The Indian team secured an emphatic 295-run victory against Australia in the opening test of BGT 2024-25 in Perth. After getting all-out for 150 in the first innings, the visitors staged a comeback that will be remembered for ages.
Australia started the day under incessant pressure at 12/3, and they needed the batters to step-up to save them from a huge defeat at the hands of India. In only the third over, Mohammed Siraj bowled a sharp bouncer, and Usman Khawaja tried to release the pressure with an expensive shot. However, the ball took a top edge and went up in the air and the southpaw was caught by keeper Pant for 4.
Steve Smith displayed resistance and was building a solid stand with Travis Head, who was playing with a positive intent. However, Mohammed Siraj induced Smith’s edge off his peach of a delivery and sent him packing for 17. At Lunch, Australia were at 104/5.
The second session saw Head continuing his momentum by finding odd boundaries on a pitch, which demanded quite a hard work for the Indian bowlers. On the other hand, Mitchell Marsh also supported the team well with his balanced approach.
Travis Head’s dismissal fast-tracked India to a dominating victory
Just when it looked like there was nothing offered from the surface, captain Jasprit Bumrah again came to rescue the Indian side. He bowled a back-of-length delivery, which seamed away after pitching, and Travis Head’s outside edge was caught by keeper Rishabh Pant. The southpaw was dismissed on a well-made 89 off 101.
Soon, Nitish Kumar Reddy was introduced into the attack for the first time in the game. The all-rounder was accurate with his lengths and disturbed Marsh on a few occasions. The Aussie all-rounder scored 47 before dragging Reddy’s ball on to the stumps, as it stayed low and was not short enough to cut.
At the stroke of Tea, Dhruv Jurel plucked a stunning one-handed catch of Mitchell Starc (12) by displaying his quick reaction time, to reduce Australia to 227/8.
Then, Washington Sundar got past the defense of Nathan Lyon (0) to break his furniture. The debutant, Harshit Rana broke Alex Carey’s (36) resistance by deceiving him with a slower ball and help India win the game. Bumrah was named as Player of the Match for taking a total of eight wickets in the game.
Interestingly, India became the first side to beat Australia at the Perth Stadium since 2018. The victory sets the tone for India for the rest of the series, as they have a huge mountain to climb for qualifying for the WTC final.
