India vs Australia highlights, 4th Test Day 5: Jasprit Bumrah not a statistical person, says Rohit Sharma

Australia clinched a dominant 184-run victory in the fourth Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Monday, taking a 2-1 lead in the five-match series. India, chasing a daunting target of 340, were bowled out for 155 with just 12.5 overs remaining, leaving them needing a win in the final Test in Sydney on Friday to level the series and retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Pat Cummins led Australia’s charge, claiming 3/28 and dismissing top-scorer Yashasvi Jaiswal for 84 as India’s last seven wickets tumbled for just 34 runs in 20.3 overs.

Although India’s chances of saving the match seemed promising at tea, with Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant batting through the entire second session to reach 112/3, Pant’s dismissal for 30, caught in the deep off a reckless shot against part-time spinner Travis Head, triggered a collapse.

Ravindra Jadeja and first-innings centurion Nitish Kumar Reddy fell quickly, before Cummins wrapped up Jaiswal’s determined 208-ball knock in controversial fashion. The 23-year-old was initially given not out to a caught-behind appeal after an attempted hook, but the TV umpire overturned the decision, citing visual evidence of the ball changing direction, despite no noise being detected by the technology.

Akash Deep was dismissed at short leg off Scott Boland (3/39), and Jasprit Bumrah was dismissed for a second duck of the match. Mohammed Siraj was the last man out, trapped lbw by Nathan Lyon (2/37).

Washington Sundar showed resilience, remaining not out on five after facing 45 balls.

India's hopes had already been rocked in the first session, with veteran batsmen Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and Virat Kohli all dismissed for single-figure scores.

Cummins completed an inspired Test, claiming 3/38 and six wickets in total, while also scoring 90 runs—the best batting performance of his career.

Australia have taken a giant step towards the final of the World Test Championship after beating India by 184-runs in a dramatic finish to the fourth Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. From a seemingly confident position at 112/3 at the Tea break, India collapsed to 155 all out.

With the win, Australia took a 2-1 lead in the five-match series which now moves to Sydney from 3 January. But more importantly for the Pat Cummins-led side, they are step away from defending their crown at Lord's in June.


The win keeps Australia in second place but ensures India will have to rely on Sri Lanka to overhaul them, even if they win in Sydney. South Africa, meanwhile, had maintained their place at the top of the charts with a dramatic two-wicket win against Pakistan on Sunday.

After the win, Australia have moved themselves to 61.46 percentage points for winning 10 of their 16 matches in the two-year cycle. South Africa are top of the charts with 66.67 points. India, meanwhile, remain third with 52.78 points.

India's quest to play the WTC Final for a third straight time suffered one jolt after another. It all began with the 3-0 series loss at home against New Zealand. In Australia, India got off to a positive start, winning the opener in Perth by a massive 295 runs.

But Australia clinched the second Test, at the Adelaide Oval, by 10-wickets, to keep themselves in the thick of things as far as WTC Points Table is concerned.

A draw at the Gabba in Brisbane didn't help either side. Instead, it made the MCG Test even more important than the context of the series and bragging rights that go with it.

But with India losing seven wickets in the final session, Australia got the job done for a comprehensive win out of nowhere.

Pat Cummins is awarded the Johnny Mullagh Medal for Player of the Match, named in honor of the star player from the 1868 Aboriginal tour of England.

Australia defeated India by 184 runs in the fourth Test to take a 2-1 lead in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Chasing a challenging target of 340 runs, India were dismissed for 155 in 79.1 overs on Day 5.

Yashasvi Jaiswal (84 off 208) fought valiantly for India, scoring his second half-century of the match. Alongside him, Rishabh Pant (30 off 104) played a crucial role, as the pair batted through the entire second session to guide India to 112/3. However, Pant’s dismissal opened the door for the Australian bowlers.

Pat Cummins was the standout performer for Australia, taking three key wickets in a relentless spell of fast bowling.

Australia resumed Day 5 at 228/9 and were bowled out for 234, with India's Jasprit Bumrah (5/57) leading the charge with a brilliant five-wicket haul.

After Pat Cummins was denied the opportunity to use a review on Mohammed Siraj on Day 4, a dramatic incident unfolded on the fifth and final day of the fourth Test at a packed Melbourne Cricket Stadium.

The moment occurred in the 71st over of India’s innings as they chased a target of 340 runs. Yashasvi Jaiswal attempted to pull a short delivery from Pat Cummins but gloved it behind to Alex Carey, who dived forward to take the catch just inches above the ground. Cummins and Carey immediately appealed and began celebrating, but the on-field umpire remained unmoved.

Confident in the dismissal, Cummins opted for a review.

Replays confirmed a deflection off the glove, but Snickometer showed no spike. Despite the absence of an audio cue, third umpire Sharfuddoula relied on visual evidence and overturned the on-field decision, declaring Yashasvi out.

A visibly disappointed Yashasvi sought clarification from the umpires but was ultimately sent back to the pavilion.

He departed after a brilliant knock of 84 off 208 balls, studded with eight boundaries.

Yashasvi’s outstanding performances this year have cemented his place among India’s cricketing greats. He has amassed 1,478 Test runs in 2024, placing him third on India’s list of most runs in a calendar year. He trails only Sachin Tendulkar (1,562 in 2010) and Sunil Gavaskar (1,555 in 1979), with the record still within reach.

Rohit Sharma moved himself in his customary opening position for the Boxing Day Test after a short stint in the middle order during the second and third Test of the ongoing Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT). But none of those moves have proved fruitful, with another failure in the second innings of the Melbourne Test adding to the Indian skipper's batting woes.

Dismissed for 9 by Pat Cummins on the final morning of the fourth Test in Melbourne, Rohit's appalling aggregate in five innings so far on the tour of Australia reads 31, giving him an average of 6.20. Unless he resurrects that by returning to form in the last Test at Sydney, an ignominious record is set to be written in the name of Rohit.

At present, his average is the worst for any visiting captain in a Test series in Australia. Here's the list:

1. Rohit Sharma - India - batting average 6.20 (Year 2024-25)
2. Courtney Walsh - West Indies - 7.75 (1996-97)
3. Ivo Bligh - England - 8.25 (1882-83)
4. Arthur Gilligan - England - 9.14 (1924-25)
5. Dean Elgar - South Africa - 9.33 (2022-23)

Rohit missed the first Test of this series as he was on a paternity leave after the birth of his child. Standing in for Rohit as captain, Jasprit Bumrah led India to a massive 295-run victory.

Rohit took over the leadership duty in the pink-ball Test at Adelaide, which India lost by 10 wickets. The visitors then hung in to force a draw in the third Test at Brisbane. Rohit batted at No. 6 in both the matches, sacrificing his slot for KL Rahul who had been batting well on the top of the order along with Yashasvi Jaiswal.

But with runs continuing to elude the India captain, he decided to return to the opening position for the fourth Test in Melbourne as Rahul shifted to No. 3. However, Rohit's bat remained silent as he was dismissed for 3 and 9 in the two innings.

Australia, who were dismissed for 234 in their second innings at Melbourne, set India a challenging 340-run target on the final day.

Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant showcased resilience, batting through the entire second session to take India to 112/3 at tea on day five of the fourth Test against Australia on Monday.

Chasing a daunting target of 340, India, who were 33/3 at lunch, still require 228 runs for an improbable victory. Jaiswal remained unbeaten on 63, while Pant was on 28.

Earlier in the morning session, India lost Rohit Sharma (9), KL Rahul (0), and Virat Kohli (5), with Kohli falling to Mitchell Starc at the stroke of lunch.

Australia, resuming their second innings at 228/9, were bowled out for 234 on the final day.

Jasprit Bumrah led the charge for India, claiming a five-wicket haul (5/57) to cap another stellar performance.

Virat Kohli's poor tour of Australia continued on Monday and his downfall came in a fashion that has been seen multiple times already. In the 27th over of India's chase of 340 runs, Kohli threw his wicket away and India lost their third wicket at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

In what has been the theme of the tour and quite obvious to the batter and the opposition bowlers, Kohli has gone chasing to deliveries outside the off-stump only to produce an edge which has been lapped up by the Australian team.

This time, Starc bowled a full delivery, angled across the right-handed Kohli who played away from his body in an attempt at pocketing runs with a drive. However he got a thick outside edge which flew to Usman Khawaja at first slip. The Aussie opener got low to his left to take the catch and reduce India to 33/3.


It is not the first time Kohli has been dismissed to a delivery outside-off. In the first innings at the MCG, he looked solid and patient to those balls. Yet, he ultimately fell to a delivery that was on the fifth-sixth stump line by Scott Boland.

Except a second-inning century at Perth, Kohli has had a poor tour Down Under considering his otherwise stellar record. His other scores in the four Tests have been 5, 7, 11, 3, 36 and 5 for an average of 11.66.

In the fourth Test, India's grim batting was exposed once again with experienced Rohit Sharma and Kohli falling cheaply. Also falling before the Lunch break was KL Rahul for a duck. An unrelenting Pat Cummins took 2/10 off nine overs, removing Rohit and KL Rahul in quick succession.

Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was 14 not out at the break after grinding for 83 balls, with India's run rate reduced to a stagnant 1.26 by accurate Australian bowling.

India need a record fourth-innings Melbourne run chase of 340 to go 2-1 up in the series, after Australia posted 234 in their second innings.

They will more likely try to bat out the rest of the day to salvage a draw and keep the series locked at 1-1 going into Sydney's final Test, which begins Friday.

A new attendance record has been established for a Test match in Australia. Over 350,700 spectators entered the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) during the five days of the fourth Test between Australia and India. This surpasses the previous record of 350,534 set in 1937.

Cricket Australia confirmed on Monday that 51,371 people had attended the first session of the fifth day, with more expected later.

This attendance figure means the 2024 MCG Boxing Day Test has attracted more spectators than the six-day Test match between a Sir Donald Bradman-led Australia and England in January 1937 at the same venue.

The crowds for this Test match have been exceptional.

The daily attendance figures were 87,242, 85,147, 83,073, 43,867, and 51,371, with the final count for day five still pending.

A higher attendance on day five compared to day four is unusual. The Melbourne Cricket Club, which manages the MCG, underestimated the day five numbers.

The Melbourne Cricket Club opened Yarra Park outside the MCG for general public parking on day five. This is an uncommon occurrence.

Only one gate was opened, causing significant traffic congestion before the start of play, resulting in some fans arriving late.

These record-breaking numbers follow the substantial crowds that attended India's matches at the MCG during the 2022 T20 World Cup. A crowd of 90,293 watched India play Pakistan. Another 82,507 spectators attended the India versus Zimbabwe match.

India were struggling at 33 for 3 at lunch, chasing a challenging 340-run target against Australia on day five of the fourth Test on Monday.

Rohit Sharma (9), KL Rahul (0), and Virat Kohli (5) were the batters dismissed.

Kohli was caught at first slip off Mitchell Starc just before the lunch break.

Australia, resuming at 228 for 9, were bowled out for 234 on the final day.

Jasprit Bumrah, India’s star pacer, led the charge with a five-wicket haul (5/57), supported well by Mohammed Siraj (3/70) and Ravindra Jadeja (1/33).

In the morning session, Australia’s number 10 and 11, Nathan Lyon (41 off 55) and Scott Boland (15 not out off 74), added six runs before Bumrah bowled out Lyon.