The downfall of the impregnable Aussies

THEY HAVE dominated international cricket in the last decade. They have played the game in their own style. Their opponents just couldn’t stop their victory cycle. Before the players could feel their presence on the field, Australians would have scored 50 with a run-rate of six per over. Whether it was Mark Taylor, Steve Waugh or Ricky Ponting, this side has been blessed with the best of leadership strategies.

The Aussies had an opener who could make any bowling attack look impotent. They had a legendary leg spinner who had his own style of bowling. They had a champion pace bowler who got a wicket every now and then. They had a wicketkeeper whose shots didn’t follow the ‘law of gravity’. With the exit of all these legendary players, Australia looked like a side, which could have never won Four World Cups.

’Win at any cost’ had been their motto. Whenever their strategies failed, they had a unique weapon -- sledging. They made sledging look like their ‘status symbol’. They fought till the last man, playing aggressive cricket. Their bowlers were desperate for wickets and their batsmen for runs. This aggressiveness led to an unceremonious tragedy for Andrew Symonds, who was one of the pillars of the team but he found fishing more entertaining than cricket. Bhajji and Sreesanth this time had the license to mock at him as the world did. Now as they miss the likes of Mathew Hayden, Glen McGrath, Adam Gilchrist and Shane Warne the Australian squad that looked so invincible has lost its spark. Their recent series against South Africa is an example.

But there was one team that always believed that Australians aren’t invincible. The men in blue have given tough fight to the Kangaroos on the field. They set an example for the other teams that Australians were not unbeatable. It was all about reverting back with the kind of weapons Australians play with.

The Indians currently have the best opening pair of the world led by a captain who has been a boon to the Indian cricket. The ‘Midas touch’ captain, MS Dhoni, has led like a true warrior. His men have dominated the Kangaroos by being ruthless whenever they got an opportunity. The Indian team has taken up the responsibility and they are the new tigers of the cricketing world.