#INDvsAUS, 2nd Test: Dear Team India, the Aussies just taught you a lesson in playing spin on a rank turner

Team India have never been considered great tourists. Their overseas record speaks for itself. A series victory on foreign soil is always hard to come by, and a draw is often considered a positive result. 'India will truly be considered the No.1 team in the world when they win Test series abroad,' is a sentiment skipper Virat Kohli must have surely come across on multiple occasions.

However, for all their struggles away from home, India have traditionally been a dominating force in their own den. Growing up on soft wickets, that are alien to overseas players, India are always the favourites going into a series.

As Australia was embarking on it's journey to India this time around, there was a lot of talk - some of which bordered on hyperbole - about how the hosts would annihilate their opposition. Kohli's men were in the middle of a stellar home season. New Zealand had been dominated, England avenged, and Bangladesh humbled. The apex team in the world had racked up a 19-match unbeaten steak, too.

Add to that, the Aussies hadn't really inspired great confidence in their practice game against India A before the first Test. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Mumbai youngster Shreyas Iyer had bullied their attack en route his double-century in that contest.

What then, has led to what we're witnessing today? The all-conquering Team India is finding it hard to win a single session of a Test match. In the first match in Pune, the famed Indian batting line-up barely managed to scrape past three figures in both innings. And just as legends of the game suggested that what happened was an aberration, the hosts got bundled out cheaply in the first innings of the second Test as well.

Now, there's no doubt in the fact that the touring spinners have bowled well. Even though Steve O'Keefe hasn't yet earned the respect of many, bagging 12 wickets in a match is no mean feat. Nathan Lyon, too, was immaculate in his line, length and speed as he picked up eight wickets in India's first innings in Bengaluru.

However, that cannot be an excuse for India's deplorable performance thus far.

On the same wickets, against the two top-ranked spinners in the world - Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja - the Australians have batted with remarkable application to put themselves in winning positions. Yes, that has been the difference between the two sides – application.

While the Aussie batsmen devised a thorough plan and came prepared to grind it out, the Indian superstars have been rather casual in their approach. While Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Shaun Marsh and the likes have put their heads down and taken calculated risks, the Indian batsmen have shown little 'intent' while playing a flurry of predetermined strokes.

Has complacency got the better of Team India? Whatever the reason may be, Smith and Co are beating Kohli's men in their own game.