It has been 25 years since the epic Kolkata Test between India and Australia was played at the iconic Eden Gardens Test from March 11 to March 15. With the Steve Waugh led Australia team coming into the match on the back of the win in the first Test at Mumbai and their 16th Test win in a row, Australia were once looking in a position to extend that winning streak to 17. Having posted a first innings total of 457 and building out India for a first innings total of 172, Australia enforced the follow-on. Riding high on a 376-run fifth wicket partnership between VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid, which also saw the duo batting through the fourth day of the Test, India posted a second innings’ total of 657 for 7 before declaring the innings and setting a 384-run target for Australia. With Harbhajan Singh taking six wickets , India bundled out Australia in the second innings at a total of 212 runs and won the Test by 171 runs. Former Australia coach John Buchanan, who was coach of the Australian team at that time, has shared how he still regards the decision to enforce the follow-on against India in the Kolkata Test as ‘one of his poorest decision’.
“I regard it as one of my poorest decisions as a coach, but it was not just about enforcing the follow-on. The game was set up nicely, and we had a big lead (274 runs). My job was not to get caught up in the emotion of what was going on the field. But I did,” Buchanan told Sportstar in an interview.
Australian captain Steve Waugh had won the toss and elected to bat first. Waugh played a knock of 110 runs while opener Mathew Hayden played a knock of 97 runs as Australia posted a first innings total of 445 in 131.5 overs. The innings also saw Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh taking a hat-trick with himself removing Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist and Shane Warne off three consecutive balls in the 72nd over of the Australian innings. India could only post a first innings total of 171 in 58.1 overs as Aussie pacer Glenn McGrath took four wickets. Post India’s first innings and having a lead of 285 runs, Australia enforced the follow-on with India ending the third day at 254 for 4 with Laxman and Dravid at the crease. Laxman and Dravid then batted through the fourth day before India declared their second innings at 657 for 7 on the fifth day of the Test match setting Australia a target of 384 runs.
With Australia being bundled out for 212 runs, India won the Test by 171 runs. Buchanan recalled how it was his job to make the team think what their options were and how if they would have batted not enforcing the follow on, they would have batted India out of the game. “As the players walked in, my job was to make them sit down quickly and say what our options were. I think they still would have gone there (to enforce the follow-on), but I didn’t take the time to get them to think that if we had batted, we would have batted India out of the game. Our objective was to go there to win the series. But we enforced the follow-on, and the rest is history,” added Buchanan.
The former Aussie coach also spoke on the Indian team winning its third T20 World Cup title with a win over New Zealand in the T20 World Cup final last week and how he sees the win. “My overall view on Indian cricket is that it’s heading in the direction where you would expect it to be. It’s a powerhouse of world cricket. Simply because there is so much talent in this country, and the competition to get into the national team is very, very high. Therefore, the players, who are presumably selected on merit and graduate, fit pretty well to play at that level. And I think you’re beginning to see that with the win the other day,” said Buchanan.
