INDIA CONQUER FORTRESS GABBA
Gill 91, Pant 89*, Pujara 56 hand Australia their first defeat in Brisbane in 32 years
AUSTRALIA VS INDIA
FOURTH TEST: DAY FIVE
Brisbane, Australia - Maverick turned mature and only three overs of the final Test of a superlative Test series were left when India produced a win for the ages at the Gabba on Tuesday. Punctuating the end was Rishabh Pant, newly minted superstar, who could barely hold it together at the presentation when he called this one of the best things to ever happen to him.
In cricketing terms, that thing was an expertly paced unbeaten 89 that helped shatter a 32-year streak of Australia not losing at this ground and sealed for India a 2-1 series win with three wickets in hand. Pant's dashing best came during the last hour of play, after a series of partnerships had taken India to within 63 runs of victory at which point they lost Mayank Agarwal. The burden of either pushing for a win or shutting the gates fell on Pant and debutant Washington Sundar.
To put it in terms that would be lost on their older teammates, the two left-handers woke up and chose violence. The final push began with Sundar taking on Pat Cummins (4-55), who had become the singular threat to India's ambitions as the rest of the bowling tired out. Sundar got his first boundary against Cummins, a neat check-punch past mid-off, that signalled a change in tempo for India. Cummins' plan to counter that was to tuck Sundar up at his chest, only to be hooked for six. When the next ball flew over the cordon off the outside edge, all bets were off.
What that meant was Pant, having resisted going across the line for more than an hour following a stumping survival, was ready to open up the leg side against Nathan Lyon. It would come apart in the 94th over as Pant walked across his stumps to ramp him fine. A boisterous sweep to the deep midwicket fence came next ball, a crack in the pitch turned Lyon's off-break into a gigantic leg-break that was too much for Tim Paine, and that 15-run over took India within 24 runs of victory with six overs left.
Sundar reverse-swept Lyon onto his own stumps, and hope sprung when first-innings batting hero Shardul Thakur miscued a slog to midwicket.
But chaos is how Pant makes a living. In the last over of the innings, he fell on his backside for a pulled boundary, survived a slice to sweeper cover as he looked to finish with a six, and managed to cross over when Thakur's slog was still in the air.
Josh Hazlewood had two balls at him, and an injured Navdeep Saini at the other end. He fired a full one down the leg side that Pant looked to sweep, onehanded, and missed. Pant was indignant at not being awarded a wide for it but was composed enough next ball to reach out and pat a tired attempted yorker past the bowler for the win.
At the start, with no demons and no lateral movement despite an overcast morning, Shubman Gill pushed into his forward stride often and with assurance as he single-handedly kept the score moving after Rohit Sharma had been nicked off early.
For Cheteshwar Pujara at the other end, the brief seemed to be to simply do what he does and be strong in defence. It was a day full of stingers for Pujara, who was hit on the helmet thrice during the course of the day. That was apart from a blow to the thumb that had him floored for over five minutes, and several bruises in the mid-riff and upper body as he endured to eight off 94 at one point.
In contrast, Gill welcomed the short bowling, particularly from Mitchell Starc, whom he banished from the attack for the best part of 25 overs with a hooked six, a slash over gully and a pull through midwicket off consecutive deliveries in the 46th over. On the last ball of that over, which went for 20, even Pujara piled on the fast bowler with a boundary.
That period of counter-punching ended with Gill losing his shape, however, and edging Lyon to slip as he tried to drive big through the off side. There were still 52 overs left and just under 200 runs to get for India when he fell. Captain Ajinkya Rahane came out slashing and scything as India persisted with their twopronged strategy of batting for time on one end and runs on the other. That 22-ball 24 from Rahane ended when he edged Cummins behind.
Pant joined Pujara and put on 61 before the latter was trapped by Cummins as soon as the second new ball was taken. Pant rarely took the minimal baits Australia had set for him and ensured a historic win in the end.