2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by India in the 5th BGT 2024/25 Test vs Australia ft. bowling combination

India succumbed to a disappointing defeat at the Sydney Cricket Ground as they went down to Australia by six wickets on Sunday, January 5. With the defeat, the visitors conceded the Border-Gavaskar Trophy to the Aussies by a 2-1 scoreline.

India also failed to qualify for the World Test Championship final despite being one of the favorites to make the grade not too long ago. The pressure is immense on head coach Gautam Gambhir, who has overseen a disastrous series of results in recent months.

India have been found wanting on the tactical front throughout Gambhir's tenure, and the fifth and final Test against the Kangaroos was no different. On that note, here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by India in the fifth Test against Australia.

---

#3 Mistake - India didn't take enough risks when the conditions were tough

BORDER GAVASKAR TROPHY TEST: JAN 05 fifth NRMA Insurance Test - Source: Getty

With conditions at the Sydney Cricket Ground proving extremely difficult for batting, India needed to find an unorthodox way to score runs and stay alive in the match. But after electing to bat first, the visitors' batters didn't do nearly enough to throw the Australian bowlers off their lengths.

Barring Rishabh Pant in the second innings, the Indian batters didn't bat at a high tempo. A number of them, including Virat Kohli, KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja, were out playing defensive strokes. Jadeja and Washington Sundar didn't go on the charge even when it was clear that it was their best chance of survival.

Speaking of which...

---

#2 Masterstroke - Rishabh Pant's audacity gave India a fighting chance

BORDER GAVASKAR TROPHY TEST: JAN 04 fifth NRMA Insurance Test - Source: Getty

Pant understood that he needed to be proactive to give India a fighting total to bowl at in the final innings. The southpaw not only recognized that but played a masterful array of shots against the right matchups.

Once a clearly unfit Mitchell Starc came into the attack, Pant capitalized on the short leg-side boundary to heave him over the ropes for a couple of sixes. He also tried to throw Beau Webster off his lengths by coming down the track and hitting down the ground.

In an innings where India let themselves down majorly, Pant's bravery and intelligence stood out.

---

#1 Mistake - Jasprit Bumrah and Co. didn't pick an additional specialist quick

BORDER GAVASKAR TROPHY TEST: JAN 05 fifth NRMA Insurance Test - Source: Getty

After dropping Rohit Sharma and replacing him with Shubman Gill, India bolstered their batting slightly. However, they weren't willing to use that as a reason to play an additional specialist quick, which was one of the biggest reasons behind their defeat at the SCG.

Having two spinners in the lineup on a green top meant that India were always going to struggle to rotate their quicks. Once Jasprit Bumrah went off with a back niggle after bowling 10 overs in the first innings, the situation became even more dire.

The fundamental principle of Test cricket is that a team needs to pick up 20 wickets, for which India needed to play four outright fast bowlers. They failed to do that, and it cost them the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.