#INDvAUS: Back to grind after trekking break for Team India

If someone who was oblivious to the happenings of the first India-Australia Test was to be told about what both teams did after the game, he/she would have, in all probability, guessed the outcome of the match wrong.

Australia, who had walloped the hosts by 333 runs inside three days last Saturday in the first Test in Pune, were back to sweating it out again on Monday after a day's rest, training on the same ground in which they had scripted one of their most memorable Test victories.

The Indians, on the other hand, who had suffered a rare defeat after 19 unbeaten Tests -- and a really big one at that -- decided to take a break.

The entire team headed into the wild for a round of trekking on Monday, exploring their adventurous side at the Tamhini Ghat located about 70km from Pune. It was a planned team activity by the team management before heading out to Bengaluru the next day.

It was almost like the two sides swapped reactions. The team that won went back to cricket, while the team that lost went far away from it.

But sometimes, the trick in dealing with shocking losses is to completely get it out of your system, more so for an Indian team that has made winning at home a ridiculously easy habit since last year. The defeat in Pune was an aberration, and the Indian team management made sure it was treated as one.

"It was to make us stay closer as a team," India opener Murali Vijay said in Bengaluru on Wednesday about the idea of taking a couple of days off and going on the trek.

"We have been on the road for a while now, and such kind of activities helps a lot. We had a break of a couple of days, as we finished the match early. So, we planned on going for a trek and getting out of the normal things that we do. The idea was to do something different, and it was fun," Vijay added.

Back into cricket mode in Bengaluru ahead of the second Test from Saturday, Team India wants to start afresh, without any of the scars from Pune. They want to put Australia under the lid right from the first ball, something everyone predicted them to do before the first Test.

But there was a swap there as well. And now, the Indians want to react the way they're expected to: the way a World No. 1 Test team should.

"Obviously, we lost the game. We have to accept that fact and move forward. We have spoken about it and we're looking forward to this game. (We want to) Start fresh and put the pressure back on the Aussies.

"This game will test our characters, and that's what we are playing cricket for. Hopefully, we can play the way we should and the way we have played before," Vijay said.

The longer-than-expected break in between the two Tests wasn't just about trekking, though. The Indians reflected upon the things that went horribly wrong in the opening round of the four Test series. And those reflective moments weren't about countering a Steve O'Keefe or Mitchell Starc or Steve Smith threat, but more about a look within.

"We've got to think about our own game and put it out in the team in the team meetings. That's what we have done in the last couple of days. We sat down and spoke about things that we should have done better. Hopefully, we can come into this game in a positive frame of mind right from the first ball," Vijay said.

'Pune wicket not poor'

The pitch at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune might have been rated as poor by the International Cricket Council match referee Chris Broad, but Vijay reckoned such turning tracks was required in international cricket. "I wouldn't say the Pune wicket was a poor wicket. It was a much more challenging wicket from ball one. As cricketers, we need such wickets to test our ability rather than play every time on flat or seaming wickets. It was actually a good thing for me to play on a wicket like that to test your character and ability," he said. The India opener added that the pitch for the second Test in Bengaluru looked a "good wicket".