India vs Australia 2nd Test 2008: Brett Lee Says, ‘We Need Better Plan against Indian Tale End’
Australian pacer Brett Lee thinks that Australia was more aggressive than India in the first test which ended up in a draw. Indication that India did not take up the challenge of chasing 299 runs in 83 overs on the final day, Lee thinks that Australia only played for victory, while India was happy to have a draw. He dismissed any talk of India’s mental win in Bangalore and said that Australia could take a lot of positive things from the way they played in the first test.
Australia was in an advantageous position on the third day when India was struggling at 232 for 7, chasing Australia’s first innings total of 430. However, a crucial 80-run partnership between Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan for the 8th wicket helped India to reach 360. Brett Lee feels that Australian bowlers were not patient enough against the tail enders of Indian team. He said that Australia would have to make better plans for the second test starting from 17 October 2008 at Mohali.
Cricinfo reported:
Lee said before practice on Wednesday that the way India batted on the final day, chasing 299 in 83 overs, was revealing of their outlook and insisted Australia were the only ones trying for victory. “It appeared they didn’t want to go after the total and were happy to have a draw,” Lee said. “It shows we’re playing in the right style of cricket that the Aussies want to play.
“As a whole bowling group we probably weren’t patient enough [against the tail],” he said. “The wicket wasn’t capable of getting the ball above shoulder height, so the whole scare tactic, the intimidation, wasn’t playing a cause because the wicket was so dead.
“We have to make sure we have better plans. Sometimes the tail wags, it wagged when we were batting as well.”
Well, I do not totally agree with Brett Lee. He claimed that Indian did not chase the winning target of 299 runs even after getting 83 overs to bat. Yes, India had good chance, but having said that, the wicket was cracked up and was not easy to bat on the final day. Even Australian batsmen could not bat easily on the fourth day as they were scoring very slowly in the second innings. Australia batted only 5 overs on the final day. Having seen enough materials on the wicket for the bowlers, Ricky Ponting declared innings on the final day and Indian batsmen finally passed the test successfully.
I think, Australian bowlers will be better prepared for the Indian tale enders and will make have good plans to stop the likes of Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan in the second test.
