All the kerfuffle following South Africa’s thrashing of India by 214 runs in the fifth and final One-Day International at the Wankhede Stadium and the 3-2 loss in the 2015 series is very much a thing of the past now.
Since that massive defeat, India has had a good run of 16 consecutive undefeated series across all formats at home over a period of 25 months.
India has won 15 series (six Test, five ODI and four Twenty20 series) and drawn one. The Twenty20 series against Australia two months ago ended in a draw with the third match at Hyderabad being abandoned without the toss taking place because of rain and unfit playing conditions.
Two years ago India team coach Ravi Shastri was peeved at the Wankhede pitch in-charge, Sudhir Naik, for not making a “slow turner”; the featherbed allowed South Africa to plunder 438 runs for the loss of four wickets.
It was entertainment of the highest class with Quinton de Kock cutting loose to make 109, Faf du Plessis 133 and A.B. de Villiers 119 and South Africa scoring at a rate of 8.76 an over. In reply, India was shot out for 224 in 35.5 overs.
The fact that the Future Tours Programme (FTP) scheduled a long list of home series enabled India to show its mettle and prove to the cricketing world that it’s hard to beat at home.
“The good run started with a 3-0 win against the Hashim Amla-led South Africa, the ICC deemed the pitch prepared for the third Test in Nagpur as “poor”.
The Test ended in three days, with off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin taking five for 32 and seven for 66.
Ashwin has remained India’s lynchpin taking 125 wickets at 22.22 in 20 Tests with left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja a close second at 104 at 20.47 in 20 Tests. India dismissed 361 batsmen at 25.21 in this phase that started with the first Test against South Africa in New Delhi.
Ashwin and Jadeja are followed by Umesh Yadav 40, Mohammad Shami 27, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma 18 each, Amit Mishra 12, Jayant Yadav 11, Kuldip Yadav four and Varun Aaron two.
India captain Virat Kohli has led the batting honours list in this 20-Test period, scoring 2,062 runs at a remarkable average of 71.10 with seven centuries and four half-centuries.
He is followed by Cheteshwar Pujara (20 Tests, 1,807 runs at 56.47, five centuries and 10 half-centuries), Murali Vijay (18 Tests, 1,273 runs at 42.43, five centuries and four half-centuries), Ajinkya Rahane (18 Tests, 1,001 runs at 35.75, three centuries and as many half-centuries), K.L. Rahul (11 Tests, 794 runs at 46.71, one century and seven half-centuries).
While India played 20 Tests and lost only one Test, falling to left-arm spinner Steve O’Keefe who took 12 wickets and took Australia to a 333-run victory in Pune in February 2017, the Indian team lost six ODIs; to New Zealand (3), England (1), Australia (1) and Sri Lanka (1) and four Twenty20 matches; to Sri Lanka (1), England (1) Australia (1) and New Zealand (1).
India’s top batsman in the ODI format, starting with the series against New Zealand in October 2016, has been Kohli, who has an aggregate of 986 runs at 70.34 (16 matches, 4x100, 4x50).
He is followed by Rohit Sharma (16, 810 at 54.00, 3x100, 3x50), M.S. Dhoni (19, 597 at 39.80, 1x100, 3x50), Kedar Jadhav (16, 490 at 44.55, 1x100, 2x50), Hardik Pandya (18, 454 at 37.83, 3x50) and Rahane (11, 388 at 35.27, 5x50).
The ODI wicket-takers have been Jasprit Bumrah (26 at 29.88), Pandya (21 at 34.62), Yuzvendra Chahal (16 at 25.75), Amit Mishra (15 at 14.33), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (14 at 39.64), Umesh Yadav 13 at 28.46) and Kuldeep Yadav (11 at 28.73).
Kohli has been the No. 1 batsman in Twenty20s (451 runs from 13 matches), followed by Rohit Sharma (418, 16), Dhoni (349, 19), K.L. Rahul (255, six) and Shikhar Dhawan (253, 12).
Chahal leads the bowling list (20 from 10 matches), followed by Bumrah (18, 18), Pandya (13, 19), Ashish Nehra (13, 12) and Ashwin (13 from eight).
