There is some difference between Australia’s 4-0 whitewash of India last year and India’s 4-0 result last week. Australia completed their quartet of wins on a fair pitch at the Adelaide Oval while India got theirs courtesy a diabolic Kotla strip in New Delhi. Javed Miandad said the other day that he would have been embarrassed if he were a television commentator present at the Kotla because he would not know what to tell his viewers of a win achieved on a spiteful pitch that nearly killed Australian batsman Phil Hughes.

Over the years, Australia have not been very lucky with pitches. Their former off-spinner Ashley Mallett came up with an extraordinary story in his book on teammate Doug Walters that the pitch at the Kotla on the 1969-70 tour was a different to the one they encountered before the rest day. Apparently, Ashok Mankad, who had figured in that Test, told Mallett later that some hanky-panky took place during the rest day of the game. Mallet wrote: “There was no reason for Mankad to have invented such a story, it was also impossible for me to verify the story and no way there would be an investigation. We duly lost the Test easily, with Ajit Wadekar hitting a great 91 not out and Viswanath playing some delightful cuts and sweeps for an unconquered 44. It was unconceivable that the wicket could have played so well after the events of two days earlier.”