Complacency Did India In At Sydney

So everybody is putting the blame on Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson for India’s unexpected defeat at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

The wizards of Oz stole the Test, which was meandering into a draw, in the last eight minutes, thanks to ‘Punter’ Ponting’s ploy.

Test cricket has never witnessed such anxious moments in the near future. For a brief period, the match attained the hue of a one-day international.

Australians, who played attacking cricket, had the last laugh, while Indians left the SCG blaming the umpires.

True, the Australian side got favourable umpiring decisions at crucial junctures. It was established that Messrs Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson erred in judging Ganguly and Dravid out. The unfair verdicts gave the Australians an unfair advantage over the fighting Indians.

But is it good to gloss over the incompetence of the Indian batsmen by putting the whole blame on the umpires?

What we have seen at the SCG is a complete failure of the Indian team. The famed Indian batting lin-up crumbled like nine pins. So there is no point in arguing that umpires failed us. It is meaningless to say ‘men in white coat’ colluded with the Australians.

Australia had declared their second innings on 401 for seven, leaving India a target of 333 runs. In other words, Anil Kumble and co. had to bat for only 72 overs.

The chinks in India’s batting-line up were exposed once again. Jaffer fell to Lee for naught. Tendulkar, Laxman and Yuvraj all returned to pavilion in quick succession. Dravid and Ganguly, who gave a glimmer of hope, fell to debatable decisions.

Though Dhoni and Kumble tried to steady the sinking Indian ship, Aussie bowlers outsmarted them. Harbhajan, R P Singh and Ishant Sharma threw away their wickets without any semblance of resistance.

Now it is time to come to terms with the failure and prepare for the next two tests. Don't waste the precious time by blaming umpires.

Players should, at first, learn from their mistakes. The management should not tolerate the complacency that had crept into the Indian side.

If the players have the right spirit, no umpire in the world can beat us.