Australia defeated India to reclaim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and reach the WTC final | Cricket News

Australia defeated India by six wickets in the fifth Test of the five-match series and reclaimed the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the first time in a decade.

After lunch on the third day of the final Test in Sydney on Sunday, the hosts held their nerve to reach a victory target of 162, prompting wild celebrations from their camp as they qualified for the World Test Championship final against South Africa. Lord in June.

Travis Head, not out on 34, and debutant Beau Webster, unbeaten on 39, bowled out their team to end the series on a high.

“It’s unreal, it’s been an amazing series,” Australia captain Pat Cummins said shortly after the win.

“It kind of felt like a seesaw the whole series, so to end it 3-1, to hold onto the trophy, it feels amazing,” he said.

“I’m so proud, I absolutely love playing with these guys and it’s been so much fun along the way.”

India captain Jasprit Bumrah was unable to bowl in Australia’s second innings due to a back problem, but his counterparts Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj kept the match on a knife’s edge as they produced four classy Australian knocks.

The match was played in rapid-fire over the first two days and 15 wickets were scored on Saturday and Australia were bowled out for four more to reduce India to 157 in the first hour on Sunday morning.

The track kept some spice and Krishna stood up in place of Bumrah and sent back Sam Konstas for 22, Marnus Labuschagne for six and Steve Smith for four before lunch.

Smith was followed shortly after the break by Usman Khawaja, who was caught behind Siraj on 41 to leave Australia 104-4 with his head down on 9,999 career runs.

The end of a tumultuous Test in which experience took a turn for the better came almost as an anti-climax for another huge crowd to bask in the sunshine at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Head and Webster did the job in a fifth-wicket stand of 58, the latter continuing his nervy debut by stringing together the winning runs with straight fours.

“It was a bit nerve-wracking but sometimes you have to respect your body,” said Bumrah, who was named Player of the Series for his 32 runs in five matches.

“It was a great series. The whole series was well fought and we were in the match today. Our young players will learn a lot for the future.”

The core of the Australian side has been together for years and beating India remains an elusive goal for many of them.

Only Smith, Nathan Lyon and Mitchell Starc were part of the team that triumphed over their rivals a decade ago in the last series.

It was Cummins’ 20th win as captain.

“It’s something that a few of us don’t have. The boys took notice and it lived up to the hype.

“We’ve spent a lot of time together as a group over the years, so we knew we weren’t at our best in Perth.

“But it was never as bad as it seemed. So you hang on tight and double down on what makes us a really good side.”

Australia made three debuts during the series – opener Nathan McSweeney, who was axed after the first three Tests, his replacement Sam Konstas and all-rounder Beau Webster in the fifth Test.

They also relied heavily on stalwarts like Smith, Starc and Head.

“It’s always nice to have a team,” Cummins said.

“The three debutants in this series have settled in well. They contributed at different times.

“There were some key moments where our mainstays really stood up. You have to do that to beat a side like India.”

They are ready to defend their crown in the World Test Championship 👊

Suitable for Australia #WTC25 Final at Lord’s 🏏

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— ICC (@ICC) January 5, 2025