Wisden
Tournament review

Commonwealth Bank Series, 2011-12

Jesse Hogan

1. Australia 2. Sri Lanka 3. India


The Australian team pose with the Commonwealth Bank series trophy, Australia v Sri Lanka, CB Series, 3rd final, Adelaide, March 8, 2012
Triumphant in Adelaide © Getty Images
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Series/Tournaments: Commonwealth Bank Series

It was a mark of the quality of this series that, by the time Australia won the third, deciding final against Sri Lanka, the axing of Ricky Ponting was little more than a footnote. This is not to denigrate Ponting's achievements in one-day internationals - merely to acknowledge how Sri Lanka and, very occasionally, India played their part in making the first triangular series in Australia for four years such a success.

Perhaps it was no surprise: the teams occupied three of the top four slots in the ICC one-day international standings (South Africa held the other), and six of the world's top ten batsmen came from their ranks. India kept most of their underperforming batting line-up from the Test whitewash, with Suresh Raina the only significant addition. Sri Lanka, whose players had gone largely unpaid in the ten months since the World Cup, had a new (or newish) captain in Mahela Jayawardene, back for a second stint after replacing Tillekeratne Dilshan. They also had a new coach in Graham Ford, after Geoff Marsh was sacked four months into a two-year contract with little explanation. Four wins in their last five group games earned them a place in the finals.

Australia's most significant change at the start of the series - the elevation of Victoria wicketkeeper Matthew Wade - was initially downplayed by the selectors, who insisted Brad Haddin was merely being rested after a gruelling summer. Within a fortnight, Wade's displays on both sides of the stumps were assured enough to bring an end to the facade: he was now officially the preferred one-day keeper.

Ponting's demise came, awkwardly, after a surging return to form in Tests. His single-figure failures in Australia's first two matches could be ignored, until the trend continued in the third, fourth and fifth. The last innings was the most illustrative: Ponting, now 37 years old, needed 13 balls to get off the mark before tamely holing out for a scratchy seven from 26. He did not retire after being left out, but conceded there was no chance of a one-day recall.

To confuse matters, he was dropped while captain, having twice been asked to stand in for the injured Michael Clarke. Even though David Warner was the nominated vice-captain, it was Ponting and Shane Watson who led in Clarke's stead. The response to Ponting's fate was almost universally sympathetic to both sides, with few accusing the selectors of heresy.

India did little to redeem themselves after the Test debacle. Rumours of team divisions festered once Mahendra Singh Dhoni's policy of not selecting Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir in the same team - because no more than two of them could be carried in the field - became clear during a press conference. Sehwag claimed to have been unaware that Dhoni believed the presence of all three might cost 20 runs a game, and the strategy had to be abandoned when Dhoni picked up a one-match ban for a slow over-rate at Brisbane: Sehwag briefly assumed the captaincy, and the trio duly played together in India's last three matches. They were still eliminated, but able to return home with a skerrick of satisfaction following an incredible chase of 321 in their final game. As in the Tests, most of India's best work was inspired by the marvellously driven Virat Kohli.

The unusually late finish to the Australian summer meant the series had to compete with the new seasons of the local football codes. This led to below-average crowds of about 20,000 for matches involving the home team. But television ratings - Cricket Australia's new priority - were robust (unsurprisingly, given the decision to ditch the previous bilateral format and include India). So a series judged by the learned to be the best triangular held in Australia got at least some of the recognition it deserved.

Match reports for

1st Match: Australia v India at Melbourne, Feb 5, 2012
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2nd Match: India v Sri Lanka at Perth, Feb 8, 2012
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3rd Match: Australia v Sri Lanka at Perth, Feb 10, 2012
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4th Match: Australia v India at Adelaide, Feb 12, 2012
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5th Match: India v Sri Lanka at Adelaide, Feb 14, 2012
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6th Match: Australia v Sri Lanka at Sydney, Feb 17, 2012
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7th Match: Australia v India at Brisbane, Feb 19, 2012
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8th Match: India v Sri Lanka at Brisbane, Feb 21, 2012
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9th Match: Australia v Sri Lanka at Hobart, Feb 24, 2012
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10th Match: Australia v India at Sydney, Feb 26, 2012
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11th Match: India v Sri Lanka at Hobart, Feb 28, 2012
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12th Match: Australia v Sri Lanka at Melbourne, Mar 2, 2012
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1st Final: Australia v Sri Lanka at Brisbane, Mar 4, 2012
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2nd Final: Australia v Sri Lanka at Adelaide, Mar 6, 2012
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3rd Final: Australia v Sri Lanka at Adelaide, Mar 8, 2012
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