It’s time to build a report card of Indian players and rate their performances in the series.
The Border Gavaskar Trophy is done and dusted, and Australia have emerged as a winner after intense action. They regained the trophy after ten years and were clearly the better side.
For India, this series was about a number of missed opportunities, for they were in control at times but let it slip away. There were several flashes of individual brilliance, but they couldn’t perform as a unit at any stage.
It’s time to build a report card of Indian players and rate their performances in the series.
Rohit Sharma was the biggest disappointment of the series, failing poorly as a batter and captain. The runs didn’t come at any stage, and his on-field calls as a leader were shocking at times. It was easily one of the worst shows ever by a player in a Test series.
Inns – 5, runs – 31, avg – 6.20, 100s – 0, 50s – 0
Yashasvi Jaiswal was among India’s biggest positives on an otherwise disappointing tour. He was the leading run-scorer for the team and second-most overall, amassing 391 runs at an average of 43.44, including two fifties and a century. Jaiswal played several quality knocks, showed terrific application on his maiden Australia tour and must have learned a lot.
Inns – 10, runs – 391, avg – 43.44, 100s – 1, 50s – 2
It was another tour of missed opportunities for KL Rahul, who looked good in patches but couldn’t really make it big. There were a couple of decent knocks, but the story remained the same overall. He should have performed better and stepped up when the team required more consistent runs off his willow.
Inns – 10, runs – 276, avg – 30.66, 100s – 0, 50s – 2
Shubman Gill should have been dominating bowling attacks now but is still struggling to get going in the longest format. He could only compile 93 runs at an average of 18.60 in five outings. He also lost his place in the fourth Test before returning for the final game, but India expected much more from one of their premium batters.
Inns – 5, runs – 93, avg – 18.60, 100s – 0, 50s – 0
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Virat Kohli started the tour on a positive note but couldn’t build on it as the series progressed. He could only score 190 runs in nine innings at an average of 23.75 and kept getting out in a similar fashion. He was another batter who should have stepped up more often than he did in the series.
Inns – 9, runs – 190, avg – 23.75, 100s – 1, 50s – 0
Australia came with clear plans against Rishabh Pant and nailed them perfectly to restrict him. Pant did well in the final game but would be disappointed with his performance overall. Things could have been better had he scored more on this tour.
Inns – 9, runs – 255, avg – 28.33, 100s – 0, 50s – 1
Washington Sundar did well in patches as a batter, but his real value couldn’t be extracted. Still, he did a decent job as a batter, including a fifty. He was mostly a misfit in the side.
With The Bat: Inns – 6, runs – 114, avg – 22.80, 100s – 0, 50s – 1
With The Ball: Inns – 5, wickets – 3, avg – 38.66, 5w – 0, 10w – 0
Another player who couldn’t be utilised much, Ravindra Jadeja was mostly used as a batter. He scored 135 runs at an average of 27 and snared four wickets with the ball. He would have liked to contribute more but couldn’t really do it.
With The Bat: Inns – 5, runs – 135, avg – 27, 100s – 0, 50s – 1
With The Ball: Inns – 4, wickets – 4, avg – 54.50, 5w – 0, 10w – 0
Another positive for India on this tour, Nitish Kumar Reddy contributed significantly with both bat and ball. He scored 298 runs at an average of 37.25 and took 5 wickets with the ball. He bailed India out of troubled situations numerous times and showed encouraging signs with the willow.
With The Bat: Inns – 9, runs – 298, avg – 37.25, 100s – 1, 50s – 0
With The Ball: Inns – 5, wickets – 5, avg – 38, 5w – 0, 10w – 0
Given the form he was in before the series, Mohammed Siraj stepped up really well for India, even though he was wayward at times. He snared 20 wickets at 31.15 runs apiece. He gave his all throughout the series, and even though he struggled with fitness, he kept streaming in and deserves credit for his efforts.
Inns – 10, wickets – 20, avg – 31.15, 5w – 0, 10w – 0
Is there anything left to say about the great man? Jasprit Bumrah deserves full marks for everything he did throughout the series. He was the leading wicket-taker of the series and was better than everyone else, and it was a shame other Indian players couldn’t support him well.
Inns – 9, wickets – 32, avg – 13.06, 5w – 3, 10w – 0
Note: Players who played in at least three matches are featured on this list.
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