IND vs AUS: Australia has finally had the last laugh, as they have retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT 2024/25) after a decade with a 3-1 win over India. Pat Cummins, the invincible skipper, has captivated all with his stunning rise over all formats of the game.
India started the series on a very strong note when they defeated Australia at Perth in the first test but could not hold onto their form in the remaining tests.
The hosts seemed to have ticked all the boxes in every test since the Perth test; however, let’s take a good look at the flaws in India’s campaign at the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Three reasons that resulted in India’s loss in the BGT:
1. Indian frontline batters failed to perform
With the exception of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who performed in his first-ever BGT on Australian soil, every other Indian batter, especially the top order, failed to score runs for India and got out at crucial junctures of the game.
Australia has been a more collective unit, with Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, and Travis Head being the torchbearers of the Australian innings, who have led them with the bat. Even the likes of debutant Sam Konstas and wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey scored vital runs for their team at times.
Not only did the most experienced batsmen, Rohit Sharma and veteran Virat Kohli, miss out on runs, but also the other players like KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Shubman Gill repeatedly underperformed with the bat.
2. Australia’s lower order overpowered the Indian bowling attack
The Indian bowlers were worthy of praise over multiple instances as they got the best of the top-order batters in the Australian side. On such occasions when the Aussie batters went for fewer runs, lower-order batters like skipper Pat Cummins and fast bowler Mitchell Starc saved the collapse of the Australian innings on several occasions.
Nathan Lyon and Scott Boland also, on several occasions, scored vital runs for Australia when they needed their tailenders to score runs. Despite the finest of bowlers excelling, they could not rip apart the Australian tail.
3. Lack of strategic calls from the Indian captains
Be it Rohit Sharma in the three tests he played in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, or Jasprit Bumrah or Virat Kohli in their stand-in roles as Indian skipper, they failed to implement a strategic core against the Australian lineup.
Aussie skipper Pat Cummins always had a clear view of their tactics in the match and could execute every plan against the Indian batters.
India lacked strategic calls, as they made poor team selection; they opted for a higher batting depth and hence could not excel with their pace attack, which Australia did find in their pace options like Scott Boland and all-rounder pacers Mitchell Marsh or Beau Webster.
