Young and feisty Virat Kohli has said India can chase any total on Day 5 of the third Test at Melbourne on Tuesday. Australia have a lead of 326 runs at stumps on Day 4 on Monday. The highest successful fourth innings chase at the MCG was achieved by England in 1928-29, when they compiled 332 for victory. (Day 4 Report | Scorecard | Highlights)
“We have the intent and the will. This time we would like to cross the line no matter whatever Australia set us,” Kohli had told Sourav Ganguly on Sunday. But it will be easier said than done. Mindful of India’s batting depth, Australia are unlikely to declare overnight and will ensure that they do not lose the game. (Also read: Virat Kohli can keep playing fierce cricket, says Warner)
The only time a team has won a Test scoring in excess of 300 at MCG was England in 1928. India have never been in this position at Melbourne and in recent times when a team has won chasing a fourth-innings total, was December 1990 when Australia beat England scoring 197 for two wickets. In 2013-14 Ashes series, Australia beat England scoring 231/2, batting last.
Most fourth-innings chases in the 250-300 run bracket have been between 1895 and 1951. But conditions have changed at MCG with drop-in pitches forcing teams to rework gameplans. Of course, if India can script history, it will keep them alive in the four-match series that Australia lead 2-0. The final Test starts in Sydney from January 6. (Kohli, Johnson Battle Sets up Day 5)
Being on a high is one thing and prudence and maturity is another. The Day 4 MCG wicket showed signs of wear and tear. The true nature of the bounce is rapidly vanishing and that sets up the Aussie pace battery for a perfect Day 5 kill.
Ganguly feels batting last will be tough. “The roughs will be tricky and the Aussies will exploit them. If it was Nathan Lyon at Brisbane, it could be the pacers at MCG,” the former captain speaking on TV said, adding that the Kohli-Johnson exchanges will add fuel to an expected fiery final day. (Kohli Can Dominate India’s Next Era: Gavaskar)
The man who could deny the Australians is Kohli. The Indian vice-captain is certainly on a high in this series. He has exploded both with bat and mouth. Kohli has proved that he is his own man and interestingly, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni has not tried to cool down his deputy.
Having struggled on tour in England and brought a middling batting average of under 39 Down Under, Kohli now has the record to match the swagger. Not even retired great Sachin Tendulkar managed three Test centuries on tour of Australia and the last Indian batsman to achieve the feat was Sunil Gavaskar in 1977.
Kohli’s average has soared above 44 and his imperious 262-run stand with fellow centurion Ajinkya Rahane (147) on Sunday was a record fourth-wicket partnership at the MCG. It was also the third-best by any Indian team in Australia and the eighth highest by any touring outfit in the country.
On Tuesday, India will have to show similar resolve and Kohli will be the man to watch. The Aussies reportedly called him a “spoilt brat” and Kohli hit back with equal intensity, triggering a needless battle of verbal volleys. But cricket history doesn’t record gamesmanship and the likes. And Kohli and Team India should know.
