Team India script a memorable and historical punch to Australia in Gabba to win the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2020-21, 2-1 to retain the trophy for the third successive time. This young Indian side pulled off a miracle to break the 32-years drought in Brisbane.
Venue: Gabba Cricket Ground, Brisbane
Toss: Australia opted to bat first
Detailed Match Report
Day 1 (Aus 274/5)
Natarajan and Washington Sundar made their Test debut. Nathan Lyon played his 100th Test for Australia. Siraj struck early to dismiss Warner as Rohit picked a stunner in slip. Thakur got his maiden scalp with the wicket of Marcus Harris. Labuschagne and Smith added 70 runs before Sundar picked Smith as the maiden test wicket. Wade joined Labuschagne, and the duo controlled the match. They put a century stand for the 4th wicket. Rahane and Pujara dropped the catches, and later, Labuschagne completed his first hundred against India. Natarajan picked both to set a tone for India. Paine and Green won the final hour with a gritty stand, and Australia finished the day on 274/5.
Day 2 (Aus 369, Ind 62/2)
India formed a mini-collapse and break the big stand of Paine and Green. Paine scored his second half-century of the series. From 305/5, Australia slipped to 315/8. The tail contributed, in the end, to get 369 in the first innings. Thakur, Sundar, and Natarajan picked three wickets each.
Australia got Gill early as Cummins struck with a fine delivery. Rohit and Pujara showed good intent. Rohit looked pretty good and scored easy boundaries. He threw his wicket to hit Lyon and got out on 44. India finished day 2 on 62/2 as rain played the spoilsport in the final session.
Day 3 (Ind 336, Aus 21/0)
On Day 3, India needed partnerships, but they lost Pujara early. Mayank Agarwal looked better, and Rahane made a similar mistake to provide the edge in slip. Later, India lost Agarwal and Pant to find themselves on 186/6. Shardul Thakur started the innings with a fine six on pull shot, and he added crucial runs with Sundar. At the tea, India were 253/6. In the final session, both players scored their maiden half-century. Washington Sundar became the third Indian player to make a double of scoring fifty and picking three wickets. Cummins broke the 123-runs stand with Thakur’s wicket. India finished on 336, and Hazlewood claimed his 9th 5-wickets haul in Tests, second in the series. In the remaining half-an-hour, Australia survived and finished the third day on 21 without losing a wicket.
Day 4 (Aus 294, Ind 4/0)
The most important day of this match started with a fine opening stand from Warner and Harris. India got both openers in successive overs. Natarajan got two wickets in four balls as Labuschagne and Wade got out when the partnership was forming. From 123/4, Australia formed a partnership with Smith and Green in the middle. Smith completed his 31st half-century in Test. Siraj bagged Smith’s wicket after dropping two catches earlier. Before rain stopped the game and tea taken, Australia were 243/7. In the final session, Australia went for quick runs, and India bowled them out on 294. Siraj scalped his maiden 5-wickets haul, and his bowling spell was the third-best figure by an Indian at Gabba. Aussies set the target of 328 for India in the 4th innings. Rain interrupted the game when India were 4/0 in 1.5 overs, and later, umpires announced the stumps of day 4.
Day 5 (Ind 32
India lost Rohit early, and Australia put pressure on visitors. Pujara stood like a wall, and Gill showed an aggressive approach. Starc even conceded 20 runs in his one over. Before going into the second session, India were 83/1, and Gill got his second Test half-century. He missed out the ton by 9 runs but ended up as the leading run-getter of the series for India. Pujara also earned the feat of becoming the 10th leading run-scorer in Tests by India. Rahane showed an aggressive approach, and his quick 24 pushed India towards victory. In the second session, India scored 100 runs and lost two wickets. Pant also completed 1000 runs in Tests, the quickest by any Indian wicketkeeper-batsman. Pujara scored his 3rd half-century of the series and with the new ball, Cummins got him out to add a twist in this match.
Star Performer of the Match
Washington Sundar is our star performer of the match. The debutant Indian star played a fine knock of 62 in the first innings to pull the team out of the trouble. He also bagged three wickets in the first innings. He also played a match-winning cameo with Pant to script a win.
5 impactful players of the match
Labuschagne 108 & 25
Washington Sundar 62, 22 & 169/4
Steve Smith 36 & 55
Rishabh Pant 23 & 88
Shardul Thakur 67 & 155/7
