal bowling, as he scalped nine wickets in the Test.
Pujara made a statement with his performances in the series. He finished as the top-scorer of the 4-match series, notching up 521 runs in just seven innings at an average of 74.42.
Rishabh Pant, meanwhile, has established himself as India's number one wicket-keeper in Tests and surprisingly scored more runs than Kohli in the series. He slammed 350 runs at an average of 58.33.
Prithvi Shaw couldn't feature in any of the matches due to his injury and Agarwal grabbed the opportunity with both hands. His debut knock was exceptional and he looked mature enough to take up the challenge.
Bumrah was the pick of the bowlers, but Mohammed Shami also provided much-needed crucial breakthroughs every time. Bumrah took 21 wickets in the series while Shami scalped 16. The duo was supported very well by Ishant Sharma who grabbed 11 wickets.
Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav played their part too in the success Down Under. The bowlers were brave and accurate all through the 2018 season, but in Australia they were not let down by poor batting.
Kohli was also brilliant with his bowling changes and field placements which provided wickets at the right time for India. Pundits all over the globe are applauding his captaincy in this series; Kohli's talismatic personality adds another dimension to his cricket.
Though the Australian team missed Steve Smith and David Warner, their batting let them down alarmingly. They put up terrible displays on the flat pitches where Indians were scoring easily.
The highest score by an Australian batsman in the series was 79 (by Marcus Harris). Even Jadeja scored 82 in his last innings, but the Australian top order batsmen could not cross the 80-run mark.
Kohli always wanted his team to be the best travelling side, and he has finally achieved that feat. After disappointing results in South Africa and England, India came to Australia with a plan. And boy, did they deliver!