Tag: India vs Australia Test series

AHMEDABAD: India won their fourth series in a row against Australia after a fourth and final Test lit up by an epic 186 by Virat Kohli ended in a draw on Monday in Ahmedabad.

The hosts won the series 2-1 and the world’s two top-ranked teams will do battle again on June 7-11 at The Oval in the World Test Championship final.

Even before the players shook hands on day five, India knew they had reached the WTC decider thanks to New Zealand’s thrilling last-ball win over Sri Lanka earlier in the day.

It will be India’s second successive WTC final, having lost the inaugural edition to New Zealand in 2021.

Australia reached 175-2 in their second innings in the final session of play at the world’s biggest cricket stadium when the players of both teams called it a day.

“We do understand the importance of this series and the opposition. Lot of hard work has gone into this,” India skipper Rohit Sharma said.

Coach Rahul Dravid told broadcaster Star Sports: “It was a really hard-fought series, there were moments where we were put under extreme pressure by a really good cricket team and we responded.”

India similarly lifted the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at home in 2017 and then beat the Australians in their own back yard in 2018-19 and 2020-21, each time 2-1.

Travis Head (90) and Marnus Labuschagne (63 not out) snuffed out India’s push for a victory on the final day with a stand of 139 after nightwatchman Matthew Kuhnemann fell early for six.

The left-handed Head, capping a successful series after being left out of the first Test, missed out on his century after being bowled by Axar Patel.

Regular opener Usman Khawaja did not to bat due to “lower leg soreness” after getting hurt while fielding on day four.

The match in Ahmedabad belonged though to Kohli, who hit a masterful knock on day four to end a Test century drought of 1,205 days since his previous ton.

The marathon 364-ball knock blocked every chance of a potential defeat for the hosts after Australia posted 480 on a vastly different pitch from the previous three Tests.

Kohli, one of the best players of his generation, recorded his 28th Test century to power India to 571 all out on Sunday as India managed a lead of 91 after their first innings.

“I think in Test cricket I wasn’t able to play with my tempo and template that I have played with for the last 10 years for a while now,” said the man-of-the-match.

Kohli’s partnership of 162 for the sixth wicket with Axar, who hit his third half-century of the series with an attacking 79, marked India’s dominance on Sunday.

Opener Shubman Gill hit 128 to lead India’s reply and make the most of his opportunity after being added to the team in place of struggling KL Rahul in the third Test.

Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin excelled with his six wickets in Australia’s first innings, in a run-filled match which was at odds with the first three Tests.

Ashwin managed 25 wickets in the series, ahead of Ravindra Jadeja’s 22, as the spin duo received the player-of-the-series award jointly.

Not to be outdone, Australian spinner Nathan Lyon took 22 wickets including three in the final Test and was ably supported by up-and-coming spinners Todd Murphy and Kuhnemann.

“The spinners bowled really well,” said stand-in-skipper Steve Smith.

“Murphy and Kuhnemann bowled with composure. Lyon bowled his best in the first innings here, the best I have seen him bowl.”

An Australia team which lost several players to injury and personal circumstances had appeared on the brink of chaos after being well beaten inside three days in the first two Tests.

But the tourists roared back to win the third match in Indore in just over two days on a viciously turning track to keep the series alive until the final match.

Smith led Australia in the final two Tests after regular captain Pat Cummins returned home to be with his seriously ill mother. She died last week.

The two teams now head into three one-day internationals starting Friday in Mumbai, ahead of the 50-over World Cup in India later this year.

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AHMEDABAD: Virat Kohli hit his first Test century in more than three years with a towering 186 as India batted themselves out of danger of a series-levelling defeat to Australia in the fourth Test on Sunday.

The hosts finished their first innings on 571 to overhaul Australia’s 480 and get a first-innings lead of 91 on another run-filled day four at the world’s biggest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad.

Kohli was the last man out after he fell to Todd Murphy in the final session of play as India lost their ninth wicket and Shreyas Iyer did not bat due to back pain.

Australia reached three for no loss at stumps with Travis Head getting the runs while alongside nightwatchman Matthew Kuhnemann.

The left-handed Kuhnemann made a surprise entry to the crease after opener Usman Khawaja, who hit 180 in Australia’s innings, did not come out to bat after getting hurt on the field.

Kohli ruled the day with his 28th Test ton after he got a single off spinner Nathan Lyon in the second session to bring the house down as fans went wild with celebration.

Kohli, who now has 75 international tons across three international formats, kissed his locket before looking up to the sky.

Resuming on 59 after reaching his first Test half-century on Saturday since January 2022, the landmark came after a patient innings of 241 balls.

Kohli then hit a flurry of fours after reaching his hundred and along with an attacking Axar Patel, who made 79, put on a marathon stand of 162 for the sixth wicket.

Khawaja attempted to catch an Axar six at the boundary but could not stay inside the rope, hurting his foot in the process and limping off the field.

Kohli got past 150 after tea and Axar raised his third half-century of the series to wear down the opposition bowlers on a pitch vastly different from the rank turners in the previous three matches.

Spinners Lyon and Murphy bowled 110.5 overs between to get three wickets each on another day of hard grind for the bowlers.

Axar went into fifth gear after his fifty as he slogged and smashed Kuhnemann for two sixes in an over before being bowled off an inside edge by Mitchell Starc.

Kohli lost his overnight partner Ravindra Jadeja for 28 in the morning session and Srikar Bharat fell in the afternoon after the wicketkeeper-batsman hit 44 in an 84-run partnership with the former captain.

Iyer didn’t come out to bat after he went for scans following complaints of lower back pain after the end of day three.

Opener Shubman Gill led India’s strong reply on Saturday with his 128 before he fell to Lyon, who returned with figures of 3-151 from 65 overs.

India need a win to clinch the series and be sure of a berth in the World Test Championship final in June.

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AHMEDABAD: Shubman Gill’s sparkling century and an unbeaten 59 by Virat Kohli kept India strong in their first innings reply against a persistent Australian spin attack in the fourth Test on Saturday.

India reached 289-3 at stumps, still trailing Australia’s 480 by 191 runs on day three at the world’s biggest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad.

Gill stood out with his 128 — the opener’s second Test ton — as he built key partnerships including a 113-run stand for the second wicket with Cheteshwar Pujara, who made 42.

Spinners kept coming back with wickets as Nathan Lyon, Matthew Kuhnemann and Todd Murphy took one each on a pitch favouring the batsmen.

The 23-year-old Gill, who replaced a struggling KL Rahul in the third Test, hit 12 fours and one big six in a good show of batting to surpass his previous Test best of 110.

He finally fell lbw to Lyon’s off spin in the final session before Kohli took charge along with the left-handed Ravindra Jadeja, on 16, to see off the day’s play.

Kohli reached his first Test half-century since January 2022 after a jittery start to his innings when he got off the mark on the 12th ball.

Australia delayed taking the second new ball, available to the fielding side after the 80th over, by 14 overs.

Earlier Gill overcame a tough spell of run-making in the second session to raise his ton with a fine sweep off Murphy, taking a bow as the raucous weekend crowd applauded, but lost his partner Pujara four balls later.

Murphy trapped Pujara lbw, ending a stand which prospered after skipper Rohit Sharma fell to Kuhnemann’s left-arm spin for 35 in the morning session.

Australia’s stand-in-skipper Steve Smith rotated his bowlers, who remained disciplined in their line and length to test the batsmen’s patience for much of the hot afternoon.

Gill broke the shackles with two successive boundaries off Cameron Green to bring the crowd alive with delightful cover drives.

India started the day on 36-0 and kept attacking.

Mitchell Starc bowled to plan with his short balls and a heavy leg-side field, but Rohit took on the challenge as he smashed the left-arm quick for a four and a six at long leg.

The pitch has been vastly different from the viciously spinning tracks in the previous three Tests and Usman Khawaja made Australia take early advantage with his 180.

India lead the four-match series 2-1 after Australia won the third Test.

The hosts need a win to clinch the series and secure a berth in the World Test Championship final in June.

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SYDNEY: Australia skipper Pat Cummins will not be part of the third Test of the series against India in Indore as he decided to stay home due to a family emergency. 

The fast bowler returned to Australia just hours after the second Test in Delhi to be with his mother who is in critical health condition. He was supposed to come back and join the team in Indore before the third Test, scheduled from March 1 to 5.

Cricket Australia has now confirmed that Cummins will remain in the country, citing his mother’s illness and palliative care as a reason.

“I have decided against returning to India at this time as my mother is ill and in palliative care. I feel I am best being here with my family,” Cummins said in a CA statement on Friday.

“I appreciate the overwhelming support I have received from Cricket Australia and my team-mates. Thanks for your understanding.”

In the absence of Cummins, vice-captain Steve Smith will lead the side in Indore with visitors trailing 2-0 in the series after crushing losses in the first two Tests.

Meanwhile, Josh Hazlewood, David Warner and Ashton Agar also returned home due to various reasons but Australia did not name any replacements to fill the void. They now expect left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc and all-rounder Cameron Green to be completely fit before the third Test after both were sidelined with finger injuries.

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SYDNEY: Australia opening batsman David Warner will return home from India and miss the last two Tests after an elbow fracture and concussion, Cricket Australia said Tuesday.

It is the second injury blow in two days for struggling Australia, who are 2-0 down in the four-Test series.

Fast bowler Josh Hazlewood was sent home Monday after failing to recover from an Achilles tendon injury.

Warner was hit on the helmet shortly after being struck on the elbow on the opening day of the second Test defeat in Delhi. He was replaced by concussion substitute Matt Renshaw.

Warner, who scored just 26 runs as Australia lost both of the opening two matches, will miss the third and fourth Tests at Indore and Ahmedabad but it is hoped he can return for the subsequent one-day series.

“David Warner has been ruled out of the Test tour of India and will return home,” a Cricket Australia statement said.

“After further assessment, he will require a period of rehabilitation which will preclude any further involvement in the remainder of the Test series.

“It is currently anticipated that he will return to India for the three one-day internationals which follow the Test series.”

Australia captain Pat Cummins has also flown home because of a family illness but is expected to return in time for the third Test, which starts on March 1.

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NEW DELHI: India spinner Ravindra Jadeja on Sunday returned career-best figures of 7-42 to help India take an unbeatable 2-0 Test series lead with a six-wicket thrashing of Australia inside three days of a dramatic match.

Jadeja, a left-arm orthodox bowler, teamed up with fellow spinner Ravichandran Ashwin to dismiss Australia for 113 in a morning session when the tourists’ batting imploded, thanks to overusing the sweep shot on a tricky New Delhi pitch.

The hosts romped to their victory target of 115 in the second session, guaranteeing that they retain the Border-Gavaskar trophy in the four-match series.

They have won their previous three series against Australia and are now close to securing a spot in the World Test Championship final.

India lost skipper Rohit Sharma, run out after a fluent 31, and Virat Kohli, who surpassed 25,000 international runs during his innings, stumped on 20.

Nathan Lyon took two wickets to return a match-haul of seven.

Cheteshwar Pujara stood firm with 31 in his landmark 100th Test to steer his team home with a winning four, as wicketkeeper-batsman Srikar Bharat, unbeaten on 23, looked on.

“We were prepared for them coming out and playing shots,” Rohit said of his team’s bowling plan.

“Our idea was to not panic and just hit the right areas, waiting for the mistake to happen, and that’s exactly what happened.”

He added: “So our focus was keeping it tight in the morning, and these guys (Jadeja and Ashwin) are the masters of bowling in these conditions.”

Australia, who also lost the opening Test inside three days, crashed from their overnight 61-1 to be bowled out in 31.1 overs, after losing nine wickets for 52 runs in just over 90 minutes of mayhem.

Jadeja improved on his previous Test best of 7-48, adding to the three he took in the first innings. Ashwin grabbed the remaining three in the Australian second innings.

Off-spinner Ashwin struck in the first over of the day to get Travis Head caught behind for 43, three balls after the left-hander hit a boundary to add to his overnight score.

‘This loss hurts’

Marnus Labuschagne attempted to take the attack to the opposition with the paddle shot and the reverse sweep, but was bowled by Jadeja for 35.

David Warner’s concussion substitute Matt Renshaw looked clueless against spin in his eight balls at the crease, before he missed an attempted sweep, giving Ashwin another lbw.

Wickets fell like nine-pins and Lyon narrowly averted a Jadeja hat-trick. The bowler kept up the charge to wrap up the Australian innings, which started on a promising note near the end of day two.

“Everyone controls their own game, some balls just have your name,” skipper Pat Cummins said on the overuse of the sweep. “But we need a review on the shot choice.

“Both games were disappointing, this one in particular,” he added. “We were ahead in the game and that doesn’t happen often in India. This loss hurts.”

Man of the match Jadeja said the sweep shot was “not a good option” against him on this pitch, which saw low bounce.

Axar Patel set up victory with his counter-attacking 74 on Saturday, lifting India from a precarious 139-7 to just one short of Australia’s first-innings total.

The left-hander put on a key 114-run eighth-wicket stand with Ashwin to turn the tables on Australia, who kept coming back with Lyon leading the bowling charge.

Lyon returned figures of 5-67 with his off-spin and was supported by fellow spinners Todd Murphy and debutant Matthew Kuhnemann — both of whom took two each.

The third match will be played in Indore from March 1.

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NAGPUR: Indian spinner Ravindra Jadeja grabbed a five-wicket haul on his international return as India ruled the opening day of the first Test against Australia on Thursday.

Jadeja returned figures of 5-47 and fellow spinner Ravichandran Ashwin took three wickets to bowl out Australia for 177 in the final session on a turning Nagpur pitch.

In reply, India were 77 for one at stumps, with skipper Rohit Sharma on 56 and Ashwin, yet to score, at the crease. The hosts still trail Australia by 100 runs.

Rohit began by hitting three boundaries off Australian skipper Pat Cummins’ first over, and put on 76 runs with opening partner KL Rahul, who made a laboured 20.

The Indian captain reached his fifty with a four off Nathan Lyon and remained sharp to see off the day’s play.

Rahul fell caught and bowled off debutant spinner Todd Murphy, who celebrated his first Test wicket.

Jadeja, a left-arm orthodox bowler who came back into the Indian side after a knee injury, stood out with his guile, taking key wickets including those of Marnus Labuschagne (49) and Steve Smith (37).

Both Australians had launched a fightback with their third-wicket 82-run stand after losing openers Usman Khawaja and David Warner early in the day.

Peter Handscomb (31) and wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey (36) also put on a partnership of 53 before Ashwin ended Carey’s spell at the crease to record his 450th Test wicket.

Jadeja’s double strike on successive balls soon after lunch rocked the tourists as he sent back Labuschagne and then trapped Matt Renshaw for a first-ball duck.

He later bowled Smith with a delivery that went through his bat and pad.

Ashwin and Jadeja kept up the charge to get into the Australian tail when the tourists took tea at 174-8, and added just three runs in the final session.

Earlier, seamer Mohammed Siraj struck on his first ball to get Khawaja trapped lbw for one with a delivery that swung in to the left-hander, after the tourists elected to bat at the start of the four-match series.

An appeal was turned down by the on-field umpire but India successfully reviewed the decision.

Mohammed Shami raised the noise in the next over when the seamer bowled the left-handed Warner for one.

Australia controversially left out in-form left-hand batsman Travis Head, while India handed Test caps to Twenty20 sensation Suryakumar Yadav and wicketkeeper Srikar Bharat.

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NAGPUR: India skipper Rohit Sharma and Australian counterpart Pat Cummins on Wednesday brushed aside concerns about the pitch ahead of the first of four eagerly awaited Tests.

Australian commentators have said that a bone-dry pitch has been prepared in Nagpur to make life difficult for the visitors’ many left-handed batsmen in the match starting Thursday.

Cricket writer Robert Craddock told broadcaster SEN that if parts of the pitch had been prepared specifically to target Australia’s left-handed batsmen, it would amount to “straight-up pitch doctoring”.

Former Australia all-rounder Simon O’Donnell said the International Cricket Council “should step in and do something about it, if they think it’s not right”.

But Cummins told reporters that Australia’s batters would take the pitch in their stride.

“Potentially, it looks a little bit dry for the left-handers and knowing how much traffic will probably go through there from the right-arm bowlers,” said Cummins.

“It might be a fair bit of rough out there. Again that’s something we just got to embrace. It’s going to be fun, it’s going to be challenging at times, but we have batters who relish the chance to problem solve on their feet.”

Australia’s set of key left-handers includes David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Alex Carey, Matt Renshaw and Travis Head.

Their right-handers include Steve Smith — who scored three centuries including a brilliant 178 during Australia’s 2017 tour of India — and Marnus Labuschagne, currently number one in the ICC Test rankings.

Cummins said that getting a good first-innings lead in India was more important than anywhere else in the world.

“You just got to find a way to put a big total on the board, especially thinking if it’s going to spin, it’s going to get really hard in the second innings,” the fast bowler said.

‘Not bothered’

Indian skipper Sharma also downplayed concerns about the pitch, saying that the “focus is on playing the game”.

“(In the) last series we played here, a lot was spoken about pitches. All 22 (players) are quality cricketers and not bothered about how much it is turning, how much it is seaming and all that.”

India are likely to field three spinners, including Ravichandran Ashwin and the returning Ravindra Jadeja, but Sharma did not reveal the starting line-up.

Cummins confirmed that Australia would be without injured pacers Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc as well as all-rounder Cameron Green.

Foreign teams have often struggled to overcome conditions in India, with England thrashed 3-1 in 2021.

Australia last won a Test series in India in 2004 and India have won the teams’ last three encounters, including twice in Australia.

A draw in any of the four Tests will be enough to secure world number one Australia a place in the ICC World Test Championship final at The Oval in June.

Second-placed India need to win at least 3-0 to assure themselves of a spot in that final for the second year running.

Indian cricket commentator Harsh Bhogle also brushed aside chatter about the pitch.

“So much talk about pitches before the game starts! For one, it is the same for both teams. And second, it has to present a challenge to the touring side. That is the essence of home and away contests,” Bhogle wrote on Twitter.

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