AUS vs IND: 5th Test Review – Australia end a 10-year wait to reclaim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy
India suffered a six-wicket defeat on Day 3 in the fifth and final Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Sunday, January 5. With this win, Australia reclaimed the coveted Border-Gavaskar Trophy after a long wait of 10 years. India suffered a batting collapse in the morning session as they lost their last four wickets for just 16 runs. The Asian giants were bowled out for 157 and the home side needed to chase down a 162-run target to win the match.
Unfortunately for India, the highest wicket-taker in the series, Jasprit Bumrah, couldn’t come out to bowl on Day 3 as he watched the proceedings from the dressing room with a sore back. After leaving the field to get his scans done on Day 2, there was a massive cloud of uncertainty over Bumrah’s participation in the rest of the Test match. He did come out to bat on Sunday, but he wasn’t fit enough to add to his tally of 32 wickets in the series.
Australia lost four wickets during their run-chase but Travis Head (34) and Beau Webster (39) took their team to victory and helped them win the high-voltage series by a 3-1 margin.
Top Performers of the match
Beau Webster
Webster top-scored for Australia in the first innings in his debut Test and played an excellent cameo in the second. In the first innings, he scored an important half-century and followed it up with an unbeaten 39 off 34 in the second. He hit six fours in the second innings and batted with a lot of maturity alongside the experienced Travis Head.
Scott Boland
Boland continued tormenting India as he took the last two wickets of the visitors’ second innings on Day 3. He finished with remarkable figures of 6/45 in 16.5 overs. He had picked up four wickets in the first innings as well. This was the first time the right-arm seamer picked up 10 wickets in an innings in a Test match.
What’s next for the two teams?
India will take on England in a white-ball series, comprising five T20Is and three ODIs at home. The first T20I takes place on January 22. Meanwhile, Australia will travel to Sri Lanka to play two Tests and a solitary ODI.
