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Shubman Gill and Ajinkya Rahane (Gettty).
Alternate captain Ajinkya rahane LED India to a dominant eight-field victory Australia on the second Test Tuesday, leveling the series 1-1 and capping an extraordinary turnaround after his record collapsed in the first game.
MARKER | Australia v India – Second Test
Rahane, an alternate during Virat Kohli’s paternity leave, was unbeaten at 27 in Melbourne, after a century in early innings, when India hit the meager target of 70 for losing two wickets.
It culminated a remarkable comeback for an Indian team desperate to make amends after losing in Adelaide by eight wickets, when they posted their lowest score of 36 and were widely criticized at home.
And they recovered without superstar and batting maintstay Kohli, who returned home for the birth of her first child.
“Really proud of all the players,” Rahane said.
“I want to give credit to rookies (Mohammed) Siraj and (Shubman) Gill, the character they showed after the defeat of Adelaide was great to watch. The character was important to us.”
Kohli, watching from his home in India, tweeted his congratulations.
“What a victory this is, an absolutely amazing effort from the entire team,” he said. “We couldn’t be happier for the guys and especially Jinks (Rahane), who led the team to victory in an amazing way.”
Under mellow Rahane, India struggled hard to fire Australia for 195 in the early innings and then posted 326 in response.
Australia resumed their second inning on the fourth day 133-of-six with a two-run lead, and their hopes rested on 21-year-old rookie off-roader Cameron Green.
He did 45 while battling 200 before running back Josh Hazlewood was the last man to go down before lunch.
Siraj took 3-37 with Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Ravi Ashwin grabbing two each.
Rahane and Gill (35) later saw India at home, but not before some nervous moments.
Mitchell Starc got a nick from out of form Mayank Agarwal (5), which Tim Paine caught, then Pat Cummins caught Cheteshwar Pujara for three, and approached Green on gully.
He left India on the 19th for two before they regained their composure to seal the victory.
“Very disappointed, he played bad cricket, sloppy cricket,” Australia captain Paine said.
“Let’s not take anything from India, they forced us to make mistakes. They played very well, we have not adapted as well as we would have liked.
“Disappointed as a batting group, but two tests left.”
Australia collapsed to 99-for-six in the race chase on Monday before Green and Cummins struggled to withstand 18 overs and carry them to stumps.
Green displayed flashes of his magic, cutting Ashwin and driving Bumrah beautifully in four, while also exhibiting patience.
But in just his second test, he was undone by Siraj, caught by Jadeja as he sought to find the limit with a shot shot, finishing a 146-ball save.
Cummins survived the chances at the 15th and 19th, but when Bumrah took the new ball, he finally fell, making an upward delivery to Agarwal.
Starc was undefeated at 14 with Nathan Lyon trapped behind Siraj by three, and Hazlewood making 10.
Australia’s hopes rested on those behind after their higher order failed to skyrocket, exposing the fragile nature of their hitting in the absence of the injured David Warner.
Starter Joe Burns failed again, out by four, to jeopardize his place in the team for the third test next week, while Travis Head (17) also disappointed and Steve Smith’s bad streak continued, he left for eight.
Their troubles came despite India being a bowler after Umesh Yadav’s calf strain on Monday, a further setback for a team that already missed Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma.
But India’s weakened attack rose to the occasion, with Bumrah at the top of her game and Siraj impressing, while seasoned spinners Jadeja and Ashwin constantly posed problems.
But it was Rahane’s rough 112 that was ultimately the winner of the match.
He hit the edge with his team in trouble at 64-for-three and, against one of the most powerful bowling attacks in the world, hit a 12th test century, one that experts called perhaps the most important of all.
The third test will begin on January 7 in Sydney.
