From Sunil Gavaskar
Although it is never good to draw conclusions form one or two games, it does appear that India will have their task cut out to defend the tri-series crown that they won on the last tour of Australia. The T20 win had certainly buoyed the team and its supporters but in the face of sustained pressure by the Australians the Indian team folded just like they did in the Test series.
With weather always being a factor in Melbourne the need of the moment is to be able to grasp the opportunities and then keep going. The Australians did that with some magnificent batting from Matthew Wade and David Hussey and ‘Mr. Cricket’ Mike Hussey wasn’t too far behind. More than the big hits it was the athletic running between the wickets that threw the Indians off. The desperation that was seen in the second T20 game was conspicuous by its absence. It was almost as if once the IPL auction was over, the thoughts were there and not in Australia. There was a much more relaxed air about the Indians effort and that is what does not go down well when there is a defeat.
That apart, some players look in need of a break. Ashwin is looking jaded and is being predictable with the ball and that is why he is going for runs. Praveen Kumar had an off day and Jadeja will have more expensive days than economical ones with his type of bowling, which again is ideal to go after on pitches where there is no turn. Vinay Kumar was the one who was impressive bagging big names and also showing good spirit.
Tendulkar back in the India one-day colours was out stretching out outside the off-stump again. This happens when a batsman is short of runs and so he looks to score off deliveries that should be played with a bit more circumspection. Gambhir fell playing on the back half of his body and nicking behind. With two slips in position this shot was going to be hard anyway and the earlier he looks to rectify the habit the better for him. The young guns Kohli and Rohit Sharma played some good shots and ran brilliantly between the wickets but they also got good deliveries which consumed them. Not having played for a long time is definitely telling on Rohit Sharma and he is not finding the fluency which is his strength.
India need to get a good start and then need partnerships too. In the absence of the start and partnerships the opposition keeps coming back in the game and finding openings. There is hardly any pressure on the opponents and that is why India is struggling.