 "India captain Jasprit Bumrah hugs Harshit Rana after the latter gets rid of Alex Carey to seal their 295-run victory over Australia in Perth. AP")
India had arrived in Australia for a marquee five-Test series on the back of a humiliating 0-3 whitewash at the hands of New Zealand at home, and the expectation would have been of the Pat Cummins-led Aussies knocking them over rather easily in the series opener in Perth and dishing out similar treatment in the remaining matches. Few, however, would have expected the Indians to bounce back in emphatic fashion after the drubbing against the Kiwis – fewer still by a thumping 295-run margin .
And yet that is exactly what transpired at Perth’s swanky Optus Stadium for the opening game of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, with India outplaying Australia with bat as well as with ball despite missing skipper Rohit Sharma (paternity leave) as well as Shubman Gill and Mohammed Shami (injury).
The visitors were shot out for 150 after opting to bat, only to bowl the Aussies out for 104 in reply thanks to an inspired spell from stand-in skipper Jasprit Bumrah’s five-for (5/30). Yashasvi Jaiswal (161) and Virat Kohli (100 not out) would then slam centuries in the second innings to take the game beyond Australia’s reach, setting Cummins and Co an improbable 534-run target.
Australia had been reduced to 12/3 in the closing minutes of Day 3, and Travis Head’s fighting knock of 89 only served to delay the inevitable on Monday as Australia were eventually bowled out for 238, completing one of India’s greatest victories ever.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsHow does the Perth result affect the ICC World Test Championship standings and the race to Lord’s
India had been dislodged from the top of the WTC standings after the clean sweep against the Black Caps, but are back at the No 1 spot following their commanding victory in the ‘West Test’, with their Points Percentage (PCT) back into the 60s (61.11). Australia are back to the second spot with a PCT of 57.69, which isn’t that far off from the next three teams on the list – Sri Lanka (55.56), New Zealand (54.54) and South Africa (54.16).
The series is by no means over and Australia can still claw their way back to the top of the table despite the demoralising loss in Perth. As for India, they cannot afford to lose a single match in the remainder of the series – which will be their final games of the ongoing WTC cycle as well.
As discussed earlier, India will need to win the series by a margin of 4-0 or better if they are to qualify for the final in Lord’s next year without depending on other teams.
New Zealand, meanwhile, are up against England in a three-Test series at home and certainly have the home advantage when it comes to qualifying for a second final in three editions. Sri Lanka sit at the third spot and face Australia at home early next year, but face a tough two-Test tour of South Africa.
The Proteas are widely favoured to secure one of the top two spots as they have back-to-back two-Test assignments at home, facing Pakistan along with Sri Lanka.