Bengaluru: India’s captain Rohit Sharma and others on the ground after bad light stopped play on the fourth day of the first test cricket match between India and New Zealand, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, in Bengaluru, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (PTI Photo/Shailendra Bhojak)
Rohit Sharma let himself a deep breath. His eyes wandered to the flickering bulbs on the ceiling of the press conference room, before he processed the question and framed the answer. The question was regarding India’s habit of losing the first Test and then bouncing back to wrap it up. He put on a matter-of-fact smile and replied: “See, every time we play the game, every time we play the Test series, first Test, you don’t want to lose a game. We don’t go with that mindset of just playing casual cricket.” By the end of the answer he was visibly irritated, not at the question but India’s curiously expanding ledger of first-Test defeats.
Twice in the last two series against England in three years, they lost the opening bout. So did they against Australia in 2017, nearly contrived to lose the opener against Bangladesh, New Zealand managed to draw in Kanpur last time, and now they stare at the same fate of having to come back against New Zealand. As annoying a sequence as it could be for Rohit and Co, especially with a spot in the World Test Championship final on the line, he could draw considerable courage from his side’s knowhow in overturning deficits. “Honestly I am not going to look too much into this Test match. Because that three hours is not going to dictate what this team is,” he said.
The mood was not one of mourning or recriminations, but of reconciling with the situation. He struck half a warning too: “We have made small mistakes in this game and we are suffering the consequences of those mistakes. But that doesn’t mean that everything is over.”
If New Zealand are not already aware of India’s bouncebackability, the Bengaluru Test provided an ample preamble of things to come. With the ball in the first innings on a flat surface, India exuded hostility to have them reeling at 223 for seven before a plucky stand, riding an incongruous amount of luck rescued them. In the second innings with the bat, India batted with exceptional freedom and purpose before the fleeting passage when they lost wickets in a heap, when every edge fell into the catcher’s palms and every stroke of indiscretion was punished. Not that they were extremely unfortunate, but India could pick passages in the game when nothing went their way. The toss for instance. Even on the final day, they shed every ounce of their energy, skill and wisdom to fashion a miracle that never arrived.
If New Zealand are not already aware of India’s bouncebackability, the Bengaluru Test provided an ample preamble of things to come. (BCCI)
So rather than blinking, slipping into a gorge of self-doubts, India would shake off the defeat as an anomaly as the other first-Test caving-ins had been and channel a sense of siege mentality. Comebacks have defined this generation of Indian cricketers. The 2020-21 Australia series would be the touchstone, but there had been other less celebrated comeback tales too.
Take for instance the Visakhapatnam Test against England, where they intensified their intensity, displayed the sort of ruthlessness only pain could provoke after the Hyderabad glitch. It caught England off-guard. The English departed the coastal town bruised and beset with self doubts. The long tour just grew on them and they were blown away. Later, Ben Stokes marvelled at India’s capacity to rally back as though nothing had happened, as though the first Test was like feeding the calf before it was slaughtered. “You simply cannot let your foot off. They keep coming back at you,” Stokes said.
Little wonder that the hosts have been unbeaten in the last 18 series, despite the occasional stumble. Only twice have they lost a series at home this century.
Well begun, thus, is far from being half done. For, India is not a team that takes defeats at home kindly—only five in the last 12 years—and if any could, this defeat would further their resolve. Even though he was relaxed at the presentation and press conference, his mind could have been boiling. Moments later, they returned to the stage of pain and went through catching drills.
The conditions New Zealand could face could be stark too. Pune and Mumbai wouldn’t be as cool or rainy as Bengaluru. The red soil pitches of central India could flare into an ordeal for batting against the spinners. If India re-adopts their turner-fetish, their batsmen could be put through the wringer. The bowlers can’t expect the same friendly conditions they experienced in Bengaluru either. India’s batsmen would come nastier at them.
Besides, they have enough brilliant individuals, those that have passed through more difficult examinations, to not be daunted by setbacks. As Rohit said, to crucify an impenetrable team for one defeat is a knee-jerk reaction. His New Zealand opposite number Tom Latham too realises the perils of celebrating too early or just being satisfied with the win. “It’s important that you do celebrate something pretty special that’s happened, but once tomorrow comes around, our focus will certainly shift to Pune,” he said in a stern tone. In that sense, the real test would only begin for New Zealand in Pune. The test of their steel and ambition to win their first ever series in India.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 20-10-2024 at 19:15 IST
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