Charitable India wait for another declaration

At such an emotional time in their careers, that too after just having lost badly in the UAE, Australia couldn't have asked for a more convenient opponent than India. A team they can thrash while still making good money from the spectacle. India bring in the crowds, the sponsors, but not a contest. You have a crisis, you want to make three of the most affected players feel good, but not lose out on the money, India are the team you are looking for.

You can have a batsman in considerable lower-back pain from a chronic injury, not even bending in his stance, unable to run properly; he can grunt and groan each time he is made to move his back, but once India have started waiting for a declaration, he won't need to move. The pursuit or a declaration is unstinting and unwavering. Michael Clarke just needs to show a hint of inclination to stand tall and ramp short balls over slips, and he shall be served those with pickles and garnish.

If Clarke is feeling emotional around the hundred - he carried the coffin of a friend last week and might have to make career decisions with the World Cup, a West Indies tour and the Ashes coming soon - the short ball can be shelved altogether in favour of a length ball on the pads, from around the wicket. It's Australia's party, of course, how can India crash it?

Steven Smith, oh they will keep dropping him until he has scored to his heart's content. Not that the reprieves came before Smith had already hurt India badly, but why bother the bowlers to come out and score runs when batsmen can take the opponents to a declaration?

Australia left alone 78 balls in 120 overs. They were beaten 43 times. Not all of these 121 went through to the keeper. You can leave a ball alone and get hit on the body. You can get beaten and can be hit on the body. So you can see how little Wriddhiman Saha has had to do in this innings. So when, 109 overs of flogging later, with Smith on 107, if Saha is not expecting a ball to come to him, you can probably empathise with him.

As you perhaps can with Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli, too. Put together they scored 356 runs in India's last Test series, over 20 innings. You can make allowance for their having to worry about facing Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle with runs in their bags when they drop Smith in quick succession.

Ishant Sharma had just finished an over when he went to long leg and picked late a flat catch from the Smith sweep that he didn't reach. He had been the pick of India's bowlers, although he had just taken 1 for 85. He is the leader of the Indian pace attack, India's big hope in Australian conditions although he averages 36.5 overall and 73 in Australia.

In fact it should all be inexcusable. It's on days like these when tenacious teams dig in and make it tough for the opposition to gain an advantage, or at least delay such an advantage long enough to give themselves a shot at the draw. India, they go for 163 on a day when they have had to bowl just 30 overs. For one wicket, that of an injured man taking risks almost every ball in search of quick runs.

There is no fatigue, no heat to contend with. It's just that India love to wait for declarations. These days came pretty late on their tours to South Africa and England, but Australia is different. In England and South Africa, their bowlers get some assistance from the pitches. In Australia you need skill, strength and fitness in abundance. And Test-match temperament. The Indian bowling unit is often found wanting on those counts.

This time yesterday India were looking at an opportunity, having Australia six down for 354. Clarke was really brave in coming out to bat, Smith batted excellently, but had India managed to keep a lid on their scoring they still would have left themselves plenty of scope to draw the Test, and prospectively come up against a Clarke-less Australia with the sheet clean. Now, as ever, India are left looking to their batsmen to help turn around what is already beginning to look like a long tour. Not much has happened of late to make you want to hold your breath.