The series loss against Australia also ended India’s hopes of reaching the ICC World Test Championships final, scheduled at the Lord’s in June, this year.
The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) pitch, used for the recent fifth and final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT), has managed to received a ‘satisfactory’ rating from the International Cricket Council (ICC) despite rolling out one of the spiciest wickets of this century.
The Border-Gavaskar series may have ended on a disappointing note for India with several stalwarts failing to deliver when the team needed them the most during the 1-3 loss -- their first in a decade, but one player left everyone speechless and earned praises from his teammates and opposition alike.
Australia would be hoping for Jasprit Bumrah to remain in the sidelines for the rest of the fifth and final Test after India’s pace spearhead and stand-in skipper was forced out of the ground with back spasms on day two of the Sydney Test.
Acknowledging the inconsistency of the surface at the Sydney Cricket Ground, India pacer Prasidh Krishna said there is no particular target in mind after his team ended up with an overall lead of 145 with four wickets in their bag after the second day’s play in the fifth and final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy on Saturday.
Former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting believes 19-year-old rookie opener Sam Konstas has what it takes to make a mark in the remaining Border-Gavaskar trophy Tests against India.
If Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane were Australian strongholds, Melbourne brings happy memories for India as the tourists return to the iconic ground having won the last two Tests at the MCG in 2018-19 and 2020-21, and the New Year’s Test in Sydney will bring spin into play.
Two days ahead of the Boxing Day Test, Rohit Sharma insisted he was “fine” after a nasty knock to his knee while batting at the Melbourne Cricket Ground nets on Sunday even as he preferred to keep discussions regarding India’s batting order to the confines of the dressing room.
Rohit Sharma’s decision to bat in the middle order in the Adelaide and Brisbane Tests, has failed to yield the desired results for the Indian team in the Border-Gavaskar series so far.
Putting an end to the speculations around Mohammed Shami’s return to international cricket for the fourth and fifth Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, BCCI’s medical team has ruled the star quick out of the tour due to swelling on his left knee.
