There is nothing quite as compelling as a Test match that goes down to the wire. The Boxing Day Test between Australia and India at the MCG had everything, including the largest ever crowd to watch a Test match. The fifth and final game of the series in Sydney, should be just as thrilling.
Sydney has been in the habit of delivering Draws in recent times. Of the last ten Tests played at the venue six have ended in draws while there have been two wind a piece for the side batting first and second respectively.
The SCG is known to be friendly to spin bowlers – but that’s not to say that it is an unhappy hunting ground for quicks either. In short it is generally a fair wicket that offers something for everyone.
Australia vs India | Fifth Test | Friday 03 January 2025 | SCG, Sydney | 01:30am
Australia
A spot in the final of the WTC against South Africa is now Australia’s to lose. It’s hard to know if this will influence how they play, but they can afford to be a bit more conservative now and make India chase the game.
While Jasprit Bumrah is the number one ranked bowler in the world, Australia are not doing too badly in the rankings either with Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins at two and three respectively.
Nathan Lyon is at seven. Those three bowlers are the leading Test wicket-takers at the SCG in recent times and they will be looking forward to adding to their impressive hauls at the venue.
From a batting perspective, there are a few Aussie batsmen who will be desperate to head into the middle at what has been a very successful venue for them. Steve Smith averages 72.08 from 13 innings at the ground while Marnus Labuschagne weighs in with 81.44.
But neither of those can compare to local hero Usman Khawaja who averages 104 from 12 innings.
In his last five knocks at the SCG Khawaja has scores of 137, 101*, 195*, 47 and a duck.
To Win Match
9/10 Australia | Draw 15/4 | India 21/10
India
India’s latest batting prodigy is Yashasvi Jaiswal – he is now the fourth highest ranked batsman in the world. He moved ahead of Travis head after the MCG game where he posted scores of 82 and 84.
His first innings run out was one of the key moments of the game as it swung matters decisively towards Australia just when it had looked like it was getting away from them.
Virat Kohli continues to look like a man past his best as he struggled once again in Melbourne.
At the centre of the Jaiswal run out he managed scores of 36 and five as he looks a long way off the assured and composed destroyer of days-gone-by.
Another potentially fading star is skipper Rohit Sharma who, like Kohli, has struggled for runs this series. He’s averaging 10.93 in his last nine Tests and only 6.2 in this series.
It has reached the point where his lack of form has led to suggestions he may be dropped for the last Test.
Sharma was not present at the final press conference on Thursday morning and when coach Gautam Gambhir was asked in Sharma would play he simply said: “We’re going to have a look at the wicket and finalise it [the XI] tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Sharma has called on Rishabh Pant to temper his aggression after another reckless dismissal led to the collapse that culminated in defeat by Australia in the fourth Test.
Pant is a batsman of extraordinary skill, but he needs to remember that there is a difference between Test cricket at T20.
While India’s Jaiswal has been the shining light with the bat, Bumrah continues to be the master with ball in hand.
Ranked number one in the world and far and away the best bowler in the current series, Bumrah has taken 30 wickets in the series to date at an average of 12.83.
To put that into context, Australia’s Pat Cummins is second best with 20 wickets at 22.65.
Verdict: India
It’s a tight call, but with the destiny of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at stake (India will keep it in the event of a draw) and with India potentially making some key changes and learning some key lessons, expect them to fight their way back.
