Australia has regained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the first time since 2014, securing a dominant 3-1 series victory with a six-wicket win over India in the fifth and final Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).
This win has also earned Australia a spot in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final, where they will face South Africa at Lord’s in June.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese celebrated Australia’s emphatic series victory over India, taking to social media to commend Pat Cummins and his team: “Congratulations to @patcummins30 and the Australian cricket team on a fantastic victory in an enthralling tough series.”
Despite a promising start to the series with a commanding 295-run win in the opening Test, India faltered in the following matches. In Sydney, Indian batters once again struggled, failing to breach the 200-run mark in both innings. Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant was the standout performer for India, scoring 40 and 61 in the respective innings, while the rest of the batting line-up, including stars like Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, underperformed.
Australia’s pace attack, led by 35-year-old Scott Boland, dismantled India. Boland took 10 wickets in the match, earning the Player of the Match award, while Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc shared eight more. Cummins also contributed crucial breakthroughs in India’s second innings, where the visitors added only 16 runs to their overnight score of 6-141.
Chasing 162 for victory, Australia faced early turbulence, losing three wickets for 19 runs after a rapid start by openers Sam Konstas (22) and Usman Khawaja (41). Steve Smith, who needed just one run to reach 10,000 career Test runs, fell agonisingly short, dismissed for four.
However, Travis Head (34*) and debutant Beau Webster (39*) steadied the innings, punishing errant Indian bowlers to seal the win before tea on day three. Webster, playing his first Test, fittingly hit the winning runs with a boundary over mid-off.
Australia’s captain, Pat Cummins, praised his team’s resilience and achievement. “It’s such a special group. Really proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish, and we’re having the best time of our lives doing it together,” he said. Cummins’ leadership has been transformative, guiding Australia to every major bilateral trophy, the 2023 Cricket World Cup, and now a spot in the WTC final.
India’s captain Jasprit Bumrah, named Player of the Series for his 32 wickets, was unable to bowl on the final day due to back spasms, leaving the Indian attack short-handed in a crucial moment.
With this emphatic series win, Australia heads to Lord’s as favourites to claim the WTC title, while India faces questions about their batting fragility and missed opportunities.
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