On 3 January, 2025, the 5th and final test match between India and Australia which took place at Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). Both the teams. India won the toss and choose to bat first, which aimed to put all the runs so that could determine the fate of the series, the bowlers of Australia led by Scott Boland made an important encroached to keep the game on knife-edge.
The top order of India was tested early, and the team of India found themselves at very risky position as the bowlers of Australia came out firing. The SCG is known for its speed and bounce, and that is not easy for batsmen.
Rohit Sharma as well as Shubman Gill were both dismissed cheaply and that was the reduction to 40/3 in early stages for India, with Australian seamers who were consistently applying pressure.
Moreover, Rishabh Pant played a significant knock, was showing his ability counterattack under pressure. As he is left-handed wicketkeeper-batsman and scored for India with a gritty 40 runs. The aiming of pant was both defence and aggression, as he is soaked up pressure as well as also managed to find the boundaries. He has partnership with Ravindra Jadeja (contributed 30 runs) played an important role in the Indian innings during the batting phase.
The stand out performer for Australia on day 1 was undoubtably Scott Boland. The right-arm pacer was brutal as he picked up four essential wickets while ripping apart both the top and middle orders of India. Boland was able to trouble all of the Indian batsmen who faced him due to the bouncing SCG pitch and his perfect bowling. His fellow pacers Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc complemented him perfectly, helping to apply pressure.
As India managed to get out for 168, the innings of Australia began under dark skies. They did however lose a crucial wicket in the first over and started to lose control over the match for a period of time. Shami however came to their rescue being an experienced player who had discipline throughout the Indian innings, taking out the Australians so that the score at the end was 9/1.
With India looking like they were on top of Australia unfazed switched into their attacking game mode. It was at this time they focused on their middle order in hopes that they could withstand the pressure. Australia’s overnight batsman on day two Khawaja and Labuschagne would be the difference for the Australians if they were to win against India with having sufficient runs against them.
With the match evenly poised, as both teams struggled on the first day, there are expectations of a riveting continuation. Although India scored 168, which isn’t a very big score by any means, it could prove difficult to turn around if their bowlers find the right lengths consistently. As for Australia, the most daunting prospect is the top-order collapse and now it will be all up to the middle-order to ensure recovery.
The live match appears tilted just a little bit in India’s favor with Australia at 9/1 but as day one draws to a close, there is still a lot of crickets left to be played and both teams will aim to capitalize on the remaining time in this crucial test.
