My series ratings:
Renshaw 6.5 - showed terrific temperment in grinding out runs in the first and second Test, but didn't convert any of his starts into a big, match-defining score. Would want to forget the 4th Test quickly too.
Warner 4 - disappointing. Got a few starts but never really looked comfortable and didn't kick on with them or even bat time and build partnerships with other people in the batting lineup. If Australia were to win he needed to reverse his largely poor away record, and he didn't really.
Smith 9.5 - misses out on the 10 because he failed in the second Test that Australia lost. But batted as well as was realistically possible. Nearly single handedly carried a pretty inexperienced and brittle lineup to a remarkable Test victory, and also mostly captained very well. I understand giving the MOTS award to Jadeja, but I think Smith was the best performer of the series.
S Marsh 5.5 - two good innings, and a lot of failures. But both of his fifties were crucial, especially the second one. Hard to say whether the gamble was truly worth it, but I think his performances outstripped what Khawaja would've done, so I think he deserves a plus.
Handscomb 5 - given that a lot of his original selection was down to his ability against spin, he disappointed here. What was worse is that he actually managed starts in most of his innings, he just couldn't kick on. The one time he did however, it was crucial.
M Marsh 2 - bowling all-rounder picked as a batsman. In fairness he did manage a start at Pune that built up Australia's advantage and got a good partnership going with Smith, but probably shouldn't have been playing.
Wade 5 - I'll give him credit - he really wasn't that bad. His keeping could've been much worse, and he did manage some runs. Probably lacked quality batting performances when really required, though.
Starc 6 - bowling was solid without being spectactular although he did take some big wickets. His batting was very important for mine, especially at Pune where he dragged Australia out of the mire in the first innings. That shot he played at Bangalore, however.....
O'Keefe 6.5 - was on fire at Pune. But struggled a bit thereafter on less favourable surfaces. Still probably deserves credit, but I don't think he's done enough to overtake Lyon in the spinning pecking order.
Lyon 8 - largely very good. Did have some off days, but it was definitely a strong series for him. Put Australia in two pretty strong positions at Bangalore and Dhamarasala.
Hazlewood 7 - one great spell on a wicket that was perfect for his bowling, a bit middling otherwise. Did at least remain consistent though and probably could've done better with more luck.
Maxwell 7 - after Smith probably Australia's best batsman. Key century at Ranchi where a failure likely would've proven fatal, and at least tried to get Australia out of the mire at Dhamarasala.
Cummins 8 - welcome back. Was very good with the ball and with better luck we may be talking about a different result in the series.
Rahul 9 - only needed one big daddy hundred to push this score even higher. Six 50's on some pretty bowler-friendly decks is quite remarkable.
Vijay 4 - only one good innings, and it came on the flattest pitch of the series. Didn't do enough for mine.
Pujara 8 - not quite as consistent as Smith or Rahul, but had two genuinely great innings at Bangalore and Ranchi. Without them India loses the series.
Kohli 0 - **** batsman, **** bloke, **** captain. An embarrasment.
Rahane 5 - like Vijay only one key innings, but without it India would've likely lost that Test and therefore the series. So deserves a lot of credit for that innings.
Ashwin 6.5 - not at his best, but did manage some key performances when required, particularly in the second Test. That gets him an above average score.
Saha 7 - key contributions with the bat, keeping largely flawless. Very well played.
Jadeja 9 - consistently devastating with the ball when Kohli bothered to bowl him, and also managed some key blows with the bat. India's best player and probably the key player of the series.
J Yadav 1 - averaged 50 in a Test that O'Keefe took 12/70. That says a lot.
U Yadav 8 - top-class. Had been threatening to have that break-out series where he just dominates, and so it proved here. Made key contributions everywhere.
Sharma 4 - typical Sharma. Wasn't really awful but was more...."there" rather than making genuinely strong contributions.
Mukund 2 - gains points because his start at Bangalore was actually important, where a failure might've been harder for India to come back from. Still looked short of Test-class, mind you.
Nair 1 - not as embarrassing as Kohli, but pretty much as bad. Has his cards marked for the near future I suspect.
K Yadav 8 - when the series was on the line, delivered by destroying Australia's middle order. Very nice find.
Kumar 5 - bowled reasonably well without significant reward in his only Test. I do question his worth outside of the new ball, though.