Cricket

We’re giving blokes thumbs up when they’re beating us outside the off stump: Allan Border

After Australia were thrashed by India by a huge margin of an innings and 132 runs in the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar series at VCA Stadium in Nagpur, legendary Allan Border slammed the visitors, saying the batters are giving thumbs up to the bowlers on being beaten outside the off-stump.

During the match, there were a few moments when talismanic batter Steve Smith was seen giving a thumbs up to Ravindra Jadeja after he was beaten on the outside edge in the first innings, which drew Border’s ire.

“Play with a harder edge. I mean, we’re giving blokes the thumbs up when they’re beating us outside the off stump. What the hell is going on? That is just ridiculous. Don’t go stupid, but Australia play hard nose cricket. We’re even giving someone thumbs up … bloody hell,” Border was quoted as saying by Fox Cricket.

In the second innings, where Australia were 91 all out on Saturday, Smith had the highest score with his 25 not out. Apart from him, no other batter made more than 20 as Australia lost all 10 wickets in a session, with ace off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin taking his 31st five-fer, to lose the Nagpur Test.

Border remarked Australia now need to do some soul-searching and figure out their way of playing for the rest of the series.

“There’s so many scars there now, it’s going to be a tough few days. You can talk the talk, but ultimately the boys with the bat in hand and ball in hand have got to do the job,” he said.

“It’s going to be hard to find a way, but they’ve just got to do it. A big, soul-searching dressing room drink-a-thon tonight, just to try to thrash something out. That’s as bad as we can play, there’s only one way to go from here,” he added.

The 67-year old was also left baffled at the decision to omit left-handed batter Travis Head for the Nagpur Test, mentioning it was the moment that proved Australia’s Test tour of India was going to be full of ‘chaos.’

“I think that Travis Head thing I just could not work out what they were thinking. Surely you had clarity going into the first Test match about what you wanted to do, what you expected. Looking under covers at suspect pitch marks and how they’re looking at the pitch,” he said.

“We always knew it was going to be a turner, I don’t know why the mystery. That was an odd one for me, that one has come right out of left field. I think Travis Head was the perfect example that it was chaos before they even got started,” he added.

Border further pointed out that Australia didn’t make much efforts on day two to get India out cheaply, adding that Marnus Labuschagne’s part-time leg-spin wasn’t used much.

Australia had India reduced to 168/5, but Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel made 70 and 84 respectively while Mohammed Shami had a cameo of 37 to take India’s first-innings score to 400, giving them a substantial 233-run lead, which proved to be enough for an innings win.

“There were certain periods (on day two) he could’ve bowled more overs, for sure. You know what he’s like. He has that habit of he can bowl some full balls which happen with part-timers, but he can also take some wickets. He was under-utilised for sure throughout that innings,” Border said.

Apart from debutant offie Todd Murphy taking 7/124, only Nathan Lyon and captain Pat Cummins were among the wicket-takers for Australia, which didn’t leave Border pleased.

“It’s a worrying thing for me that the debutant got 7-fa and there was little to show from the rest of the bowling. Going forward, what’s the make-up of the side look like? Because it looks like Murphy is going to play, and you’re not going to drop Nathan Lyon at this stage. So, where do we go?,” he concluded.