Sydney [Australia], January 1 (ANI): The fifth and final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia at the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) could get affected by rain during the last two days of the match, reported Wisden Cricket.
The final Test will be a New Year’s Test starting on January 3 at the SCG. Also, the Test is a special event as it marks the ‘Jane McGrath Day’, the wife of legendary pacer Glenn McGrath who lost her life in a battle with cancer. “On the third day of the match venue is covered with a full sea of pink and millions of dollars are typically raised for cancer support and awareness in Australia.
As per Google Weather as quoted by Wisden, on day one, the game will start under a thick cloud cover. There is a chance of rain by 25 per cent, which will reduce to just five per cent on day two. The second day will be bright and sunny as will Sunday, with the temperatures also rising to the mid-thirties.
The last two days of the match could get affected by inclement weather, with showers starting at day four end and continuing overnight. A constant drizzle is also likely on day five of the Test.
Also, as per BBC Weather, there could be some rain on Friday afternoon. During the weekend, there will be some sunshine. There is a 68 per cent chance of rain on the night of Monday, the day four of the match, but the weather is likely to be clear during the day’s play. Day five, however, is likely to have heavy showers, which will continue throughout the day.
India is affected by form of their key batters, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant, who have scored just one fifty-plus score throughout the series combined. Despite some incredible bowling from Jasprit Bumrah, who has taken 30 wickets in four matches at an average of 12.83, India have failed to make a big impact in the series and are trailing by 1-2.
Australia, on the other hand, are facing injury concerns with pacer Josh Hazlewood ruled out of the series due to calf injuries. Also, recent reports suggest that another frontline pacer Mitchell Starc has been sent for scans two days before the Sydney Test.
The series is 2-1 in favour of Australia and they are in a strong position to join South Africa in the ICC World Test Championship. However, if India wins the match and draws the series, not only they will retain the trophy again, but will also keep themselves alive in the WTC race, given the results of the Australia-Sri Lanka series next year go their way.
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Travis Head (vc), Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Devdutt Padikkal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar. Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed, Yash Dayal. (ANI)
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