Pujara sets up seven-wicket triumph for India
Cheteshwar Pujara has not been part of India's rise to the No. 1 Test ranking but he could help determine how long they stay there, after his outstanding 72 on debut set up a seven-wicket win
Cheteshwar Pujara has not been part of India's rise to the No. 1 Test ranking but he could help determine how long they stay there, after his outstanding 72 on debut set up a seven-wicket win
Cheteshwar Pujara: "I was a bit nervous. I told myself that I want to be in the present. When you just look at each and every ball, each and every over, there is no pressure. I was told this morning that I would be batting at no 3. .. Domestic experience has helped me a lot. I knew Hauritz would bowl round the stumps. I saw how the little master played him in the first innings. It was difficult (the first-innings dismissal), the seniors came and told me that you can't do much about that kind of ball. Continue to be play positive. When I went into bat in the first innings, Tendulkar said you might be nervous, don't worry about it, it will go away automatically once you play a few balls. I also remember he told me that God has given you this chance to play; he will help you score runs. Don't worry."
S Rajesh, Cricinfo's stats editor: "This is India's first Test win in Bangalore since October 1995, when they beat New Zealand by eight wickets. In 19 Tests here, India have won five, lost six and drawn eight.
It's only the third time India have won all Tests in a series of two or more Tests (excluding series against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe). Their two earlier wins both came in the 1990s, when they achieved 3-0 margins against England (1992-93) and Sri Lanka (1993-94).
The last time Australia lost all the matches of a series was in 1982 in Pakistan, when they lost in Karachi (nine wickets), Faisalabad (innings and three runs) and Lahore (nine wickets).
It's also the first time Australia have lost three Tests in a row since November-December 1988, when they lost to West Indies in Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne."
Do hang on for the quotes from the post-match ceremony.
Man of the Match and the Man of the Series is Sachin Tendulkar: "This series was a fantastic one. I would like to congratulate the whole team, starting from Laxman who helped us win. Along with Ishant Sharma. Also the bowlers. It was obviously going to be difficult on a track going up and down. Pujara showed tremendous character and his partnership with Vijay was very crucial one." On his own batting this year: "I don't count. Let the others count. I just want to continue scoring. Normally, there is not much crowd for Test cricket, thanks to Bangalore for coming out. You guys made the victory sweeter."
Ponting: "We have played reasonably good test cricket but we were outplayed. We needed to get a few early wickets today, we got one but Pujara and Vijay batted well. I thought Hilfenhaus and Johnson have been good. Watson has been good. The crowd here have been fantastic. We would like to thank the crowd for their love and support for Test cricket."
Dhoni: I would like to congratulate the people of Bangalore. It's almost houseful today. As a captain I keep losing tosses which means the bowlers have to come in and bowl on flat tracks. But they have bowled really well. In both games the first innings was high scoring and it changed in second innings. In India you can just lose a Test in two sessions. You need to play well in all the five days. Pujara played really well. He got a tough ball first innings and he played very well in the second. Vijay has always done well whenever given opportunities. He carried on this time. It helps that he was batting with Tendulkar who is a great reader of the game and advices. The bowlers did a real good job. The bowling department really stepped up in both the games."
Dhoni now collects the Border-Gavaskar Trophy from SM Gavaskar. Dhoni lifts it high over his head and his team-mates roar in joy. He now calls them to join him. He gives the Trophy to a beaming Pujara. They all pose for the winning photograph that I suspect will find a special place in this Chinnaswamy Stadium. Gary Kirsten is laughing. So is every one else in that Indian squad.
Do check out the Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale
The story of the day in pictures. Do click here to view the gallery
There has been some good writing on this game and the series. Here is the list of all the features and specials.
That's it from us. On behalf of the scorers - Sanjay and Gopi - and my co-commentator today George Binoy, this is Sriram Veera signing off. Good bye and good luck!
In the last innings of the Bangalore Test, a 22-year-old walked out instead of Rahul Dravid - and made sure he gave those watching plenty to talk about
In this series a once all-conquering side found themselves being presented with questions they had often asked of others in the past
These teams have the uncanny knack of producing great series when the game seems to need them most
Sachin Tendulkar has surged to the top spot in the ICC Test rankings for batsmen, for the first time since 2002, following a prolific run of form, culminating in his performance in the Bangalore Test
Shane Warne has smoothed over a potential rift with Ricky Ponting after he criticised the Australian captain's field placements for the spinner Nathan Hauritz on Wednesday