The loss that roared like a win: When India pushed Australia to the edge in Adelaide 1978

Eight defeats and a draw — that was India’s record in Tests Down Under when they embarked on another tour of Australia in late 1977.

India had been touring Australia since independence, playing their first Test there in November 1947, which they lost by an innings and 226 runs. The visitors lost their first series Down Under 4-0 in the five-match contest, with one draw in Sydney.

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It took 20 years before India toured Australia again. The 1967/68 series was a four-match affair, but the scoreline remained the same — 4-0 in favour of the hosts.

So, when India visited Australia a decade later for the 1977/78 series, there were almost no expectations from the team. It further became a sorry read when the Bishan Singh Bedi-led side lost the first two Tests in Brisbane and Perth.




India had now lost 10 out of 11 Tests in Australia without a single win. But there were subtle hints of change in the two defeats in 1977 — both were close losses. India lost the first Test by 16 runs, and the second by just two wickets.

The third Test started on December 30, 1977, and by the time it ended on January 4, 1978, India had registered their first win Down Under — a massive 222-run victory in Melbourne. It did not stop there; India stunned the hosts by an innings and 2 runs in the fourth Test in Sydney to level the series 2-2.

When the two teams came to Adelaide for the fifth and final Test, momentum was with the visitors and the series was wide open.

Here’s how the winner-takes-all Adelaide Test unfolded from January 28 to February 3, 1978:
Australia captain Bob Simpson won the toss and decided to bat first. The hosts dominated the opening day and finished at 353/5, with captain Simpson leading from the front with an unbeaten 54. He went on to score 100 as Australia posted 505 all out. For India, B. Chandrasekhar took a fifer (5/136), while Karsan Ghavri returned figures of 3/93.

India replied strongly and reached 131/3 at stumps on Day 2, with Gundappa Viswanath on 79 and Dilip Vengsarkar (26) at the crease. The third day again belonged to Australia. Led by Ian Callen’s triple strike — Viswanath (89), Vengsarkar (44) and Anshuman Gaekwad (27) — the hosts dismissed India for 269. Australia had a massive first-innings lead of 236.

By the end of Day 3, Australia were 103/3 in the second innings — a lead of 339 with three days remaining.

When the contest resumed on February 1 after a rest day, India’s bowlers ran through the Aussie line-up. Ghavri (4/45) and Bedi (4/53) took four wickets each to bowl out the hosts for 256 in their second innings. But by then India had to chase a massive target of 493.

India lost openers Sunil Gavaskar (29) and Chetan Chauhan (32) on the fourth day itself, leaving them at 101/2 with two days remaining. Australia were in total control as they still led by 391 runs.

India’s batters fired in unison on Day 5. Mohinder Amarnath (86), Viswanath (73) and Vengsarkar (78) — the No. 3-5 batters — scored classy half-centuries and took the team to 362/6 at stumps on the penultimate day. India survived the entire day, adding 261 runs for the loss of just four wickets and giving the hosts a big scare.

On this day in 1978 - February 3, the sixth day of the match, India needed 131 runs with four wickets in hand. Australia were on top, but India were not totally out of the contest.

The overnight pair, wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani and Ghavri, put on a stunning 67-run stand for the seventh wicket to guide the visitors past the 400-run mark. India were 415/7 when Ghavri fell for 23, leaving them 78 runs short of the improbable target. India’s resistance began to fade when Kirmani departed soon after for 51, leaving them struggling at 417/8.

But the fight did not end, much to Australia’s dismay, as India captain Bedi and Erapalli Prasanna delayed the inevitable with a 25-run stand for the ninth wicket. The final resistance ended when Bedi fell for 16. Three runs later, India lost their final wicket — Chandrasekhar — with the score reading 445. It was the second-highest fourth-innings total in Test history at the time. Australia clinched the series 3-2, but only after a massive scare.

From losing the first two Tests, to winning their first matches Down Under, and then fighting till the end in the decider, it was a blockbuster series between hosts Australia and visitors India — one that helped lay the foundation for the fiercely anticipated tours of today.

• Interesting fact: The fifth and final Test was played as a six-day contest to avoid lost time in the series decider. With a rest day included, the match stretched across seven days — from January 28 to February 3, 1978.

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