It wouldn’t be amiss if you were shaking your head in disbelief as the Sydney Test ended in a draw. It was the kind of result that you would’ve hoped for at the start of day five, as an India fan, even though you would’ve feared that reality might have very different plans.
When Australia finally conceded the draw six balls before the scheduled close of play, India still had five wickets in hand and the unbroken sixth-wicket partnership between Hanuma Vihari and Ashwin Ravichandran was worth 62 off 256 balls.
As Vihari and Ashwin trudged off the field at the end of the day, they had gentle smiles on their faces. No first pumps. Just gentle smiles, visible relief and a careful walk back to the dressing room because they couldn’t do more even if they tried. Both batsmen had survived injuries (Vihari had a hamstring problem and Ashwin was dealing with a back issue), a bouncer barrage, dropped chances and one of the best bowling attacks in world cricket for over three…