5th Test: Australia beat India by 6 wickets to claim Border-Gavaskar Trophy after a decade

Sydney: After 2014/15, Australia were winless in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy on their home soil. But the tables turned under bright sunshine at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday, as the hosts beat India to win the fifth Test by six wickets and clinch the series 3-1.

In the morning, resuming from 141/6, India could add only 16 runs to its overnight total before their second innings ended in the first 45 minutes of day three. With the pitch having enough help and movement for seamers, Scott Boland and Pat Cummins picked two wickets each in an accurate bowling performance to end India’s innings quickly and set themselves up for a chase of 162.

The figures of 6-45 coming in 16.5 overs is also Boland’s first five-wicket haul in Tests since his iconic 6/7 on debut against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 2021 Ashes, as the seamer got a match haul of ten wickets, with the Sydney crowd in pink cheering for him with full energy.

In reply, with no Jasprit Bumrah to bowl due to a back spasm, Australia completed the chase in 27 overs, with Usman Khawaja (41), Beau Webster (39 not out) and Travis Head (34 not out) being the chief contributors.

Despite Prasidh Krishna taking three wickets, it wasn’t enough for India, who had a horrid bowling display, as Cummins & Co. finally got the trophy win they were desperate to seek for a long time, especially after being defeated by 295 runs in the opening game in Perth.

The win also means Australia, the 2023 World Test Championship winners, have qualified for the all-important final, where they will face South Africa at Lord’s in June.

For India, who lost control of the trophy after ten years, they have a lot of thinking to do in all aspects of the game, as well as in leadership duties and tactical planning.

In the morning, Ravindra Jadeja seemed to have got his attacking mojo by slicing a short and wide ball from Cummins for four, taking India’s lead past 150. But two balls later, Cummins got a fuller ball to angle in, then seam away and take the thin outside edge of Jadeja’s bat to Alex Carey and fall for 13 off 45 balls.

In his next over, Cummins got one to angle in from wide of the crease and seam in to castle Washington Sundar him through the gate for 12 off 43 balls. Boland got his six-fer by having Siraj edge to first slip and rattling Bumrah’s leg-stump, to end India’s innings a ball before 40 overs.

India’s start of defending 162 wasn’t ideal as Prasidh and Mohammed Siraj were all over the place in their lines and lengths to concede 35 runs in the first three overs, including eight wides and four leg-byes, apart from Sam Konstas hitting three quick boundaries.

But Prasidh finally got his lengths right and removed Konstas, who went for an almighty slog, but holed out to mid-off for 22. Shortly after Australia brought up their fifty, Prasidh struck again by having Marnus Labuschagne steer to gully for six.

Steve Smith crawled to 9,999 Test runs, and was one run short of reaching the 10,000 Test runs club. But Prasidh had other ideas, as he bowled a length ball that bounced sharply and took the outside edge of Smith’s bat and was caught by forward-diving gully.

Khawaja and Head hanged around till lunch came and ensured Australia didn’t lose another wicket in the first session. Post lunch, Khawaja got five quick boundaries off Prasidh and Siraj, as India conceded 33 runs in the first five overs.

Just when it seemed that Khawaja would get his second fifty of the series, he bottom-edged a pull shot behind to Rishabh Pant off Siraj and fell for 41 off 45 balls, giving the pacer his 100th Test wicket.

Webster, coming off an impressive 57 in the first innings, sparkled with his backfoot punch and leaning drives fetching him boundaries, while Head sliced Nitish Kumar Reddy for his third boundary and elegantly flicked Siraj for four more.

Webster’s assured backfoot play shined more when he pulled Siraj for four, sliced Nitish handsomely through gully and dished out a square drive off Washington Sundar for two fours.

He fittingly lofted Washington over mid-off for the winning four to get Australia home and win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the first time in a decade, as Webster ended his Test debut with scores of 57 and 39 not out, apart from taking a wicket and grabbing two sharp catches.

Brief Scores: India 185 and 157 in 39.5 overs (Rishabh Pant 61; Scott Boland 6-45) lost to Australia 181 and 162/4 in 27 overs (Usman Khawaja 41, Beau Webster 39 not out; Prasidh Krishna 3-65, Mohammed Siraj 1-69) by six wickets

IANS