IND vs AUS : 5 reasons behind poor performance from Australia in 1st Test

Reasons behind poor performance from Australia (Source: Twitter)

Australia were comprehensively beaten in the first Test of the 4-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series. Riding on key performances from the likes of Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel, the hosts were able to get past the Aussies by an innings and 132 runs in the first Test at the Vidarbha Cricket Stadium in Nagpur.

Although the men from down under do not look like a team that can get beaten so easily, they did have a few major issues in the first Test.

Here are the five reasons why the Kangaroos dropped a performance to forgot in the first Test at Nagpur.

5. Misfiring Openers

Reasons behind poor performance from Australia (Source: Twitter)

The very first reason behind their poor showing by Australia is their opening pair of batters. Openers are crucial in a Test. They lay the foundation for a big score, and it was not to be for Australia in the first Test. The openers simply didn't get going. David Warner could only last five deliveries in the first innings while he struggled for his 10 runs off 41 deliveries in the second.

On the other end, Usman Khawaja played just three and nine balls in the first and second innings, respectively. While there were reports of Australia's top order practicing hard to face Ashwin, the two openers were both dismissed by India's spin ace in the second innings. There are speculations of Warner losing his place for the Delhi Test. Either way, massive tweaks are required in Australia's opening pair.

4. Important players missing out due to injuries

Reasons behind poor performance from Australia (Source: Twitter)

The second reason is quite simple. Australia were missing some of their experienced campaigners due to injury issues. The absence of Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood heavily impacted the pace attack. In the first innings, the pace attack never got going.

The Aussies can only sit and think if things would've been different had Hazlewood and Starc been present to reverse the ball in those middle overs. Another key player missing was Cameron Green, who can be a handy player with both bat and ball. Australia must look to get some of these players fit for the second Test as the result of playing a relatively less-experienced team is in front of them.

3. No left-arm spinner in the Playing XI

Reasons behind poor performance from Australia (Source: Twitter)

The next major reason behind the Australian downfall in the first Test is the absence of a quality left-arm spinner. There are several quality right-handed batters in the Indian batting line-up. As such, playing the combination of a left-arm spinner against those batters could have been a pretty decent game plan. Especially deducing from the fact that the combination of Ashwin and Jadeja worked so well for India.

Reports suggest that Australia are making amends for this mistake ahead of the second Test at Delhi. Left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann is expected to be flown in to be a part of the Australian contingent for the remainder of the tour. Kuhnemann was impressive in the Big Bash League and could be one that India should keep an eye on.

2. Terrible captaincy by Pat Cummins

Reasons behind poor performance from Australia (Source: Twitter)

Overall, Pat Cummins could not influence this team like any of Australia's earlier captains did. There were a collection of wrong decisions from the Australia skipper that led to a collective dip in the team's performance. Getting spinners to bowl to tail-enders is one of the many examples.

The likes of Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj could easily defend Nathan Lyon's spin. The picture could have been different had Cummins brought the seamers into the attack then. Secondly, Pat Cummins himself could not deliver a commanding captain's performance, unlike his Indian counterpart, Rohit Sharma. Cummins took a couple of wickets and added just seven runs with the bat

1. Bad team-selection by Australia

Reasons behind poor performance from Australia (Source: Twitter)

The final reason is more of a summarization of all factors involved. All of it could have been avoided had Australia selected a sensible Playing XI. Firstly, they only played four pure bowlers, two of which were similar off-spinners. Other than Todd Murphy's deception, there wasn't much that Indian batters struggled against. It was a pretty comfortable batting performance, as the scoreboard kept ticking periodically.

Secondly, Australia went for several out-of-form batters. David Warner, for instance, shouldn't have found a place in the Playing XI for the first Test. Since his double hundred against South Africa back in December, the left-hander has not really conjured any notable score across formats. The Kangaroos have reportedly started to make amends for these issues. How far their tweaks work will be seen in the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi, from February 17.