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Team India are gearing up for the fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. The iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) will host the all-important Test, starting Thursday, December 26.
The five-match affair is currently tied at 1-1, with two Tests still to go. The visitors won the first Test in Perth by a mammoth 295 runs. The Aussies returned the favor in the second Test in Adelaide, beating India by 10 wickets. The third match of the series, which was marred by rain, ended in a draw.
The series is poised beautifully, with both teams expected to go all out for a win in Melbourne. Rohit Sharma and company have happy memories from their last outing in Melbourne and would want to repeat the same.
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For that to happen, India need to come out as a bowling unit and support Jasprit Bumrah, which has been lacking so far in the series. The bowlers can draw inspiration from their predecessors, who ran riot at the MCG before.
On that note, let's look at the top five bowling spells by an Indian in a Test at MCG.
Top 5 bowling spells by an Indian in a Test at MCG
#1 Jasprit Bumrah - 6/33 - 2018
In his first tour Down Under, Jasprit Bumrah grabbed headlines with a spell for the ages. In the Boxing Day Test of the 2018-19 tour in Melbourne, India batted first and posted 443/7 before declaring their innings.
In reply, the hosts were bundled out for a mere 151 runs, with Bumrah shedding fire with the ball. He returned with figures of 6/33 - the best bowling figures by an India at the MCG. The right-arm pacer dismissed a well-set Marcus Harris before getting rid of Shaun Marsh and Travis Head in quick succession.
Bumrah then dismissed Tim Paine before cleaning up the tail, with the wickets of Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon in the same over.
He picked up three more wickets in the second essay to finish with a nine-wicket haul as India registered a 137-run victory.
#2 BS Chandrasekhar - 6/52 - 1977-78
Indian spinners largely struggled on Australian wickets until BS Chandrasekhar proved otherwise with a scintillating outing in Melbourne.
Batting first, India were bundled out for 256 runs before the hosts resumed their regular task of toiling hard with opposition bowlers. However, Chandrasekhar stood tall against Aussie batters and spun a web to bowl them out for 213, helping India secure a crucial first-innings lead.
Sunil Gavaskar scored a magnificent hundred in the second innings to put India on top in the match before Chandrasekhar once again made the lives of Aussies batters difficult to eke out a historic win for the country. The leg-spinner returned with identical figures of 6/52 to finish with a 12-wicket haul.
Riding on Gavaskar's century and Chandrasekhar's 12 wickets, India registered their first-ever Test win on Australian soil, securing a 222-run victory.
#3 Anil Kumble - 5/84 - 2007
Although India suffered a massive 337-run defeat in this game, fans remember it for Anil Kumble's big-hearted spell on the opening day of the Test match.
It is well known that spinners have hardly tasted success on Australian wickets, but Kumble proved everyone wrong by picking up a five-wicket haul on Day 1 of the Melbourne Test during the 2007-08 tour.
Australia got off to an excellent start, adding 135 runs for the first wicket, before Kumble drew first blood by dismissing Phil Jaques. He got the dangerous Mike Hussey out for four before dismissing Andrew Symonds (35) and Adam Gilchrist (23), who were showing signs of playing big knocks.
Kumble trapped Brett Lee for his fifth wicket and returned with figures of 5/84 as India bowled out Australia for 343 runs. However, the visitors had a poor outing with the bat across two innings and suffered a massive defeat.
#4 Kapil Dev - 5/28 - 1981
Former India skipper Kapil Dev is arguably the greatest all-rounder the country has ever witnessed. He had the ability to rise from the ashes stand out from the rest.
In the third Test of the 1981 tour, India were down and out after conceding a mammoth 182-run lead in the first innings. The Indian batting fared better in the second essay to set up a 143-run target for Australia to chase in the fourth innings.
While it seemed like a cakewalk for the home side, Dev had other plans. Bowling second change, he picked up 5/28 in 16.4 overs to bundle out Australia for 83 runs, thus securing a historic 59-run victory for his side.
After Karsan Ghavri gave India a decent start, Kapil Dev bulldozed Australia's middle and lower order to script a famous win. It remains one of India's best spells from a pacer in Australia to date.
#5 Ravichandran Ashwin - 3/35 - 2020
India came into this Test with their confidence down in the grave after being bowled out for 36 in Adelaide. However, Ravichandran Ashwin began the turnaround for what was a historic series win for the Men in Blue.
Asked to bowl first after losing the toss, India bundled out the Aussies for 195 runs. Jasprit Bumrah drew the first blood before Ashwin joined the party by dismissing wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Wade for 30. He then got the better of former Aussie skipper Steve Smith for a duck and completed his three-wicket haul with the wicket of Tim Paine.
Ashwin also picked up two wickets in the second essay, as India chased down 70 runs to complete a memorable turnaround in the series.
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