Ind vs Aus 2018-19

India vs Australia: India achieves historic series win as rain washes out last day

India bags the four-Test series 2-1, in the process winning a series Down Under after 72 years.

Team Sportstar Team Sportstar
Sydney Last Updated: 07 January, 2019 09:05 IST

India became the fifth nation after West Indies, South Africa, England and New Zealand to win a Test series Down Under.

Team Sportstar Team Sportstar
Sydney Last Updated: 07 January, 2019 09:05 IST

Hello and welcome to Sportstar's coverage of the fourth and final Test between India and Australia.

And play has been called off! It was just a matter of time anyway. So, that's a wrap on the four-test series as India registers a historic series victory Down Under. The visitor takes the series 2-1.

UPDATE from Cricket Australia: "The match officials will be meeting with the groundstaff at 2:30pm local"

Still no signs of play starting. A 2-1 scoreline appears imminent.

Talk about biding time?

 

Say Cheese!

The India players and support staff pose for a team photo before day five of the Fourth Test match in the series between Australia and India at Sydney Cricket Ground.   -  getty images

 

 

It appears as if lunch will be taken at 12:30 (Sydney Times) and with the showers yet to ease off, the earliest possible start would be 1:10 pm (Sydney Time)

Will 2019 Sydney be on that list?

 

Meanwhile

 

Still no word on start of play. As we patiently await the next update, here's what former Australia captain Ricky Ponting had to say about the host side's 'lack of desperation'.

 

On the final day of the fourth Test at the SCG on Monday - irrespective of whether the visitor forces a win or the game ends in a draw - India will register a momentous conquest after 71 years of touring Australia. (Day 4 Report)

India and Australia have been involved in a slugfest of 11 series and here is a recap of how the series in Down Under, before the ongoing one, has panned out.

Day 4 updates:

Play was supposed to start 30 minutes early to compensate for the overs that were lost on Day three but rain and bad light meant the entire first session was lost. It forced the players to take an early lunch and when play resumed, India was on the money, with the second new ball.

Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah started the slide while Kuldeep Yadav claimed his second five-wicket haul (5/99) in six Test matches.

 

Australia is bowled out for 300 and with 322 runs behind, Virat Kohli enforced the follow-on and as Australia reached 6/0 bad light forced early tea and a break in the proceedings.

For the record, this is the first time Australia is following-on in a Test match, since 2005.

Play has been called off for the day. India will have another 98 overs, conditions permitting, to force an outright victory and claim the series 3-1.

The last instance of Australia following on in Australia was at the SCG in 1988 against England and out of Australia was against England in Trent Bridge in 2005.

 

India is all set for a maiden series win in Australia and let us take you back in time for some of memorable wins before this series. Click here to watch that!

Teams:

Australia (Playing XI): Marcus Harris, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Travis Head, Tim Paine (w/c), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood

India (Playing XI): Lokesh Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (w), Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah