Three words that used to go together were ‘Australia’, ‘cricket’, and ‘dominant’. People would usually stop at the second word, but the last decade showed that the bigger they are, the harder the fall. A similar recurrence has happened for the Aussie cricket squad who have been hit hard with scandals, source link. Nonetheless, their climb back to the top has been unrelenting and unforgiving.
If you’re Australian and chose to read a cricket column a week after the Test summer has passed, there’s a chance you reached for your phone on Wednesday morning and checked the scores. You rubbed your eyes, making sure you aren’t seeing things wrong. None down. None for 258. While playing away from home. In India. There’s the usual highlight reel but it only features plays from Australia, none of them India’s. It makes you reminisce of the old days when dominance, cricket, and Australia all meant the same.
It’s been 15 years since Australia could perform this good consistently, and for the first time since then, have been doing a really good job. It’s still too early to tell, but still, none down – now that’s something you literally don’t see every day. This dominant performance served as a window of what could be in store for them, and it’s curious to see how they will approach their upcoming matches. It’s also worth pointing out that ever since beating India in an ODI series a year ago, things have started to look up for the Aussies. It was when players like Ashton Turner and Peter Handscomb played in a manner that showed their team was ‘learning the way their prey moves’ as opposed to the usual lunging forward and going for the neck.
Before the finesse finally caught up with Australia, ‘Space Jam’ cricket was the only way to play in Australia. One should be like a machine batting, hitting sixes all-day long. In simpler terms, outright hostility was the necessary and only condition that would scream ‘Australian cricket dominance’. When they would attempt that style of play and it didn’t work, players like Shaun Tait and Brett Lee were dumbfounded. They may have bowled really well in the nets, but for some unknown, out-of-reach reason, it didn’t translate to the game itself.
Now, however, the Aussies possess the stat-stuffed, nerdy approach of Labuschagne and Steve Smith whose personalities were far from the ‘alpha character’ of the 2000s. This is a team that saw Peter Siddle as a more effective player in the UK than Mitchell Starc, despite being shorter, slower, older, and not as powerful. They understand that Paine adds great value without needing to be Adam Gilchrist. While the improved performance on the pitch is undeniably positive (credits to Justin Langer and Andrew McDonald), it will still be interesting to see how the team grows mentally, facing challenges together and individually, both on and off the pitch.
There were moments during the Test series where the ‘old Australia’ was still there – power-hitting and nothing else. However, they’ve managed without it, so why bring it back. The saying that teaching an old dog new tricks may apply but through continuous and rigorous exercise, the Aussie cricket team is learning that sometimes, power isn’t the solution – finesse is.
