india opens clash with aus

Australia are back to conquer the 'final frontier'. For a series that is awaited with bated anticipation across both nations, there is a sense of lull before the storm this time around. This is no longer a battle between the No. 1 team in the world and the only team that looked to have the capability of usurping them as had been the case previously. In addition, both teams will be without the stars whose presence in earlier clashes had made the contests very different to a normal Test series between two teams. 

India: 

The Indian team can be said to be a team in transition. Having lost two consecutive away series in England and Australia by 0-4 margins, they then came back to eat more humble pie with a 1-2 loss at home to England, their first Test series loss against England in 28 years and their first ever series loss at home since Australia conquered them in 2004. While the losses abroad reinforced the need for fresh blood in the side and hastened the exits of Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, the loss against England at home came as a bolt from the blue. 

While the batting, barring Cheteshwar Pujara, came unstuck against a high quality English attack, the biggest disappointment was the failure of the Indian spinners to perform on tracks which were made for them. They were completely out-bowled by the spin duo of Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar leaving the selectors with more than just a minor headache. 

Ravichandran Ashwin has been the biggest let-down in recent times and the forthcoming series against Australia will give a sneak preview of where his future belongs to. Harbhajan Singh gets back into the team more on the basis of past performance rather than merit while Pragyan Ojha lends support as the left arm spinner. 

If the spinning department looks hazy, the fast bowling stock looks empty. Worryingly for India, the thin stock becomes magnified with the amount of cricket that they are scheduled to play before the 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. Zaheer Khan has been left out for the first two Tests as he is recovering from a calf injury and he is likely to be sidelined for the entire series. In his absence, the pace bowling unit looks raw and short of experience. 

The debacle against England has forced the selectors to discard Gautam Gambhir. The left handed opening batsman has been under fire with his last century coming against Bangladesh in January, 2010. Despite having formed an explosive opening partnership with Sehwag, Gambhir was threading on thin ice and his eventual sacking did not make major headlines. Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan are his replacements for the opening slots, the former a trifle lucky after an average domestic season while the latter had the weight of runs behind him. The axing of Gambhir also seems to be a clear warning for his fellow opener, Sehwag to buck up and start performing on a consistent basis. 

The other major disappointment of the England series, Sachin Tendulkar, has warmed up to the Australian series with big scores for Mumbai both in the Ranji Trophy as well as the Irani Cup. A big series lies ahead for the man, one that will determine his immediate future.