Aus vs Ind 1st Test Perth – KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal show that defense is the best form of defense

There’s something Australia do when they sense what they’re trying to do isn’t working. They make the whole concept of scoring runs seem far-fetched.

Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc went for back-to-back maidens. This happened after they fixed a minor bug. Their fielders in front of the wicket – mid-off, point, midwicket and mid-on – were just deep enough for India to bat and run singles.

There was little as he just swung across the line of a good-length ball from Starc and got four runs from it. Right then, the bowler didn’t have too much going for him. One ball later, however, he did. Starc caught Jaiswal on the crease and zipped past his outside edge. Starc felt compelled to extend his follow-up, searching for Jaiswal’s eyes as he had earlier in the day for Harshit Ranas to warn him against bowling bouncers: “I bowl faster than you and I have a long memory”. The two stared out at each other. Starc smiled and shook his head. Jaiswal smiled and shook his head. They had a running battle throughout the day.

Generating a bat speed of 120km/h with your wrists to hit Australia’s spearhead for a six over square leg and being unbeaten on 90 gives you a hint as to who won.

When the day was over and Jaiswal walked off the ground, the entire dressing room was waiting right beyond the commercial. As the distance between him and them narrowed, the smile on his face grew. Jaiswal had shown tremendous restraint throughout the day. Now he could finally let his guard down and just be a 22-year-old with a career highlight to brag about. He punched the air as he was swarmed by the team.

Jaiswal’s innings really started to take shape as he absorbed all the venom on a length delivery from Starc to end the third over. The ball trickled harmlessly away to point and his partner at the other end loved it. He appeared to be gesturing “yeah that’s it, that’s what we want, keep doing it”.

So if you were an opening batter, on average one ball came at you with your name on each over. In the 12th, it was the very first one where Jaiswal flashed hard outside the stumps. Starc was unable to get the wicket, but after seeing that shot and its potential to create unnecessary problems, Rahul immediately came down the field and spoke to Jaiswal. He had already seen the advantage of meeting the ball under the eyes with soft hands. In the midst of the three virgins his outer edge was taken, but it did not wear to the slippers.

India’s openers were very much in sync, except perhaps in the 42nd over where one of them thought there was a single and the other didn’t. Rahul had come more than halfway down the pitch and was sure he was going to get out. That’s the kind of luck he has sometimes. In his mind, as he just stayed there, on the floor, now on his knees instead of his stomach after putting a big dive that still wouldn’t have been enough if Steven Smith’s throw had been on target at the bowler’s end, he could have run back all the other times he had done well, but the numbers just wouldn’t reflect it. In fact, 42 out of 115 would have fit nicely into that bracket.

This was well into the period when the surface was losing a bit of its sting. The ball had become softer. Batting normally was again a viable option. It hadn’t been in the first innings because it was the start of a big tour and with India’s batting under pressure, there was a lot of focus on trying not to make a mistake. They didn’t quite play the opposition or the game of cricket that was out there. They played themselves and a cricket match two or three hours in the future and if all went well they would only be two or three down. All did not go well.

On Saturday, the focus was still on the defence, but it was not to set up something for the future, it was simply to set up in the present. This time they were happy to make mistakes. This time they had a different line of defense. Rahul’s soft hands. Jaiswal’s increased focus. The upper part that he played off Cummins will go viral, but there was another time when he was maybe a split second away from playing it. He sensed it was inviting trouble because Starc had angled the bouncer into him and it was Starc so it was quicker. There was a good chance that if he had gone through with that shot, he could have fired. But in this mood, with this focus, he could pull out.

In recent times, India has tried to combat difficult conditions by attempting an all-out attack. Forty-six last month happened in part because they decided they just couldn’t trust their defense. The 3-0 loss to New Zealand happened because India were at least a little bit careless. That accusation did not apply here. They have always prided themselves on being able to beat the odds. Now they are willing to suffer for it again.