New Delhi: Australia hammered India by 184 runs in the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Monday to go 2-1 up in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 and consolidate their second spot on the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 points table. Australia rode on impressive spells from Pat Cummins, Scott Boland and Nathan Lyon to bowl out India for a paltry 155 runs in their 340-run chase in the 2nd innings and wrap up a dominant win.
It was yet another shambolic batting display from the visitors in their second innings as the senior batters failed to turn up in the 340-run chase, leaving the team in a spot of bother. The likes of Rohit Sharma (9), KL Rahul (0) and Virat Kohli (5) were all dismissed cheaply as India got off to a horror start in the chase, suffering a dramatic top-order collapse.
Yashavi Jaiswal slammed a brilliant knock of 84 runs and combined with Rishabh Pant (30) to steady the ship with an 88-run stand for the 4th wicket. However, Pant’s departure triggered another collapse as India went on to lose 7 wickets for just 44 runs to lose the Test match by a big margin. The crushing defeat came as a massive blow to India’s chances of qualifying for the WTC 2023-25 final.
Though India are still alive in the race for the WTC final despite their defeat in the 4th Test against Australia in Melbourne, their fate is no more in their own hands. The fifth and final Test against the hosts in Sydney is now a must-win game for India, who are currently placed in the 3rd spot on the WTC points table with a win percentage of 52.78 with 9 wins, 7 losses and 2 draws from 18 Tests in the ongoing cycle.
Updated WTC 2023-25 points table:
How can India still qualify for WTC final?
South Africa have already sealed a spot in the WTC 2023-25 final after clinching a thriller against Pakistan in the 1st Test in Centurion on Sunday. The Proteas became the first team to make it to the summit clash, further spicing up the race between India and Australia for the second spot in the final. India’s loss at the MCG on Monday could prove to be decisive in deciding the second finalist.
India are still in the hunt but the only way they can qualify for the WTC final is if they beat Australia in the 5th and final Test of the series in Sydney which gets underway on January 03. If India lose or draw the 5th Test, Australia will not only clinch the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 but also secure their spot in the WTC final.
However, even a victory in the 5th Test in Sydney will not guarantee India a spot in the WTC final. They would still need a favour from Sri Lanka to qualify. If India win the 5th Test, Sri Lanka will have to beat Australia at least 1-0 in the two-match Test series between them in January-February next year for Rohit Sharma & Co. to qualify.
If Australia manage to win a Test match against Sri Lanka, they would qualify even after losing the 5th Test against India in Sydney in the ongoing series. In case of a draw in Sydney, Australia will still be the favourites to qualify as they will need to just avoid a clean sweep in the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka to book a spot in the WTC 2023-25 final.
Despite their crushing 184-run defeat in the 4th Test against Australia at the MCG on Monday, India are still alive in the race for the World Test Championship (WTC) final. However, their fate is no more in their hands. Here is a look at India’s WTC final scenario after defeat in Melbourne. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
