Against all odds, India rise to the occasion to hand Australia their first defeat in 32 years at the Gabba

That after losing the opening Test in a humiliating manner. That after their captain returned home to attend more important matters. That after losing all their first-choice bowlers. Brave.

On December 19, 2020, India suffered the worst batting collapse of their cricket history as they got out for just 36 runs in the first Test at the Adelaide Oval.

Exactly one month later — on January 19, 2021 — India chased down a record total to win the fourth Test and scripted an epic come-from-behind series victory to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Brave.

“This is the toughest tour ever. Nothing comes closer to this. This surpasses all,” India coach Ravi Shastri said after the win to emphasize the importance of this win.

Somehow, it was befitting that India clinched the series (2-1) at the Gabba, a ground that has been a fortress for the Australians. Any other ground would not have done justice to India’s efforts in the series where they have defied all odds, including handing Australia their first defeat in 32 years in Brisbane.

For, how do you make a strong, impactful closing statement than beating your opponent in their stronghold.

Australia were eager to play at the Gabba for obvious reasons — 0 losses in last 31 Tests. They wanted the series to begin in Brisbane but that didn’t happen. When India were trying to salvage a draw in Sydney, Tim Paine famously told Ravichandran Ashwin, “Can’t wait to get you to the Gabba, Ash.”

Going into the fourth innings, with the pitch starting to throw up surprises, aiming for a draw seemed more sensible than going after the target — 328. No team had ever scored more than 236/7 to win a Test at the Gabba.

But this is new India, as Virat Kohli had said before the series, it “takes up challenges and is filled with optimism and positivity.”

A superb 91 by Shubman Gill, a dogged 56 by Cheteshwar Pujara and the most crucial 89 not out by Rishabh Pant took India home with three wickets to spare.

Somehow, it was befitting that Pant, considered an irresponsible batter, saw through India’s tricky chase and hit the winning runs.

Both India and Pant have a past where they have erred in fulfilling the expectations. But on Tuesday, Pant ensured that India exceeded the expectations with a responsible knock on a fifth-day pitch.

Pant has been accused of throwing away his wicket on many occasions. Chinks in his keeping have been given as reasons to drop him in favour of a better keeper. With two brilliant knocks in two consecutive matches, he has proven his match-winning credentials (he scored 97 in India’s second innings in Sydney).

“I think this is one of the biggest things in my life right now,” Pant said after the match.

Somehow, it was befitting that a side whose members endured personal loss (Mohammed Siraj lost his father ahead of the series), faced racist abuse, missed their best personnel and received body blows ended up on the winning side.

Indian squad had gone through such a drastic depletion due to injuries that they went out to play this match with a bowling attack that had a collective experience of four matches (including Shardul Thakur’s first appearance where he got injured after bowling just 10 balls) and a collective wicket count of just 11.

The opposition had bowlers with a collective wicket count of over 1000. On paper, there was no match. On ground, however, it turned out to be a different story.

“India deserves full credit, they have been outstanding. We will learn a lot of lessons from this,” Australia coach Justin Langer told 7 Cricket. “You cannot take anything for granted, never ever underestimate the Indians, 1.5 billion [people in India] and you play in the senior team, you have to be really tough. I couldn’t appreciate India enough.”