It was a fitting way to send off two of India's favourite sons, Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble - a 2-0 series win over Australia, and with it the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Ganguly and Kumble are both stepping down from International cricket after serving their country for well over the past decade, and although Kumble could not play in the final Test due to an injury, at the conclusion of the match you got a sense of just how much these two players mean to their team mates.

The good thing for Indian cricket is that they seem well prepared for the departure of Ganguly and Kumble, with the likes of Youvraj Singh and young spinner Amit Mishra (who took three wickets in the final innings) the likely choices to take their places in the team.

They have obviously been preparing for their eventual retirements for some time, whereas Australia now seem to be struggling after losing a number of players.

We still don't think Australia's dominance over cricket has come to an end, but what is clear is that their strangle hold over cricket has been loosened. And, most importantly, their bully tactics now seem to be ineffectual against the other great Test sides in cricket, like India.

The Australians will be facing a lot of criticism, none more so than Ricky Ponting who chose to use part-time bowlers to speed up the over rate, rather than bowl front line bowlers to finish off the Indian lower order. It's been said that he was more concerned with his own well being rather than the interests of the team, as the captain can face suspension if the team is six overs behind schedule...which, at various stages, they were.

As Black Caps supporters we're very keen to see how our boys go against the Aussies in a week's time. The Black Caps will play two Tests against Australia, and although winning will be tough, we see a slight (and we mean very slight...) chance that the Black Caps can pounce on the wounded Aussies. It won't be easy, especially without the likes of Jacob Oram, but our batsmen should be able to withstand the lackluster bowling lineup of the Aussies.

Unfortunately, we think the Aussies will be too strong - even in their current state, which possibly doesn't say much for New Zealand cricket. But if there's one thing we've come to expect, it's that a wounded Aussie side can be very dangerous - and they don't come more wounded than the Australian team right now.

Photo credits, Flickr - hashmil (Ganguly), Prabu.S (Kumble)

For so long now, Australia has dominated the game of cricket in both Tests and ODIs - and it's no wonder when you look at the caliber of players they've had at their disposal.

But now it seems as though their "era of dominance" is coming to an end, as they look to the future without the likes of Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist, Justin Langer and Damien Martin, who have all retired over the past few seasons.

Of course life for the Australian cricket side will be different, and in fact they may not be as 'dominant' as they have been - how could they be, losing those sort of players? But it might be a bit premature to think that they are going to drop down the pecking order.

Anyone who thinks they're about to start losing to all manner of sides must have rocks in their head, because while they are struggling at the moment in India, you can almost guarantee they are not far off playing the sort of 'dominant' cricket we've come to expect from them over the past few years.

Lets put the tour to India into perspective:

1. India is never an easy place to tour.
2. India are a very good team, filled with stars who are capable of beating any team.
3. The Indians always seem to play their best cricket against the Aussies.

Of course this tour was going to be difficult. And, given the rivalry these two teams have had for so long now, it's no wonder the Indian side are fired up and playing outstanding cricket.

The only area where the Aussies may have lost an edge is in the bowling department. Their two best spinners (since Warney) - Brad Hogg and Stuart MacGill - both ended their careers soon after Warne did, leaving the Aussies with no quality back up. Cameron White is not a Test match spinner (at least of the quality we've come to expect from Australia), and while Michael Clarke may take a few wickets, he too can be very expensive.

Stuart Clarke is a good bowler, and is believed to be the next McGrath - but he is still a way off becoming a world class bowler of McGrath's stature. Given time, though, he could become one of the best.

Brett Lee may be struggling for form in India, but he is a strike player - and one of the best in the world. Once he finds his rhythm again, he'll go back to taking bags of wickets - you can guarantee that.

It's far too early to say that their dominance over the rest of the cricketing world is over, especially after only one series against a good Indian side.

Wait until after the summer is over before you write them off. A good judge of how well they are playing will come against New Zealand and England, who they should beat comfortably. If they don't - then we can start talking about their 'dominant era' possibly being over.

For now, we'll just wait and see.