November 1988, the last time Australia lost a test match at the Gabba. Let that sink in!!
For India to pull of such a famous win at the Gabba with such an injury ravaged team is truly an amazing feat, especially if you take into account that Australia were at full strength.
Australia, boasting 3 bowlers in the world top 10 (Cummins, Hazelwood and Starc) couldn't knock over a batting line up missing the likes of Kohli, Rahul and Vihari.
Infact, the list of Indian players that have been injured during the series is staggering: Barring Kohli who returned to India for the birth of his first child, the list is: Rahul, Vihari, Shami, Yadav, Bumrah, Ashwin, Jadeja and Agarwal.
So for India to pull of a series win is truly monumental. It was impressive to see how Ajinkya Rahane stepped up taking over the reigns from Kohli to lead India to this famous win. What will be even more pleasing from an Indian point of you view is how the youngsters performed during this series:
Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant were superb with the bat and Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur were equally brilliant with the ball and deserve all the accolades they get.
Australia on the other hand have got a bit of soul searching to do. Their batting lacked depth and there was too much pressure on Labuschagne and Smith to perform in each game (the pair scored the lion's share of Australia's runs). Even their much vaunted bowling attack battled at times in their own conditions. Throw in a couple of chirps from captain Tim Payne, some questionable "gardening" by Steve Smith and a first loss at the Gabba in over 30 years, it will be a series the Aussies will want to forget rather quickly.
On the flip side, Cameron Green and Will Pucovski have showed that barring injuries they are destined to have long careers in the baggy green.
What this series did show, is that test cricket is alive and well!!
Congratulations and well done to India for a fantastic and well deserved series win!!
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