Akash Bumra combine to save at Gabba ! - is that time to retire !?!?

 

At Gabba,  Indian fans roared as though the match had been won -   in the dressing room, Virat Kohli shared high-fives and captain Rohit Sharma had a huge smile on his face. "It's always nice to see your bowlers going out there scoring some runs," said KL Rahul. Trailing by 193 runs is little cause for celebration,  yet!!! – for a team that has just lost a Test badly and in dire straits in this – avoiding follow-on was sort of winning a game within the game !  Mind it has been a rain marred game, yet India could have easily lost the plot – there could be more rains tomorrow ! but assuming a full days play, if  Indian innings gets folded quickly and if Aussie declare with say 250 as target and two sessions of play – will India survive, or go for the win ! 

 

Today, when Ravindra Jadeja hooked Pat Cummins to deep square-leg,  he was brilliantly caught by Mitchell Marsh, India  needed 33 to avoid the follow-on as Akash Deep (Test average 6.42) walked out to join Jasprit Bumrah (Test average of 6.97).

The first price of popularity is that one is hounded quite often of ‘retirement’……… the great genius writer Sujatha in his heydays was confronted in a student’s forum with the Q  : Sir, when will you stop writing ? Pat came the reply – ‘in the night ~ when I feel too sleepy’………… ~ one need not be guided by the Q and can have one’s own way !! The Genius Little Master  SAchin Tendulkar was haunted with the Q of his retirement .. .. and so many critics were speaking of the retirement of the mercurial Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

 

Back on Jan 6, 1984, speculation was rife that Marsh would quit, and in the post-match celebrations he effectively did so by announcing that he was not available for the tour of the Caribbean two months later. "Why now, Rod?" Marsh was asked. "'Because all my mates have gone," was his honest reply.

 

It was the final day at Sydney Test – Australia beat Pakistan too convincingly – a 10 wicket win at that !!   Australia bade farewell to legends Dennis Lillee, Greg Chappell and Rod Marsh. For sure the Cricketing world thought it was too deep a void to be filled  - Aussies did lose some, but built their team stronger.   

In 1984, it was rather more haphazard, and the final Test of the summer was into its second day when Greg Chappell made his announcement, a day during which he equalled Colin Cowdrey's record of 120 catches by a fielder. His interest in the game had, The Times reported, "been on the wane since 1981", and he had hinted throughout the summer that he was ready to quit. The timing surprised the media, as Chappell had gone into the match with 6928 runs, 68 shy of Don Bradman's then-record aggregate by an Australian. "If you're playing for records then you shouldn't be playing," he told them. "Catches and runs are not that important." 

The timing came as something of a surprise to Dennis Lillee. He had told Chappell on the eve of the match that it was to be his last Test, and said that he would tell the media at the end. "He promptly went out and, without telling me, announced he was going to retire," Lillee recalled. "That was fine by me because, as a former captain, he deserved the first announcement." Lillee too  was on the brink of a landmark. With 347 Test wickets, he was within touching distance of becoming the first man to pass 350. Like Chappell, had he not lost two years to World Series Cricket, his record would have been even more impressive. 

With Chappell's announcement made, Lillee followed suit 24 hours later, after taking 4 for 65 to take his total of wickets to 351. He did so with a dig at the media who had repeatedly written him off. "It was those people who helped me keep going," he said. "I knew I was good enough." Even then, Chappell again dominated the headlines. Given a standing ovation all the way to the middle, he reached the close on 79 not out, passing Bradman's record shortly before the close courtesy of three overthrows. Bradman had been a selector when Chappell made his debut in 1970-71, and he was quick to send a telegram of congraulations. The following day, Chappell went on to make 182, becoming only the third Australian to score a century in his first and last Tests. And then, when Pakistan batted for a second time, he took his 121st catch to overtake Cowdrey. Both he and Lillee had been given a guard of honour by team-mates as they took to the field. 

Not to be outdone, Lillee grabbed 4 for 88, including 4 for 22 in his last 58 balls, fittingly one of them to a catch by Rod Marsh, one of five victims in the innings for the wicketkeeper. Marsh's catch was his 95th off his colleague. He ended with 355 dismissals, the same number as Lillee had wickets. Then Rodney Marsh too announced his retirement. 

Years later, on the same day at the same venue, on 6.1.2006, -  Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne and Justin Langer had the opportunity to end their Test careers on the perfect note, and did so in emphatic fashion.  Justin Langer retiring  after the Sydney Test became  the fourth senior Australia player to quit in less than a month. Langer joined Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath at the SCG farewell against England, which came  three matches after Damien Martyn's surprise exit.   Langer and Hayden   combined forces at the top of the order in 63 Tests for an average of 51.62 runs an innings. Throughout the five-year friendship they split 5575 runs, which was second only to Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes. The pair came together in the final Test of the 2001 Ashes after Michael Slater was dropped for the last time.  

 

Concluding with Akash Deep and Jasprit Bumrah heroics, at  Lord's in 1990, Kapil Dev  was the hero. India at 430/9 needed 24 runs to avoid the follow on when Narendra Hirwani walked in to bat. After defending two deliveries, mercurial Kapil Dev belted Eddie Hemmings for 4 consecutive sixers. With follow-on avoided,  Narendra   Hirwani was out, the next ball. Kapil  finished with 77 off 75 balls with 8 fours and 4 sixes.

 

They have been pillars and have given many a grand performances but of-late, they have been bogged down too heavily, perhaps for the Boxing day test at Melbourne, there should new faces ! – at Brisbane, the fab three, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and RAvichandran Ashwin should retire, and India should boldly drop non-performers – Shubman Gill & Mohammad Siraj too !!  Harsh it may sound, but India cannot keep losing in the same manner without fight!

 

Regards – S Sampathkumar
17.12.2024