Australia defeated India by six wickets in Sydney on Sunday, January 5, to confirm their place in the 2025 World Test Championship (WTC) final, which will be played at Lord’s in June. After the defeat at the SCG, the Indian team failed to finish in the top two spots in the 2023-25 World Test Championship standings.
Australia took just 45 minutes to end India’s second innings on Sunday morning. Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna struggled with the delivery failing, allowing Australia to score 35 runs in the first three overs. Openers Usman Khawaja and Sam Konstas added 39 runs for the first wicket.
Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith were cheaply dismissed by Krishna. Mohammed Siraj removed Khawaja, who scored a crucial 41 runs. Travis Head and rookie Beau Webster led the team to victory. Australia reached the target of 162 runs with six wickets in hand to win the series 3-1.
Rishabh Pant played a sensational knock in India’s second innings
Earlier, the Indian team managed to score 185 runs after winning the toss. Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant top-scored for India with 40 runs off 98 balls. For Australia, Scott Boland was the pick of the bowlers, taking four wickets for 31 runs. Australia scored 181 runs, conceding a four-run lead in the first innings.
Beau Webster smashed his maiden half-century in Tests, scoring 57 runs off 105 balls. India’s fast bowlers took the last five wickets despite Jasprit Bumrah being out. Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj took two wickets each, while Jasprit Bumrah and Nitish Kumar Reddy took two wickets each.
Rishabh Pant played a sensational knock in the second innings on a demanding surface. The left-handed batsman scored 61 runs off 33 balls with the help of six fours and four sixes. However, the rest of the batsmen failed to put up a fight as India were bowled out for 157 runs. Boland took six wickets for 45 runs.
Updated ICC World Test Championship Points Table (WTC Table) After 5th Test IND vs AUS Revealed
India’s points percentage in the World Test Championship standings fell from 52.77% to 50% after their eighth defeat of the cycle. On the other hand, Australia improved its PCT from 61.45% to 63.73% after its 11th win. Australia retained its second place in the WTC rankings.
South Africa have already secured their place in the WTC 2025 final at Lord’s after their win over Pakistan. Australia qualified for the final with the win, and India was officially eliminated from the competition.
Here is the updated points table for the ICC Test World Cup:
| pos | Team | Played | won | lost | Draw | Grandpa | Points | PCT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Q South Africa | 11 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 88 | 66.67 |
| 2 | Q Australia | 17 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 10 | 130 | 63.73 |
| 3 | India | 19 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 114 | 50.00 |
| 4 | New Zealand | 14 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 81 | 48.21 |
| 5 | Sri Lanka | 11 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 60 | 45.45 |
| 6 | England | 22 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 22 | 114 | 43.18 |
| 7 | Bangladesh | 12 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 45 | 31.25 |
| 8 | Pakistan | 11 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 40 | 8:30 p.m |
| 9 | West Indies | 11 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 32 | 24.24 |
Australia will play two Test matches in their next series against Sri Lanka. The first Test match will be played at the Galle International Stadium in Galle, starting on January 29. Australia will play the second and final Test at the same venue from February 13.
Also read: Prasidh Krishna reveals all about Jasprit Bumrah’s shocking injury during the Sydney Test
