India will go into the second Test match against Australia in unfamiliar territory – not because they are not used to the Chinnaswamy Stadium environs, but because they will be facing a deficit in the series for the first time in a long time.
Catches and something about winning Test matches
The last time India had to come back from going 1-0 down in the opening match happened to be Virat Kohli's first full Test series as permanent captain – in August, 2015. After a collapse of epic proportions in Galle, India produced a stirring comeback in the next two Tests to top Sri Lanka 2-1.
India vs Australia: Second Test schedule.
When is the match?
March 4 to March 8.
From there, India went on to best South Africa, trump West Indies, get the better of New Zealand, outclass England and outlast Bangladesh.
The series against Australia was also expected to be a fairly comfortable one, only for the turning pitch tactic to backfire.
Having learnt the harshest of lessons in Pune, India are expected to go back to the strategy that worked for them against England and, to a certain extent, New Zealand – prepare a proper sub-continental pitch, which is good for batting in the first two-three days, before the wear and tear brings the spinners into play.
What time?
9.30am IST, 3pm AEDT, 4am GMT, 11pm ET.
R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja will bowl better than Steve O'Keefe and Nathan Lyon on a slow, flat pitch. But make that a raging turner, and the divide decreases considerably, turning O'Keefe into the 12-wicket taker of Pune.
What India will want to do in Bengaluru is – win the toss or not – post that big first innings score, make sure at least one of the batsmen goes on to score a big hundred and then wear Australia out over the five days; not just try and finish the Test match inside three.
Where is the match being played?
M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru.
India's resources are best suited to doing just that – they have batsmen who can grind the opposition out, test their patience and then take over when they get tired, before the bowlers are allowed to do their thing with a big total ensuring they do not have to worry too much every time a boundary is scored.
TV guide:
India: Star Sports 1, Star Sports 3, Star Sports HD1, Star Sports HD3.
Australia: Fox Sports 3.
UK: Sky Sports 2.
New Zealand: Sky Sport.
USA and Canada: Willow TV.
South Africa: SuperSport Seven.
Middle East: OSN Sports Cricket HD.