By R. MohanIS MOHALI the beginning of the end of Australia’s domination of Test cricket On the evidence of India’s biggest ever win in terms of runs that came this week, it does appear the world champions are in real danger of losing their crown somewhere along the line while the threat of losing the series is much more real and immediate.The Aussies’ record since snatching the unofficial world crown from the West Indies in 1994-95 is awesome, their win-loss ratio in the new millennium being even more formidable. Since 1 January 2000, they have won 70 Test matches while losing only 12. They have also won 25 series while losing only two, to India in the famous 2001 turnaround series after the miraculous Kolkata Test and to England in the Ashes of 2005.It is in the manner of the latest defeat that the signs of a decline are to be seen as otherwise the record is pretty even with Australia and India winning two Tests apiece in their last six meetings. Having marched over the narrow cricket world like a Colossus, Australia are now facing the dire threat of having to mingle with the rest to eke out Test wins. It is simple enough to say that all good things must come to an end but the Aussies in their pomp did represent one of the great powers of sport, their domination of world cricket being of such a degree that they won the last three World Cups besides building up two extraordinary runs of 16 Test wins on the trot.The loss of great players has obviously weakened them. Replacements don’t come readily, if they come at all, for the likes of Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath who between them took over 70 per cent of the wickets in Australia’s Test wins. Great Test teams tend to roll on their bowlers even more than on their batsmen.Even so, it is only in India that the weaknesses have been exposed like this, that too only in Mohali. The moment Ricky Ponting’s men return home, their cricket will pick up on the true and sporting pitches with bounce where the premium will be on sustained fast bowling.It is in cricket outside Australia that the world champions will be sorely tested from now on. It must be an enduring mystery to them why their bowlers are unable to reverse swing the virtual new ball like Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma are doing. This, despite having Troy Cooley, the coach who is thought to have taught the Englishmen their bag of swing tricks that tilted the â€㯉 Ashes, on their side now.Adding to their woes in India will be the fact that the Kotla is very much the home team’s favourite hunting grounds where India have won their last seven Test matches and where they have not been beaten for more than two decades since Richards and Logie defied a steep fourth innings target soon after the first World Cup in the subcontinent.The Aussies cannot point their fingers at the chit-chat that is going on. Having once been the masters of the game of mental disintegration, it would sound a bit peevish on their part if they should even speak of the banter out in the middle. Ponting has brushed aside all such media talk, saying India were such front runners in the game they were naturally a bit more vocal too.Truth to tell, events have caught up with the Aussies. Major stars have walked away over the last couple of years and an attack run by virtual greenhorns is not designed to get over the harsh bowling conditions of India where the pitches have shown a distinct tendency to slow down rather than really deteriorate.The days of total domination of the opposition may be over already. Playing India, who have taken more Tests off them six in the new millennium than any other country, at a time when their resources have declined is a proposition made that much tougher. It would still take some doing for India or South Africa to displace Australia from their perch. What has happened now is the Australians are being welcomed back to the pack. They are no more the juggernauts of world cricket.