Ricky Ponting, with his 41st Test century, and Michael Clarke, with his 19th, ensured that India's tour, as enjoyable thus far as a cold shower on a winter morning, gained nothing by way of succour.
It was this pair that had taken the series away from India in the second Test at Sydney, the captain helping himself to a triple hundred, his predecessor, to a hundred, and on Tuesday, their combined efforts frustrated then flagellated India in the dead rubber.
Having lost the toss, India's bowlers might have expected a long, hard day on an Adelaide Oval pitch that was near perfect for batting; their worst nightmares were realised. This, after a profitable first session, in which they earned three wickets.
Virender Sehwag, in just the fourth over, showed something M.S. Dhoni hasn't in the first three Tests — the willingness to break with convention. After three mis-directed overs, the second by Umesh Yadav particularly bad, Sehwag called on R. Ashwin for some off-spin. If it was control the captain was after, he soon had it.
Zaheer strikes
Zaheer Khan broke through at the other end. The left-armer got one to nip into the left-handed David Warner, trapping the opener in front of the stumps.
Ashwin found rewards for fine bowling. Shaun Marsh, searching for form and confidence, also searched for turn — not something new balls are apt to do on first-day strips (unless the strips are designed to crumble and powder like over-crisp biscuits). The off-break skipped on with minimal spin, between hesitant bat and uncertain pad.
Ed Cowan (30) was undone by better bowling. Ashwin freighted a delivery with over-spin, flighting it so it looped above the batsman's eye-line before dropping like a shot pigeon. Cowan drove at the ball, but the dip and the extra bounce meant he couldn't keep it to ground. V.V.S. Laxman held a sharp catch at short cover.
Ponting (137 batting) and Clarke (140 batting) put a stop to India's success, taking control of the contest in the second session before dictating terms in the third.
Ominous sign
From the very beginning, Ponting looked the best he has this series, an ominous sign, for he has made plenty of runs already. His balance was perfect — he rarely fell over, despite India's seamers constantly testing him with in-slant; the two short mid-wickets might have been counter-productive, for they put him off the flick, where he does overbalance.
Barring a hook that Umesh hurried him into, Ponting hardly erred when making an attacking stroke. A straight drive off Umesh, his first four, to the Oval's longest boundary, caught the eye for its crispness, its low-to-the ground menace.
But it was a square drive off Ishant after lunch that took the breath away. A rising ball was struck on the top of its bounce — the astonishing thing was that Ponting's body didn't rise with the ball; his feet arranged themselves as if he were meeting a half-volley. His arms quickly shape-shifted to accommodate the bounce. The skill was stunning.
Ponting went past the 13,000-run mark before bringing up his fourth hundred in four Tests against India at the Adelaide Oval with a waited, weighted glide off Zaheer for four.
Not much later, Clarke joined him at the landmark. The Australian captain played glorious strokes off his own, particularly against Ashwin. One over drew two back-cuts, Clarke flitting back in his crease, as lightly as a thistle in a draught, to accelerate his hands through the ball, flicker-fast. Then he quick-stepped down the track to loft the off-spinner over extra cover. The quicks weren't allowed to settle either — a punched pull off Umesh, Clarke on tiptoe, was a stroke of undeniable dominance.
India lost its zest through the day like a pricked balloon loses air.
There were two worrying aspects to the bowling. Zaheer, Umesh, and Ishant didn't get the ball to swing enough; even when they had it reversing, it wasn't the late, sharp curve that causes trouble. The four frontline bowlers also couldn't manage world-class consistency.
Umesh hit Clarke's helmet after the batsman's century, showing what he can do, but his control was faulty. Zaheer raised his pace and brought out his many tricks, but Ponting and Clarke were equal to the task on a good batting pitch. Ashwin's bowling dropped away after the excellent start, but he had no turn to work with.
Ishant was India's best bowler. Had Sehwag not staggered the slips and had fortune finally smiled on him, Ishant would have had at least three wickets. Clarke was dropped on 133 by a diving Laxman at second slip; there were two previous edges into space.
Ridiculous appeal
India's desperation was illustrated by a ridiculous appeal for obstructing the field against Clarke. That the batsman chose to run after the ball defected off his bat — not a done thing, according to the spirit of the game — only added to India's anguish.
Of the touring party, only Wriddhiman Saha, impressive behind the stumps, might have contemplated a cheerful dinner. But then it takes a lot to get a wicketkeeper down.
Australia — 1st innings
E. Cowan c Laxman b Ashwin 30
(63b, 3x4)
D. Warner lbw b Zaheer 8
(23b, 1x4)
S. Marsh b Ashwin3
(12b)
R. Ponting (batting)137
(254b, 13x4)
M. Clarke (batting)140
(188b, 19x4, 1x6)
Extras (lb-11, w-6): 17
Total (for three wickets in 90 overs): 335
Fall of wickets: 1-26 (Warner), 2-31 (Marsh), 3-84 (Cowan).
Bowling O M R W
Zaheer 18 2 52 1
Umesh 12 0 87 0
Ashwin 26 4 81 2
Ishant 20 5 52 0
Sehwag 13 0 49 0
Kohli 1 0 3 0
