The resurgence of Australia and sinking of Pakistani ship

It is second last day of 2016. Australian team is in huddle at MCG, Nathan Lyon is singing the Australian victory song. Pakistani faces are forlorn. They just can't believe what they witnessed. They managed to lose the unlosable. Australia were only 22 ahead in first innings going into the fifth day. "Surely, we can't mess this up. This one, we got under control."

But, it wasn't.

Pakistan imploded to give Australia the series. This is their 11th consecutive loss against Australia in Australia. This is their 5th consecutive loss against any team. They are in complete disarray. A dream of becoming number one test side seems like a generation ago. They don't look anywhere close to it. At least, not today.

I saw Post-match presentation. Misbah is distraught. He is just playing with his beard while answering the questions. Such a calm person he is. The best captain, Pakistan has ever produced. He looks torn, defeated, tired. This series loss might mean that we have already seen the last of him. He managed to lift a homeless side to number one test rankings. Hell, yeah. However short it was, it was the most beautiful moment in their cricket history. Thank you, Misbah for that.

Today, He seemed completely broken. Is it time for him to go? I don't know. Only he can answer that. The magnitude of services he has provided to Pakistan surely can't be measured through these last five matches. He is the messiah of Pakistan cricket. He taught Pakistan to dream big. I believe, there is some unfinished business left of him and he can still carry this Pakistani team. But, this is strictly my personal view. (Though statisticians, logistics and most of the experts will disagree with me here).

Au contraire, Australia are flying at this moment. There couldn't have been a better ending to their year. They were sinking, having lost the test series against Sri Lanka and South Africa, they were on the verge of firing everyone. Today, they look as fresh and potent as ever. They look unstoppable. I would like to add here that "Even after so much speculations about Australian cricket in October-November period, they have won 10 of their last 17 matches". If that is bad, I will be damned.

Steve Smith had a terrific year as batter, captain. Second time in his career, he managed to push his test average to over 60. He has made run-scoring ridiculously easy. He absolutely loves batting at MCG. He averages 127 in tests there. He has not been dismissed for last 397 runs at MCG. He has already made 17 test centuries in only 49 tests. His captaincy has been spot on. I just love watching him captain this Australian side.

Overall, it was an amazing test match. I am looking forward to dead rubber at SCG in the new year. Pakistan would like to do a fresh beginning in 2017 and forget about this nightmare. They surely have it in them. They just need to believe.

2016 was one of those years, where everlasting cricket memories were made. Many teams had their swing of luck and cricketing momentum had its last say.

This is my last blog entry in 2016. See you all in 2017. For now, let's congratulate Australia, who deserve the central stage.

An Ashwin Nightmare

This is what England were dreading for. Getting spanked and outclassed completely and not being able to compete against India. Finally, the inevitable and inescapable arrived. Probably a little later than most thought, but it came nonetheless.

The signs were clear from The oval test itself where England failed to win the series against Pakistan after being 2-1 up. The problems stayed hidden as they kept on avoiding losing series one after another. First against Pakistan, then against Bangladesh. Though, a drawn series in India would have meant heaven for Cook and co., it was difficult beyond wildest imagination. I still feel, they should have won by 2-1 or 3-1 against Pakistan and 2-0 against Bangladesh. Failures to do so meant only one thing: Getting drubbed against India.

They did get drubbed against India.

The final punch came at Wankhede just within half an hour of play on 5th day. Ashwin completing the formalities and sparing England more pain of watching the limping batting performance. He finished with a match figures of 12 wickets and the best by an indian spinner at Wankhede.

The series didn't start as badly as many expected. They were able to put India under tremendous pressure at Rajkot and It was India who had to save the game there. But, as the series moved on, the fight eroded and slowly became non-existent.

Let us talk about England. There are just too many problems to be written here. Batting, bowling, catching, strange team selections, everything else. Hardly, anything seems right. Talk about batting. If not for lower middle order, they have made a habit of losing half their side on sub-100 scores over last couple of years only to see themselves being dragged to a respectable total by the lower order. Just because you were able to swim to an island after crashing your ship regularly in the middle of an ocean, will you consider yourself a good sailor? Just because you are able to avoid death after frequent car accidents, will you brag about your driving skills? A question, which England batters need to ask themselves.

Bowling wise, they are unsure of their combination. To play third spinner or not, they keep on experimenting and failing. Though to be fair, they have dearth of quality spinners and neither Batty nor Ansari seemed to take wickets or control the flow of runs in the chances they were given. They were completely outplayed in terms of skills by their counterparts Ashwin, Jadeja and Jayant. Neither Anderson, nor Woakes could make any inroads throughout this tour. Indian batters kept on piling huge scores and England just were not able to match that. Dropped catches didn't help the cause either. If you drop Kohli, like they did on several occasions in this series, you will have to pay a heavy price.

They did pay heavy price for that. They dropped Kohli at Vizag, Mohali and at Mumbai and got punished heavily.

India on the other hand are flying. They are deservedly number one test side in the world. Everything seems to be working for them. Kohli in the form of his life, Ashwin: no words to describe with. With useful and significant contributions from Vijay, Pujara, Jadeja, Jayant they look like the most dangerous side in the world right now. It will be very very difficult for any opposition to topple them in their conditions. They have just too many match-winners at this stage. Have a look at the following stats: They have gone 17 Consecutive Tests unbeaten, which equals their record when did the same between September 1985 and March 1987; they have also won 5 Successive series, which also equals their record. These numbers clearly indicate why India has become such a great test team. They may become all-time greatest test XI if they continue what they are doing. They have an inspirational captain in the form of Virat Kohli whose never-say-die attitude has rubbed off on the shoulders of others and the team really looks hungry for success.

Coming to the title of this blog: Ashwin. Whatever I will say in his praise won't even scratch the surface of what he has done for India in last 15 months. There is a famous quote: "You can argue against stats, but you won't win". Look at following: Ashwin after 43 test matches at this stage already has 7 ten-wicket hauls, only one behind Anil Kumble, 24 Five-wicket hauls for Ashwin, which is on third place in India's all-time list, after Kumble (35) and Harbhajan Singh (25). 12/167 Ashwin's match haul in this match, the best for India at the Wankhede. He has taken 15 Five-fors in Tests for Ashwin in the last two years, which the highest for any bowler in two successive calendar years. Muralitharan took 14 on two occasions - in 2000-01 and 2006-07. Talk about consistency. Here it is. He has become a real nightmare for opposition batsmen.

After this series, both teams will be exactly on the opposite side of the spectrum. While India are getting better and better, crushing opposition after opposition, England on the other hand are always finding a way to attract troubles. Nothing seems to be working for them. England's potential is huge, but the rewards remain unseen. The team is really struggling right now. But, rather than disappointment and frustration, it is time for reflection for them. They need to take a few hard decisions and there is no reason why they can't rise again.

Next series for India is against Australia at home. Beware Aussies, An Ashwin nightmare awaits for you too.