Playing It My Way: My Autobiography (55 page)

I also asked Anjali if she would gently break the news of my decision to Arjun, as I was concerned about how he would take it. Anjali later told me that she would never forget his reaction. He said that he was sure I still had a lot of cricket left in me and there was no reason for me to retire, but when Anjali explained to him that the decision was final, he turned his face away and leaned his head on the window and a tear drop rolled down his cheek. Anjali and I both got very emotional when she told me this. Sara, being a little older, said that she would miss seeing me play but had full faith in my decision. My children were growing up fast and it mattered to me that they were both by my side at a time like this. Whenever they are with me, it always makes a huge difference to my well-being.

Mussoorie was a timely break. There was no one there except family and a few very close friends and I had some time to myself and a chance to think about my future. The media and fans allowed me the privacy to do so and while I still followed Mumbai’s progress in the Ranji Trophy, I also managed to switch off from cricket for a while. I played table tennis, went for long walks and relaxed in the evenings, and managed to get my sense of optimism back. When I started to feel the urge to resume training, I knew it was time to return to Mumbai.

I used to reach the Wankhede Stadium for training at around seven every morning, and for a while I would be completely alone in the stadium. On some days trainer Rahul Patwardhan would join me. The early-morning dew coated the lush green outfield and I could feel the dampness on my feet as I ran, leaving a trail behind me. When I looked up at the empty galleries I knew that this was where I belonged. This was my refuge.

I would jog and then run for a while and do my fitness drills before the groundsmen arrived. The Mumbai team would normally turn up around 8.30 a.m., by which time I would be in the dressing room taking a breather. Then I would train with my team-mates, doing my regular net sessions to prepare for the Ranji Trophy. In all my years of playing international cricket, I never resorted to short cuts and there was no question of changing that at the start of 2013.

In the Ranji Trophy we beat Baroda and Services on the way to the final against Saurashtra, which we won by an innings and 125 runs. Mumbai then took on the Rest of India in the Irani Cup game, in which I got a hundred. It was an innings that gave me a lot of satisfaction and confidence going into the Test series.

We started the first of four Tests against Australia on 22 February at the Chepauk in Chennai, one of my favourite grounds. Australia did well to make 380 in the first innings, with skipper Michael Clarke contributing a hundred. In reply, we didn’t start well, losing two quick wickets for 12 runs, and when I walked to the wicket we badly needed a partnership.

James Pattinson was bowling fast and I decided to take the battle to him and play my shots. The first ball was slightly wide of off stump and I presented the full face of the blade and was happy to see the ball race past the fielders to the boundary. I repeated the shot to the second ball and the result, to my delight, was the same. The final ball of the over was short of a length and I moved inside the line to flick it to fine leg for another four. I had hit three boundaries in four balls and the pressure had eased. My comeback had started well.

Cheteshwar Pujara, who batted sensibly for his 44, kept me company and I was unbeaten on 71 at the end of the second day, confident of kicking on and getting a big hundred. However, it didn’t turn out that way as I was bowled for 81 by the off-spinner Nathan Lyon on the third morning with a ball that was slightly fuller in length than I expected. I had made up my mind to get to the pitch of the ball and hit it between midwicket and long on with the turn. It was only when I realized that the length was full that I quickly changed my shot and that was my downfall.

Thankfully, the dismissal did not affect the team’s momentum, with Virat getting a hundred and Dhoni a blistering double hundred, one of the best innings I have seen at the Chepauk, to give us a lead of 192. Our spinners, led by Ashwin, then ran through the Australians in the second innings, leaving us needing just 50 to win the match. In my second innings, I played the same shot to Nathan Lyon’s first two balls and on both occasions the ball flew between midwicket and long on for six and we soon closed out the match.

In the second Test at Hyderabad, starting on 2 March, we played brilliantly to reach 503, with Murali Vijay scoring 167 and Cheteshwar Pujara making a double century. Australia had managed a disappointing 237 in their first innings and the second-wicket partnership of 370 between Vijay and Pujara meant our bowlers had enough runs on the board to bowl the Australians out in the second innings without us having to bat twice.

I got out to James Pattinson for seven, getting the faintest edge down the leg side. I was cursing my luck for having got bat on ball, prompting the caught-behind appeal, but was also surprised to see the umpire, after he had initially given me not out, deciding to check with the third umpire after a prolonged rethink. In a series in which there was no Decision Review System (DRS) there was no reason for the umpire to reconsider his decision once he had given me not out. If he had not seen or heard the nick, that should have been the end of the decision. I do not know what prompted the rethink and it was strange to see the umpire deciding to check with the TV umpire.

The reason that India has steadfastly refused to use the DRS in bilateral series is because the technology is inconclusive on occasions. We witnessed how random it could be during our tour of England in 2011–12, when DRS resulted in a number of wrong decisions. We are not against technology per se, but we do think that DRS needs to be close to 100 per cent correct before we can accept it. We feel it is a perfectly reasonable stance and I am sure we will revisit the situation when the technology has improved. The other point is that we believe that the technology used should be the same across all countries, because only then can we achieve uniformity in decision-making.

At Hyderabad, we won the match comfortably and were gradually starting to establish a stranglehold over the series. We had never beaten Australia 4–0 in a Test series, but such a scoreline was now beginning to seem a distinct possibility.

The third Test started in Mohali on 14 March and the Australians scored a healthy 408 in their first innings, with Mitchell Starc contributing 99 batting at number nine. Our response was emphatic, with a 289-run opening partnership between Shikhar Dhawan, playing superbly on debut for his 187, and Murali Vijay, who got his second consecutive Test hundred. I started my innings well and was feeling confident when Steve Smith, the part-time leg-spinner, came on to bowl. I had never faced Smith before and walked up to Vijay to check if the ball was turning. Vijay said that Smith was giving the ball a rip and I should play for turn. The first ball I faced was the perfect line and length – and it didn’t turn an inch. I was out caught bat-pad at forward short leg for 37.

On the last day at Mohali, we needed 133 to win and I went in to bat with the score at 70–2, intent on finishing the game. Australia were keeping things tight and we finally reached a stage when Dhoni and I were at the crease and we needed 24 off twenty-five balls to win. They had bowled a couple of tight overs and we needed to play a few shots to ease the pressure. I did exactly that to a delivery from Mitchell Starc that was angled in to me. I hit it over mid off for a four. In the next over by Peter Siddle, I missed a ball that came in and hit my pad before rolling off on the off side. I thought the ball had gone towards point and started running. The ball had actually gone more towards short cover, but I had committed myself to the single. David Warner came darting in and picked up the ball before flinging himself on the stumps. I had no chance. It was a spectacular effort from him and I was left to rue not checking where the ball had travelled. It was disappointing not to stay till the end and close out the game myself, but Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja did the job. We were 3–0 up and a whitewash looked distinctly possible as we headed to Delhi for the fourth and final Test of the series.

At Delhi, one look at the wicket was enough to suggest that it would assist the spinners from day one. I remember telling Anjali that the match was not likely to last the distance and I might well be home early. I said the same thing to Ajit, who had come to Delhi to watch the game. Sure enough, the spinners got into the action very early and it promised to be a low-scoring game. Australia batted first and scored 262, a reasonable total in the conditions. In reply we made 272, of which I scored 32.

In the second innings, our spinners ran through Australia, with Ravindra Jadeja again picking up a five-for. Ashwin and Jadeja had bowled well right through the series and Jadeja had even managed to get the Australian captain Michael Clarke out a number of times, which may have started to play on Clarke’s mind. Some of the deliveries Jadeja bowled to him in the first three Tests were excellent (Clarke was injured for the fourth), pitching on leg and spinning right across his bat face to hit the off stump.

Eventually we cruised to a win, thanks to a courageous knock from Pujara, who batted with a broken finger and remained unbeaten on 82. It was an act of real courage and will do him a lot of good in the rest of his career.

It was the first time in our history that we had achieved a 4–0 series win against Australia and the victory could not have come at a better time for Indian cricket. At one swoop we had managed to erase the unpleasant memories of losing to England at home and the team had started to come together again.

From a personal point of view, I had started the series well in Chennai and had looked good in patches, but I lost my wicket after getting a start on at least three occasions. Unfortunately for me, I was not able to get a century in the 2012–13 season and it was something I was looking to change at the start of the following season.

1st Test. Hyderabad (Deccan). 23–26 August 2012

India 438 (CA Pujara 159, MS Dhoni 73, V Kohli 58, V Sehwag 47,
SR Tendulkar 19
; JS Patel 4–100, TA Boult 3–93)

New Zealand 159 (JEC Franklin 43*; R Ashwin 6–31, PP Ojha 3–44) and 164 (f/o) (KS Williamson 52, BB McCullum 42; R Ashwin 6–54, PP Ojha 3–48)

India won by an innings and 115 runs

2nd Test. Bangalore. 31 August–3 September 2012

New Zealand 365 (LRPL Taylor 113, CFK van Wyk 71, MJ Guptil 53; PP Ojha 5–99) and 248 (JEC Franklin 41; R Ashwin 5–69, PP Ojha 2–49, UT Yadav 2–68)

India 353 (V Kohli 103, MS Dhoni 62, SK Raina 55,
SR Tendulkar 17
; TG Southee 7–64) and 262–5 (V Kohli 51*, CA Pujara 48,
SR Tendulkar 27
; JS Patel 3–68)

India won by 5 wickets

India won the series 2–0

1st Test. Ahmedabad. 15–19 November 2012

India 521–8 dec (CA Pujara 206*, V Sehwag 117, Y Singh 74,
SR Tendulkar 13
; GP Swann 5–144) and 80–1 (CA Pujara 41*)

England 191 (MJ Prior 48; PP Ojha 5–45, R Ashwin 3–80) and 406 (f/o) (AN Cook 176, MJ Prior 91; PP Ojha 4–120, UT Yadav 3–70, Z Khan 2–59)

India won by 9 wickets

2nd Test. Mumbai. 23–26 November 2012

India 327 (CA Pujara 135, R Ashwin 68,
SR Tendulkar 8
; MS Panesar 5–129, GP Swann 4–70) and 142 (G Gambhir 65,
SR Tendulkar 8
; MS Panesar 6–81, GP Swann 4–43)

England 413 (KP Pietersen 186, AN Cook 122; PP Ojha 5–143, H Singh 2–74, R Ashwin 2–145) and 58–0

England won by 10 wickets

3rd Test. Kolkata. 5–9 December 2012

India 316 (
SR Tendulkar 76
, G Gambhir 60, MS Dhoni 52; MS Panesar 4–90, JM Anderson 3–89) and 247 (R Ashwin 91*, V Sehwag 49,
SR Tendulkar 5
; JM Anderson 3–38, ST Finn 3–45)

England 523 (AN Cook 190, IJL Trott 87, NRD Compton 57, KP Pietersen 54; PP Ohja 4–142, R Ashwin 3–183) and 41–3 (R Ashwin 2–31)

England won by 7 wickets

4th Test. Nagpur. 13–17 December 2012

England 330 (KP Pietersen 73, JE Root 73, MJ Prior 57, GP Swann 56; PP Chawla 4–69, I Sharma 3–49) and 352–4 dec (IJL Trott 143, IR Bell 116*; R Ashwin 2–99)

India 326–9 dec (V Kohli 103, MS Dhoni 99,
SR Tendulkar 2
; JM Anderson 4–81, GP Swann 3–76)

Match drawn

England won the series 2–1

1st Test. Chennai. 22–26 February 2013

Australia 380 (MJ Clarke 130, MC Henriques 68, DA Warner 59; R Ashwin 7–103) and 241 (MC Henriques 81*; R Ashwin 5–95, RA Jadeja 3–72)

India 572 (MS Dhoni 224, V Kohli 107,
SR Tendulkar 81
; JL Pattinson 5–96) and 50–2 (V Sehwag 19, SR Tendulkar 13)

India won by 8 wickets

2nd Test. Hyderabad (Deccan). 2–5 March 2013

Australia 237–9 dec (MJ Clarke 91, MS Wade 62; RA Jadeja 3–33, B Kumar 3–53) and 131 (EJM Cowan 44; R Ashwin 5–63, RA Jadeja 3–33)

India 503 (CA Pujara 204, M Vijay 167,
SR Tendulkar 7
; GJ Maxwell 4–127, XJ Doherty 3–131)

India won by an innings and 135 runs

3rd Test. Mohali. 14–18 March 2013

Australia 408 (MA Starc 99, SPD Smith 92, EJM Cowan 86, DA Warner 71; I Sharma 3–72, RA Jadeja 3–77) and 223 (PJ Hughes 69; B Kumar 3–31, RA Jadeja 3–35)

India 499 (S Dhawan 187, M Vijay 153, V Kohli 67*,
SR Tendulkar 37
; PM Siddle 5–71) and 136–4 (V Kohli 34,
SR Tendulkar 21
)

India won by 6 wickets

4th Test. Delhi. 22–24 March 2013

Australia 262 (P Siddle 51, SPD Smith 46, PJ Hughes 45; R Ashwin 5–57) and 164 (P Siddle 50; RA Jadeja 5–58, PP Ojha 2–19, R Ashwin 2–55)